Channel 5 Orders Competitive Truckers Format

LONDON: GroupM Entertainment and Dragonfly are co-producing the international competitive format World’s Toughest Truckers for Channel 5.

Eight truckers from around the world will compete in extreme trucking challenges in locations such as Australia, Canada and India. The 8×1-hour series will be co-produced by Shine Group-owned Dragonfly and WPP-owned GroupM Entertainment. The format was created by Sanjay Singhal, the managing director of Dragonfly, who executive produces with Richard Foster for GroupM Entertainment. Country-specific versions are in development, as are discussions with international broadcasters for further distribution.

“It’s a hugely ambitious series,” Singhal said. “We will see incredible, determined and highly skilled characters in the world’s most amazing backdrops battling for professional, personal and national pride. It is Dragonfly’s first competitive format, is true to our factual event heritage and one we are very excited to be a part of.”

Richard Foster, the U.K. managing director of GroupM Entertainment, added: “World’s Toughest Truckers harnesses the popularity of truckers and their exploits and provides it with the ultimate test. It is true event programming, high in production values and has both domestic and international appeal. We have ambitious plans to develop it as a long-running franchise.”

Jeff Ford, the director of programs at Channel 5, commented, “Channel 5 is the U.K. home of trucking on telly and World’s Toughest Truckers will be the ultimate competition. We are very proud to have the global premiere.”