China Drive
China Drive is the only daily bi-lingual news and lifestyle radio show in China. It is broadcast seven days a week, 5–7 pm Beijing time on China Radio International and focusses on life in China. The programme has four main presenters.
On Air Personalities
Monday to Wednesday
- Mark Griffiths
- Yan Yinan
Thursday and Friday
- Mark Griffiths
- Ning Yan
Saturday and Sunday
- Yan Yinan
- John Artman
Format of the show
- Hang Out Feature (A reporter, or one of the show's presenters goes to a location in Beijing and does a short report on what's there for visitors to see.)
- Business-related report
- Media Scan - a review of the day's foreign and Chinese newspapers and media websites
- Movie Review with Zhao Kun
- Science & Technology Feature with Li Dong
- This Is IT - fashion feature with Shen Si
- Roundtable Discussion - every Friday an important issue is discussed in depth
Team of Reporters for China Drive
Original Team
- Yan Yinan, Host
- Chris Verrill, Host/Producer
- James West, Business
Ongoing
- Li Dong (Michael Li)
- Liu Min
- Wangjing
- Shen Si
Former Team Members
Chris Verrill Verrill was the first producer and co-host of China Drive. He spent only one year at CRI. He later launched Beijing Playhouse, China's English Broadway Theatre, www.beijingplayhouse.com
- James West - Executive Producer of Hack on Triple J
Trevor Metz Trevor was the co-creator and former afternoon host of Real Time Beijing--a sister program to China Drive. He spent four years with CRI. He left the show to narrate the documentary series Discover China on 5CTV https://web.archive.org/web/20090209090658/http://5ctv.tv/
History
China Drive first broadcast on CRI on December 1, 2005. It was hosted by Yan Yinan and Chris Verrill.
China Drive broadcast weekdays 5 pm to 7 pm. It replaced and combined four different half hour shows that were on the air at 5 pm, 5:30 pm 6 pm, and 6:30 pm. The show was a lighthearted features magazine.
Program Distribution
Webcast
http://english.cri.cn/4026/more/4163/more4163.htm Archived 2007-04-16 at the Wayback Machine
China Drive first broadcast on CRI on December 1, 2005. It was originally hosted by Yan Yinan and Chris Verrill.
In China
In the United States
- WNWR on 1540 kHz AM in Philadelphia
- Washington, DC
In Europe
- 1440 kHz AM via Marnach, Luxembourg covering most of Europe
- 558 kHz across the UK. The morning edition of the show is re-broadcast 9-10pm the day of original transmission. The afternoon edition is aired between 3pm and 5pm the following day.