SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Bookham, Inc. (NASDAQ: BKHM) announced today that Dr. Andrew Rickman, its founder and Chairman, has stepped down as Chairman and a member of the Board of Directors following 17 years of service with Bookham. Dr. Rickman founded the company in 1988 and was CEO of the company from inception to February 2001.

The Board of Directors has appointed Dr. Peter Bordui to succeed Dr. Rickman as Chairman of the Board. Dr. Bordui has served as a director since March 2004, joining the Board following the acquisition by Bookham of New Focus, of which he was a director from 2001 to 2004. Before joining New Focus, Dr. Bordui served as Vice President and General Manager, Source Lasers for JDS Uniphase Corporation, a fiber optic communications product manufacturer, and prior to that held positions as general manager at a Siemens-owned materials and components company. Dr. Bordui currently chairs the compensation committee of the Board and is a member of the audit committee, and will also be joining the nominations committee. Dr. Bordui is active on the boards of a number of technology companies in the US and Europe.

Simultaneously, the Company announced today that Liam Nagle will join Bookham’s Board of Directors, but step down as Chief Operating Officer and President to spend more time in his home country, Ireland, where he lives. Mr. Nagle became COO of Bookham upon the acquisition by Bookham of Nortel Networks Optical Components (NNOC), where he was Vice President, Operations, in November 2002.

Effective immediately, Jim Haynes will become Chief Operating Officer of Bookham. Mr. Haynes has been with Bookham since June 2003, and has been VP, UK operations since August 2004. In this capacity he is already managing all Bookham’s UK sites, which comprise approximately two-thirds of all employees and over three-quarters of the company’s shipments, and has been spearheading the move of the company’s product assembly operations to its new facility in China. Mr. Haynes has a long and significant track record in the optical industry spanning over 20 years. He joined Bookham from Agility, where he had held the post of COO, and before that he spent 15 years in various positions at Nortel and STC.

“Dr. Rickman has been a key figurehead for the company since he founded it in a room over his garage, the classical image of the entrepreneur”, commented Dr. Bordui. “After 17 years at Bookham Dr. Rickman’s interest returns to focussing his attention on a new generation of start-up companies, several of which he is currently nurturing. He leaves a strong legacy behind and will be missed by all of us”.

Commenting on Mr. Nagle’s resignation, Dr. Anania said “Liam has been instrumental in the past two years in driving the integration of NNOC with Bookham and in executing Bookham’s restructuring. He leaves behind a very capable team which has been groomed to complete the work he has started, which is now nearing completion. We understand Liam’s desire, after years on the road, to return to Ireland to be close to his wife and young family and we respect him all the more for this. I have enormously valued Liam’s contributions over the last two years, and we are sure that he will add great value and continue to provide sound advice as a member of the Board. I am also confident that Jim Haynes has the skills and experience to make the transition seamless, and I expect that he will do very well following in Liam’s footsteps”.

Bookham Inc.