EXCLUSIVE : It’s been nearly eight months since Alex Mahon resigned as the CEO of Channel 4 , but the UK network is finally closing in on its next boss.

Deadline hears that Mahon’s successor could be unveiled as early as this week after staff were told to expect an announcement before Christmas.

Two frontrunners have emerged: Jonathan Allan, Channel 4’s chief operating officer and interim CEO; and Emma Lloyd, Netflix’s vice president of partnerships EMEA. Others think another unknown candidate could still be in the mix.

Sources are divided on who will clinch the top job, which is in keeping with a tightly run process that has largely kept people guessing — even senior figures at Channel 4. “It’s been such a closely-guarded secret,” said one insider.

Allan’s name has been in the mi

See Full Page