Peking Express
- "Peking Express" may also refer to a 1951 film, see Peking Express (film).
| Peking Express | |
|---|---|
 Official logo |
|
| Format | Reality, Game Show |
| Created by | Ludo Poppe |
| Theme music composer | Brian Tyler |
| Country of origin | Belgium Netherlands |
| Language(s) | Dutch |
| No. of seasons | 6 |
| No. of episodes | 76 |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Gert van Kerckhove |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | Net 5 VT4 |
| Original run | 2004 – present |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows | Amazing Race |
| External links | |
| Website | |
Peking Express is a Dutch/Flemish reality game show that follows a series of couples as they hitchhike to or from Beijing (only in the first three seasons; seasons four and five are set in South America). The series has already gone through five seasons. In The Netherlands it is screened by Net 5 and in Belgium by VT4. A German version was shown in 2004. The concept has also been sold to Scandinavia where it was broadcast for the first time in the autumn of 2007. The Scandinavian version is shown on Kanal 5 in Sweden, TVNorge in Norway and Kanal 5 in Denmark. A French version named Pékin Express is screened by M6, with six seasons aired by 2011. It can be seen on TV5 outside France. In Spain, the local version Pekín Express is shown on Cuatro, with four seasons by 2011.
Contents |
[edit] General theme
The theme of the show is to demonstrate how various couples deal with the challenges and pitfalls of attempting a long-distance hitchhike to a strange city, together with all the difficulties presented by trying to communicate in a language they don't understand. Tension was added by including couples who had broken up "in real life", but were willing to work together for the sake of winning the race.
In somewhat similar fashion to The Amazing Race, couples that come in last at various checkpoints along the way are eliminated from further competition. In the second series, each of the couples was given €1 per person/per day as their stipend along the route.
[edit] Seasons
| Season | Winning couple | Route |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Rani & Hans |  Russia, Moscow to  China, Beijing |
| 2005 | Karla & Sophie | China, Beijing to  India, Mumbai |
| 2006 | Yves & Wendy |  Vietnam, Mekong Delta to China, Lhasa |
| 2006 VIP |
Chimène & Bart | India |
| 2007 |
Pascal & Miranda |  Brazil, Rio de Janeiro to  Peru, Lima |
| 2008 |
Mark & Marlinde |  Mexico, Mexico City to  Venezuela, Caracas |
| 2012 |
 South Korea to  Australia} |
[edit] Theme music
The music used during the opening sequence is "Summon the Worms" from Brian Tyler's soundtrack to the 2003 miniseries Frank Herbert's Children of Dune.
