After working as a volunteer teacher, press officer and newspaper reporter, Peter joined the BBC in 1981, working on Blue Peter, Newsnight, and produced Crimewatch UK. He was responsible for more than 40 environmental programmes for Bristol's Natural History Unit, BBC Two seasons like Last Days of Leningrad and War and Peace and was Executive Producer of Oscar-winning animation The Wrong Trousers for Aardman Animations.
He left the BBC in the early 90s and became Controller of Factual Programmes for Channel 4, where his teams won a record number of BAFTAs, RTS Awards and International Emmies. He went on to become Director of Programmes at Granada TV in Manchester, overseeing shows such as World in Action, Coronation Street and The Mrs Merton Show.
In 1997, he returned to the BBC as Controller of BBC One, commissioning projects like Clocking Off, dinnerladies, Holby City and Waking The Dead. As BBC Director of Sport he oversaw the Manchester Commonwealth Games, the Athens Olympics, the return of Match of the Day and where he co-created Sport Relief. After briefly running independent producer The Television Corporation, in October 2006 he was made Chief Creative Officer of BBC Vision Productions, overseeing the largest content creator in the world. Peter is now Director, BBC North where he is in charge of the BBC's newest and largest base outside London including BBC Children's, BBC Sport and Radio 5 live.