Darren Star is going Continental, closing in on a pact with the BBC for an hourlong sudser set in the high-stakes, high-glamour world of Formula One racing.

The "Sex and the City" creator will create and exec produce the project, which is being developed internally at the Beeb by comedy talent head Kenton Allen, who helped make the BAFTA-award winning "Royle Family." Search is on for a head scribe/showrunner.

Star will control the format rights to the untitled series, a contractual clause that envisions the possibility of versions for the U.S. or other global markets. And, while a potential work stoppage by the Hollywood guilds is still at least two years off, the Star project would seem to be perfect strike-proof programming.

That said, the series is being designed for the U.K. market, and there are no current plans to bring it to the U.S.

Star said a sudser set in the world of Formula One was an idea "that felt very specific for the European market.

"It's an enormous sport overseas that barely exists here," he added. "It's a dazzling world and fun world to explore, and I usually take my cues for shows (by imagining) worlds I'd like to spend time in myself."

With the possible exception of European football, F1 racing is the globe's biggest sport, particularly among upscale demos (read: the rich and famous). Euro carmakers all spend tens of millions each year investing in new car designs, and races take place in various hot spots around the world -- from Bahrain to Brazil, as the league's official Web site puts it.

"It's a very glamorous, very life-threatening, very expensive sport," Allen said in a telephone interview from Blighty. "Imagine NASCAR meets 'Dynasty' and you've got the flavor of what the show is all about."

Star and Allen were hooked up for the project by William Morris worldwide scripted TV topper Aaron Kaplan, who's made several trips to Europe in recent months on behalf of the agency. Allen said he and Star first met during the early days of "Sex," when Star visited the U.K. to do research for the HBO skein.

"Darren's a huge fan of anything that's got any kind of Eurotrash element and Formula One is the ultimate Eurotrash sport," Allen quipped. "If he wasn't an American, he should have really been a tax exile in Monaco."

Star noted that both "Sex and the City" and "Beverly Hills, 90210" both broke out in the U.K. before they hit their stride in the States.

"I feel like that audience gets what I like to do," he said. "For me, this is another version of doing a show for HBO."

Euro sports have already proved to be a fertile ground for Blighty broadcasters. "Footballers Wives" is a big hit in the U.K. and has spawned a slew of similarly themed series in the works at U.S. nets.

Star has an exclusive overall deal with Sony Pictures Television. Sony also recently pacted with BBC Worldwide.

However, the Star project predates Sony's deal with the BBC and would not fall under that agreement. Terms of a deal between the BBC and Sony have not yet been negotiated.