The BBC is introducing Doctor Who and the Teletubbies to Burma as it launches three of its pay-TV channels in the country. Young viewers in Burma will be able to watch In The Night Garden, the Teletubbies and Mister Maker on the pre-school channel CBeebies, while sci-fi drama Doctor Who and The Graham Norton Show will be broadcast on BBC Entertainment. A third channel, BBC World News, will feature 24-hour world news. The announcement comes after David Cameron became the first serving Prime Minister to visit the country, which became independent from Britain in 1948, when he flew to Burma in April. The formerly isolated nation has helped thaw relations with the west by releasing political prisoners and holding parliamentary by-elections, which saw opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi's opposition party win 43 seats. Peter Horrocks, director of global news, said: "For many years, the BBC has delivered accurate, impartial international radio services to the Burmese people, serving as a vital lifeline service to Aung San Suu Kyi and those across the country. "I'm so pleased that the BBC is now able to take the next step forward with the country to offer that same impartial news via television as well. It is a great sign of progress for Burma and I'm honoured for the BBC to play a role in opening the country up to the world." The BBC said that all three TV channels, together with BBC World Service in Asia in English, will launch on Forever Group's pay TV platform on January 1 next year. Last year, Burmese pro-democracy leader Ms Suu Kyi revealed DJ Dave Lee Travis's show on the World Service had been a lifeline when she was under house arrest.
