Fasten your seatbelt as Sky One announces Faster: Race the World - the ultimate urban driving competition

Thursday 22 February 2018

Furiously fast cars. Six fearless drivers. A globetrotting competition hosted by Steve Jones to crown the ultimate driving champion. Meet Faster: Race the World (working title) a brand new Sky Original Production that will have you on the edge of your seat.

The turbocharged driving show, which will air on Sky One and TV streaming service NOW TV, features six of the best drivers in Britain chosen because of their nerveless need for speed, including firefighters, weekend racers and chauffeurs. Pitted against each other in head-to-head challenges, in each episode the Faster ‘crew’ travel to a major city to tap into the urban glamour and local car culture before putting their pedals to the metal.

With weekly speed and skill challenges, the slowest driver faces elimination in a full-throttle race to be crowned Faster’s fastest. Formula 1 presenter and driving nut Steve Jones will be joined by car expert and professional racing driver Robb Holland as the drivers jump behind the wheel of the authentic cars used by local crews – from the legendary Japanese drifters to the iconic American muscle dragsters.

Whether tearing across sand dunes in SUVs in Dubai, powering over frozen lakes in Finland or burning rubber in Miami, Faster: Race the World is the ultimate driving competition for petrolheads and entertainment enthusiasts alike. Who will walk away with the bragging rights? Who is Faster?

Steve Jones said: “Faster: Race the World is the kind of dream job you pray for as a presenter. In fact “dream job” is doing it a disservice, it’s just a dream - fast cars, globally exotic locations and a chance for some lucky individuals to exceed their limits. Bring it!”

Phil Edgar-Jones, head of entertainment at Sky, said: “We want entertainment shows that look and feel like movies for Sky One and Faster: Race the World delivers this in spades – high octane, electrifying, adrenalin-fuelled races from across the world that’ll set pulses racing and raise audiences’ collective blood pressure to new levels.”

Twenty Twenty managing director Emma Willis said: “Faster: Race the World is a thrilling format and we’re delighted to be bringing it to Sky One. It’s bold and ambitious, qualities we strive for at Twenty Twenty, and we hope audiences will join us for this adrenaline-fuelled competition that unfolds in the most fanatical and car crazy cities in the world.”

Martin Oxley, Motion Content Group, said: “The concept of mixing all the style and excitement of street racing with a world tour for some brilliant car hobbyists will make Faster: Race the World an unmissable treat. Emma Willis and her team at Twenty Twenty have proven how expertly they can marry great casting with clever formatting, and we couldn’t be more delighted to be working with such a talented crew.”

Faster: Race the World is a Sky Original Production and is co-produced by Twenty Twenty and Motion Content Group for Sky One. Amanda Westwood and Joanne Timoney executive produce for Twenty Twenty, series producer is Ronan Browne and executive producer for Motion is Martin Oxley. The 6 x 60” series was commissioned by Phil Edgar-Jones, Sky’s head of entertainment and director of Sky Arts, Adam MacDonald, director of Sky One and Zai Bennett, director of programmes, Sky Entertainment UK and Ireland. Bill Hobbins is the commissioning editor for Sky.

Faster: Race the World starts filming next month and will be available on Sky One and TV streaming service NOW TV.

- Ends -

For further information:

Rick Behari: rick.behari@sky.uk

About Sky:
Sky is Europe's leading entertainment company, serving 23 million customers across seven countries - UK, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Italy, Spain and Switzerland. The company had annual reported revenues of £12.9 billion in 2016/17, and is Europe’s leading investor in television content with an annual programming spend of around £7 billion.

From exclusive partnerships with HBO, Showtime and Warner Bros. to Sky Original Productions, Sky offers the best and broadest range of content along with the best viewing experience to suit each and every customer. Whether that’s through the multi-award winning next generation box, Sky Q, or Sky’s contract-free online streaming service, NOW TV, customers have access to the latest movies, drama, sports and kid’s entertainment wherever and whenever they like. This is all supported by Sky’s best in class customer service.

Sky’s success is not just based on what the company does but how it does it. Three new major commitments have been launched for Sky’s corporate campaign Sky Ocean Rescue; the reduction of our own single-use plastics by 2020; an investment fund of £25 million over five years in technology solutions; and support of marine protected areas across our markets.

Sky has over 31,000 employees and is listed as one of The Times Top 50 employers for women, as well as being recognised in the Stonewall list of Top 50 LGBT-inclusive employers. Sky is listed on the London Stock Exchange (SKY).

About Twenty Twenty:
Twenty Twenty is a multi-award winning production company that have been making original, innovative programmes for global audiences since 1982. From documentary, reality, entertainment, drama and children’s, Twenty Twenty have won numerous awards for their work including recognition from BAFTA, Emmy, Grierson and the Royal Television Society.

Shows they have created include First Dates, which has launched in 19 different territories around the world and The Choir franchise, now celebrating over 12 years of collaboration with Gareth Malone. Most recently, First Dates Hotel returned to Channel 4 for an acclaimed second series, and brand new series A House Through Time, presented by David Olusoga, became one of BBC Two’s best-ever rating historical series. Twenty Twenty also announced its move into drama with forthcoming Channel 4 series Jerusalem, written and created by Bash Doran (Boardwalk Empire, Smash, Masters of Sex), which it will co-produce with 42.

Twenty Twenty is part of the Warner Bros. International Television Production group and based in the UK.

About Motion Content Group
Motion Content Group is a global content investment and rights management company which invests and partners with the world’s leading talent, producers, and distributors to fund, develop, produce, and distribute premium content for the global benefit of our content partners and networks, platforms, and advertisers.

Motion utilises the unique worldwide infrastructure and deep commercial relationships of GroupM and WPP to the benefit of our content partners and advertisers. Motion investments and partnerships support the editorial and commercial requirements of producers, networks, and platforms in order to support contextually safe, high-quality advertising environments.

Headquartered in London and Los Angeles, the business currently operates in 26 countries worldwide, with Motion’s broad range of award winning programming distributed globally.