BBC Studios and Pluto TV have announced four new FAST channels for the EMEA region. In addition to the existing Top Gear FAST channel available on Pluto TV in the Nordics, three new Top Gear FAST channels will launch over the coming months – the first being Top Gear: Classics, showcasing the highest rated Top Gear episodes featuring Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May. Top Gear: Challenge will feature some of the best quests to prove or accomplish various tasks related to vehicles and Top Gear: Road Trips, follows the hosts around the world, from Africa, Canada to Australia to give the car and viewers an adventure of a lifetime. These new channels will complement the Top Gear FAST channel, which launched on Pluto TV in August 2023, and serves as the hub for all "Top Gear" content.
Moreover, Pluto TV has also launched a new FAST channel in Spain dedicated to British period drama, "Call The Midwife", which follows a group of nurse midwives working in the East End of London in the late 1950s as they deal with the pressures of their day-to-day lives while trying to cope with the changes in the world around them. The channel will feature episodes from series one through to five as well as a selection of Christmas specials.
Kasia Jablonska, Director of Digital and On-Demand for EMEA at BBC Studios, commented: “BBC Studios’ rich catalog has enabled our rapid growth in the FAST space and evolving partnership with Pluto TV. The launch of four additional channels in two new EMEA regions highlights the popularity of our globally recognised brands. We saw a real opportunity to give audiences enhanced access to their favorite episodes from 'Top Gear' and 'Call the Midwife' archive. I’m excited for new and existing audiences in Spain and the Nordics to enjoy even more award-winning BBC shows on the Pluto TV platform.”
Katrina Kowalski, Senior Vice President, International Content Programming and Acquisitions, added: “Expanding the 'Top Gear' universe on Pluto TV further reinforces our commitment to give our audiences the content they love, curated for them to enjoy in unique and exciting ways. At Pluto TV, we are continuously finessing our FAST strategy, aimed at pre-empting what our viewers want next, and the launch of these curated channels does just that, while further demonstrating our commitment to bringing premium entertainment content to our audience all over the world.”
Top Gear channels have launched on Pluto TV in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, and Italy, and joined the BBC Studios existing portfolio of FAST channels: Doctor Who in Spain, Italy, France and Germany, BBC Drama in Spain, Italy and France, as well as BBC Food, BBC Travel and BBC History in Germany. In the EMEA region, Top Gear FAST channel is also available exclusively in Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands on Samsung TV+, in Spain on Samsung TV+ and Rakuten TV, and in the Middle East on MBC.