The Stig – star of the worldwide smash hit show Top Gear has been immortalised as a giant ten metre high statue which has been positioned adjacent to The Palace of Science and Culture in the centre of Warsaw, Poland.
The giant statue was unveiled by The Stig himself in front of local dignitaries and Top Gear fans following a three day journey through Europe which started at Top Gear HQ in the UK and called in at Amsterdam and Berlin before arriving in Poland
The towering sculpture which stands arms crossed surveying the country’s capital was specially commissioned to celebrate the launch of BBC Brit – a new global brand from BBC Worldwide which will be making its international channel debut in Poland on the 1st February 2015.
The model, which is made from fibre-glass, took a team of three sculptors over two months to design, construct and paint. The giant sculpture of The Stig is equivalent in size to two London double decker buses stacked on top of each other.
Lead sculptor David Croswell says, “We took The Stig’s famous crossed arms pose as a starting point for creating the giant sculpture – but we also watched hours of Top Gear to capture his characteristics. He’s one of television’s most enigmatic figures, so it was a real challenge to capture this fearless and faceless test driver who is adored by fans all over the world.”
The monument was sent from Top Gear HQ in the UK earlier this week and travelled across The Netherlands and Germany to its final destination in Warsaw, Poland.
Tim Davie, CEO BBC Worldwide and Director Global says, “Erecting a giant Stig in Warsaw is a fitting way to launch our new global brand BBC Brit. The channel will be the exclusive home of brand new Top Gear, the world’s most popular shows. For the very first time from launch, BBC Brit will bring Polish viewers closer to the action than ever before, with premiere episodes airing on the channel the same day as the UK.”
The Stig’s reaction to the statue was unsurprising. He commented “…”.
This is the second global BBC Worldwide channel to launch and follows on from BBC First, a premium drama channel which launched in Australia on the Foxtel platform in August last year and is shortly to be carried on Fetch TV.
BBC BRIT offers premium factual entertainment that is intelligent but irreverent. Male-skewing but with broader appeal, it blends expertise with entertainment and fact with fun. The channel will become the exclusive home of Top Gear and covers a rich variety of subjects: cars; science; adventure; business; life-changing moments; extreme characters; quirky eccentrics and plenty of laughs.
