EXCLUSIVE: Channel 4‘s leadership limbo is closer to being resolved.

Deadline hears that the field of candidates to become Channel 4’s chair has narrowed, with Debbie Wosskow, a digital entrepreneur and serving C4 board member, now out of the running.

Earlier on Tuesday, Sky News’ Mark Kleinman reported that Justin King, the former boss of retail giant Sainsbury’s, is also no longer a candidate.

Wosskow and King were considered to be the two leading contenders, but Sky News noted that private equity executive Wol Kolade and another unnamed candidate are in the mix. A Conservative Party donor, Kolade has previously served as a non-executive director at NHS England and advocated for a rethink of the health service’s funding.

Ofcom, the UK media regulator, has overseen the Channel 4 chair recruitment process, but the appointment is ultimately signed off by the government. An Ofcom announcement is expected imminently.

Ofcom’s search began in December after it was revealed that Ian Cheshire was stepping down. There have been frustrations over how long the process has taken, with the leadership limbo further complicated by the exit of CEO Alex Mahon over the summer.

Some Channel 4 employees viewed Wosskow as the candidate to beat. She was appointed to Channel 4’s board in January 2024, meaning she is a known quantity at Horseferry Road. Wosskow is also said to have a good relationship with Ofcom chair Lord Grade.

She founded Love Home Swap, a tech startup she sold to American hotel company Wyndham in a £40 million ($54 million) deal in 2017, and is now co-chair of the government’s Invest in Women Taskforce.

Other ventures have been less successful. Allbright, a women-only members’ club, collapsed months after she left the business. The company burned through a Covid loan from the government worth £9.46M, which administrators noted would not be repaid.

Others linked to the Channel 4 chair role have included Dawn Airey, the former Channel 5 chief currently serving as Channel 4’s interim chair, and Tristia Harrison, the former CEO of broadband company TalkTalk.

Channel 4’s next chair is expected to be central to appointing a successor to former CEO Mahon. Deadline reported last month that Ashling O’Connor, a consultant at executive search firm Spencer Stuart, has circulated a brief for the CEO position and is drawing up a list of potential candidates.

Early runners and riders include Jonathan Allan, Channel 4’s interim CEO, and All3Media CEO Jane Turton. Sarah Rose, Paramount UK’s chief operating and commercial officer, was heavily linked to the vacancy but today announced she was joining The Royal Foundation, run by Prince William and Kate Middleton.

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport, Ofcom, Channel 4 and Wosskow declined to comment.