| Native Name: | 歲月風雲 |
| Genre: | Modern Drama (Grand Production) |
| Runtime: | 45 minutes per episode |
| Producer: | Tommy Leung Poon Ka Tak |
| Starring: | Damian Lau Liao Jingsheng Michael Miu Joe Ma Charmaine Sheh Jessica Hsuan Raymond Lam Sheren Tang Feng Shaofeng Myolie Wu Ron Ng Toby Leung |
| Opentheme: | Sui Yuet Fung Wan (Chinese: 歲月風雲) performed by Hacken Lee and Chou Chuan-huing |
| Endtheme: | Troika (Russian Folk Song) |
| Country: | Hong Kong China |
| Language: | Cantonese Mandarin |
| Network: | TVB (Jade) CCTV (CCTV 1/CCTV 8) |
| Num Episodes: | 60 (TVB) 58 (CCTV) |
The Drive of Life is a 2007 grand production drama by TVB and CCTV as a joint production. It was specially filmed to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the handover of Hong Kong back to China from Britain during the period of 1997-2007.
The theme of the series revolves around the automobile industry in China. Told in flashback from 1994, the ups and downs and transformations that Hong Kong has been experiencing before and after the transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong is used as a narrative device. The series was filmed in Hong Kong, Beijing, Ningbo and Vancouver from early October 2006 until May 2007. The automobiles featured in the series are from Geely Automobile,[1] as a fictional brand name "Hua-Zhe". This stars "TVB Best Actress" winners Charmaine Sheh, Jessica Hsuan, Myolie Wu and Sheren Tang who won their respective "Best Actress" awards in 2006/2014, 1999, 2011, and 2009/2010.
Astro On Demand, Astro's video on demand service, starts with the series premiere.[2]
Wah Man-hon, Wah Man-hung and Wah Man-shek were all born in Beijing. As a result of the massive political upheaval and the profound misunderstanding among them, the three brothers have fallen out and now live separately in Hong Kong, Beijing and Vancouver respectively.
Man-hon's business goes down the pan in the aftermath of the Asian Financial Crisis. The only saving grace is that members of the Wah family from around the world, including Man-hon's son Wah Chun-bong and Hung's son Wah Chun-man, can finally put their prejudice aside and become reconciled with one another. To realize the century-old dream of the family, they decide to work together to develop the local automobile industry.
After ten years of struggle, the Wahs have established its own brand of automobile – a brand the whole Chinese nation is proud of. They make a significant and ongoing contribution to China's automobile industry for they believe that only cars of our own will take us to a better future.
Wah family
| Cast | Role | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Damian Lau | Wah Man-hon 華文翰 | Age 52 to 65 Wah Ching-yu and Wah Chun-bong's father. Hui Chaam-yan's husband. Wah Man-hung and Wah Man-sek's elder brother. | |
| Gigi Wong | Hui Chaam-yan 許湛恩 | Age 47 to 60 Wah Ching-yu and Wah Chun-bong's mother.Wah Man-hon's wife | |
| Jessica Hsuan | Wah Ching-yu 華清瑜 | Wah Man-hon and Hui Chaam-yan's daughter Ngai Wing-biu's girlfriend later wife Wah Chun-bong's elder sister | |
| Raymond Lam | Wah Chun-bong 華振邦 | Age 27 to 40 Wah Man-hon and Hui Chaam-yan's son Fong Bing-yi's ex-boyfriend. Wing Sau-fung's boyfriend later husband Wah Ching-yu's younger brother | |
| Liao Jingsheng | Wah Man-hung 華文鴻 | Age 48 to 60 | |
| Feng Shaofeng | Wah Chun-man 華振民 | Age 24 to 37 Fong Bin-yi's husband | |
| Michael Miu | Wah Man-sek 華文碩 | Age 42 to 55 | |
| Sheren Tang | Wang Siu-fun 汪紹芬 | Age 38 to 51 | |
| Toby Leung | Wah Ching-lam 華清琳 | Age 18 to 31 | |
| Wang Ching-kwok 汪政國 | Age 65 | ||
| Wang Siu-leung 汪紹良 | Age 34 to 47 |
Ng family
| Cast | Role | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ngai Ling-tai 危令泰 | |||
| Lo Ho-yuet 盧皓月 | |||
| Ngai Wing-biu 危永標 | Age 27 to 40 | ||
| Ngai Gai-keung 危介強 | Age 20 to 33 | ||
| Lawrence Ng Wai-kwok | Ngai Tin-hang 危天行 | Age 44 to 54 |
Wing family
| Cast | Role | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wong Chik-sam | Wing Sau-fung's father | ||
| Maggie Chan | Wai Cheung-ping 衞長萍 | Age 47 to 53 | |
| Wing Sau-fung 榮秀風 | Age 26 to 39 |
Fong family
| Cast | Role | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Lai Suen | Ching Tai-tie 錢帶娣 | |
| Lee Kwok-lun | Fong Yiu-chong 方耀忠 | |
| Fong Bing-yi 方秉怡 | Age 24 to 37 | |
| Jeffrey Wong |
| Week | Episode | Average Points | Peaking Points | References | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 16–20, 2007 | 1 — 5 | [3] | ||||
| July 23–27, 2007 | 6 — 10 | [4] | ||||
| July 30 - August 3, 2007 | 11 — 15 | [5] | ||||
| August 6–10, 2007 | 16 — 20 | [6] | ||||
| August 13–17, 2007 | 21 — 25 | [7] | ||||
| August 20–24, 2007 | 26 — 30 | [8] | ||||
| August 27–31, 2007 | 31 — 35 | [9] | ||||
| September 3–7, 2007 | 36 — 40 | [10] | ||||
| September 10–14, 2007 | 41 — 45 | [11] | ||||
| September 17–21, 2007 | 46 — 50 | [12] | ||||
| September 24–28, 2007 | 51 — 55 | [13] | ||||
| October 1–5, 2007 | 56 — 60 | [14] |
40th TVB Anniversary Awards (2007)