Top Gear breaches the Great Wall of China for Far East debut
A sanitised version of popular motoring show Top Gear is to be aired in China after the BBC sold the format rights to China Central Television (CCTV).
The People’s Republic version will however be translated as “Highest Gear” and will see Clarkson and co supplanted by more local hosts.
It will also steer clear of controversies such as the recent Mexican diplomatic incident and scenes of needless destruction of cars.
Lead presenter Cao Yunjin said of the British original: “The boys go crazy... like pushing a Maserati off the top of a three-story building and smashing it. It may be too much violence for a fun programme in China. We'll do more localised fun stuff.”
Top Gear is currently the BBC’s number one export and also the most illegally downloaded programme on the planet.