Brake Lights, Big City. CANADA'S WORST DRIVER Tackles Big City Driving When Season 8 Premieres Oct. 29 on Discovery Channel

- Before the Season 8 premiere, revisit the best bumper-busting moments from the past seven seasons in a new one-hour special, CANADA'S WORST DRIVER: U ASKED!, airing Sun., Oct. 28 at 8 p.m. ET/PT -

- Can't believe he raced through another red? Think she's most improved this week? Viewer can chat LIVE during the show @CanWorstDriver (#CWD) -

To tweet this release: http://bit.ly/WfLDEW

TORONTO, Oct. 3, 2012 /CNW/ - From running the gridlock gauntlet to braking for bike couriers, the challenges of manoeuvring through the urban jungle requires a certain skill set behind the wheel. And these drivers don't have it. At all!  Back for a bumper-crushing eighth season, specialty television's #1 series CANADA'S WORST DRIVER returns to Discovery Channel on Monday, October 29 at 10 p.m. ET/PT. With a weekly reach of more than 3.1 million viewers last fall, CANADA'S WORST DRIVER was the #1 non-sports series on specialty television for the key A18-49 and A25-54 demos, and has claimed this rank for the last five consecutive seasons*! Taking to the city streets - inducing panic in pedestrians everywhere - the smash hit series returns with writer and host Andrew Younghusband, featuring eight new drivers, new urban driving challenges, and countless cringe-inducing and water cooler-worthy moments. The experience continues online with exclusive content and LIVE chats every Monday night at @CanWorstDriver (#CWD).

CANADA'S WORST DRIVER 8 follows eight drivers, each nominated by a friend or family member, as they are put through their paces in a controlled driving environment and evaluated by a panel of driving experts. Each episode features tried-and-tested challenges with an urban driving-themed twist, designed to push the drivers to their limits and teach them crucial safe driving skills. Each driver must master basic training and more advanced techniques for dealing with Canada's trickiest city driving situations before graduating from rehab. Can their bad behind-the-wheel behaviours be curbed?

More than 1,000 drivers were nominated during a cross-Canada search and CANADA'S WORST DRIVER 8 hauled eight of the country's worst offenders off the road for its own unique brand of intensive rehabilitation.  Buckled in and ready to go, CANADA'S WORST DRIVER Season 8 participants are:

• Klyne, from Kelowna, BC, was nominated by his mother Maureen. Is Klyne the most dangerous driver this season? While the other seven nominees are hoping that Rehab will teach them safer driving skills, Klyne enters Rehab to validate and vindicate his driving habits, despite having written off two cars already.
• Kevin, from McBride, BC, was nominated by his boyfriend Kevin. Fully blind in his right eye, Kevin's lack of spatial awareness has contributed to five accidents.
• Dallas, from Vancouver, BC, was nominated by her sister, Gene. Tough on the outside but a quivering mass of nerves on the inside, Dallas relies on guidance from her passenger for every single driving decision.
• Flora, from Edmonton AB, was nominated by her husband Frank, who controls her every movement behind the wheel. Flora lacks the experience and confidence to make her a safe driver.
• Margherita, from Edmonton, AB, was nominated by her friend and business partner Cheryl. She spends most of her time behind the wheel concentrating on anything BUT driving - doing her hair, touching up her makeup, or chatting on her cell phone.  She is one ticket away from losing her licence.
• Azim, from Edmonton, AB, was nominated by his friend Ray. After failing his learners permit six times, Azim finally passed - but it's been downhill ever since. With astronomical tickets and accidents, he's so stressed behind the wheel that his hair is actually falling out.
• Robert, from Toronto, ON, was nominated by his friend Socrates. Robert's mantra is "safer is slower," but driving only 50 kph on the highway is just an accident waiting to happen.
• Diane, from Saint Jean-sur-Richelieu, QC, was nominated by her husband Stephane. Diane is easily overwhelmed and panics behind the wheel - but now that her family has moved to the suburbs with little public transportation, she must overcome her resistance to driving.

Putting on the brakes, these eight disastrous drivers head to the Driver Rehabilitation Centre in Dunnville, Ontario. There, they meet the team of driving experts, including: CP24's Cam Woolley, traffic expert and former OPP sergeant, returning for a seventh season; Philippe Létourneau, a professional high-performance driving instructor, back for a sixth season; and new this year, expert driving instructor, Tim Danter. Also, back for a second season, relationship therapist Shyamala Kiru reveals how these unsafe driving practices are threatening these drivers' personal relationships. These experts have their work cut out for them as they put the drivers through their paces. Each week, one driver will earn the right to merge back onto Canada's roadways, until there is only one unlucky driver left at the side of the road, owning the dubious title of Canada's Worst Driver.

Viewers can get revved up online where they can cruise through exclusive web extras, including on-set interviews with host Andrew Younghusband and high-performance driving instructor, Philippe Létourneau; audition reels of the nominees; and behind-the-scenes photos. The #CWD conversation starts up again with driving instructor Tim Danter, driver recruitment officer Meredith Veats, and post production supervisor Dean Hennings tweeting from @CanWorstDriver.

CANADA'S WORST DRIVER 8 is produced for Discovery Channel by Proper Television.

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The world is just awesome! With compelling real-life programming that inspires and entertains, Discovery Channel reveals the world in all its wonder, diversity and amazement. Discovery Channel offers a signature mix of adrenaline-charged stories, larger-than-life personalities and vivid imagery for viewers with curious minds. With the best non-fiction programming from Canada and around the world, Discovery Channel captures the excitement of a passion for life - one lived fully and at its most extreme. With exceptional and immersive storytelling, the channel offers in-depth, behind-the-scenes glimpses at the extraordinary people and places that shape our world. Launched in Canada in 1995, Discovery Channel is now available in more than eight million Canadian homes. Discovery Channel is offered in standard definition (SD) and high definition (HD) simulcast - for viewers who want an even bigger and bolder experience. Discovery Channel Canada is a joint venture between Bell Media, which is owned by BCE Inc. (TSX, NYSE: BCE), Canada's largest communications company, and Discovery Communications Inc. Find more information and interactive online features at DiscoveryChannel.ca.

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*Source: BBM Canada

Image with caption: "Andrew Younghusband returns as host for Season 8 of CANADA'S WORST DRIVER Oct. 29 on Discovery Channel (CNW Group/Discovery Channel)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20121003_C4033_PHOTO_EN_18823.jpg

Image with caption: "Park it! CANADA'S WORST DRIVER returns for Season 8, Oct. 29 on Discovery Channel (CNW Group/Discovery Channel)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20121003_C4033_PHOTO_EN_18822.jpg

SOURCE: Discovery Channel

Jodi Cook, Discovery Channel, 416.384.4603 or [email protected]
Noah Zatzman, Discovery Channel, 416.384.5903 or [email protected]