BBC AMERICA TO PREMIERE "TOP GEAR" ONLY DAYS AFTER THE U.K. FOR THE FIRST TIME

All-new season premiering February 4 sees Homeland star Damian Lewis on the Top Gear test track plus US and Africa road trips

For the first time ever, BBC AMERICA will premiere Top Gear, the world's biggest car show, in the US only days after the UK. The all-new season sees hosts Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May taking an incredible American road trip through Las Vegas and Los Angeles including a race against fighter planes before ending with a hair-raising run to the Mexican border. From Jeremy Clarkson's new hybrid Microcar creation to an off-road Bentley Continental GT, the hosts engage in a new collection of incredible adventures, absurd stunts and dream drives. Even Homeland's Damian Lewis joins in on the fun in the season premiere as the Star in a Reasonably Priced Car. Top Gear premieres Monday, February 4, 9:00pm ET/PT on BBC AMERICA.

Starting in the Ugandan capital Kampala, Top Gear heads out on a new legendary epic journey in which the hosts attempt to find the source of the River Nile using three rather tired station wagons and sometimes sketchy knowledge of African geography. Along the way they encounter crocodile infested rivers, suspension snapping terrain and the world's worst traffic jam.

This season, Jeremy invents the world's smallest car, hybrid Microcar, and tests it out on the streets of London, James finds out what the Bentley Continental GT Speed is like on a rally stage, and Richard reaches eye popping speeds on the test track in the amazing, 720 horsepower Pagani Huayra. Plus the trio carry out one of Top Gear's famously thorough road tests on the new Kia Cee'd and race a Shelby Mustang GT500 against a train in order to find the fastest way to get from Britain to Italy in time for a soccer match.

Top Gear is directed by Brian Klein and executive produced by Andy Wilman. The new season will premiere on BBC Two in the UK on January 27.

In anticipation of the new season, BBC Worldwide Digital Entertainment & Games has launched Top Gear: Stunt School Revolution 2.0, which is available for free on iOS and Android. The mobile game lets players customize cars to the extreme with jet engines, bulldozer shovels, snow plows and more, delivering over-the-top tracks, stunts and cars to race in true Top Gear fashion.

BBC Home Entertainment is driving Top Gear: 50 Years of Bond Cars onto shelves February 12, 2013 ($9.95 USD).

EPISODE SYNOPSES:

EPISODE 1

In this first episode, The Stig puts Golden Globe(R) winner and Homeland star Damian Lewis through the paces in the Star in a Reasonably Priced Car. The new season kicks off with Jeremy attempting to build a car that's even smaller than the famous Peel P50 and then tests it out on the streets of London before putting his concept to the ultimate test of credibility in the fearsome UK investor television show Dragons' Den. Meanwhile, James is testing the latest Bentley Continental GT Speed by taking it on a rally stage and Richard is at the test track to unleash the sensational new Pagani Huayra hypercar before handing it over to The Stig for the lap of a lifetime. Episode 1 premieres Monday, February 4, 9:00pm ET/PT.

EPISODE 2

The hosts embark on an epic US road trip in three front-engined supercars - Jeremy Clarkson in a Lexus LFA, Richard Hammond driving the new Dodge Viper and James May choosing the latest Aston Martin Vanquish - a glorious soundtrack is guaranteed and so is a furious debate about which is best as the trio head from Las Vegas to Los Angeles and on to Palm Springs. Along the way, the three hosts take in racing circuits, airborne attacks and a race against the police before making a break for the Mexican border with a terrifying penalty for the last car to make it. Episode 2 premieres Monday, February 11, 9:00pm ET/PT.

Additional synopses will be released at a later date.

BBC AMERICA delivers U.S. audiences high-quality, innovative and intelligent programming. Established in 1998, it has been the launch pad for talent embraced by American mainstream pop culture, including Ricky Gervais, Gordon Ramsay, Graham Norton, and successful programming formats including ground-breaking non-scripted television like Top Gear and top-rated science-fiction like Doctor Who. Owned by BBC Worldwide, the commercial arm of the BBC, BBC AMERICA has attracted both critical acclaim and major awards including an Emmy(R), five Golden Globes(R) and ten Peabody Awards. The channel attracts one of cable's most affluent and educated audiences and is available on cable and satellite TV in more than 80.4 million homes. It broadcasts in both standard and high-definition, with content available On Demand across all major digital platforms. Online, www.bbcamerica.com is the place to go to dig deeper into pop culture with a British twist.