Year of the Snake is over – but for Sherlock it's just the start

Review of the Chinese year, Part 1: 'Sex God' Cumberbatch wins where David Cameron failed

benedict-cumberbatch.jpg
(Image credit: 2013 Getty Images)

SHANGHAI - China's newspapers, as a rule, pay the UK scant regard. Premier League football is one exception. Media-savvy 'Brand Beckham' is another, and when a suited-but-not-sufficiently-booted David skidded painfully onto his backside while displaying free–kick skills to youngsters in muddy Wuhan at the start of The Year of the Snake, he effortlessly bent Chinese media attention his way, as did Victoria’s successful promotion of her fashion line Beijing in June, and her appearance on the cover of Vogue China in August.

Prime Minister David Cameron’s three-day mission to China in December, intended to promote the very best of British culture, snared fewer column inches than he might have hoped for – despite a fruitful wheeze that will see British farmers exporting pig semen to the Middle Kingdom in a deal worth £45 million a year.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Gary Jones is a China correspondent for The Week online, dividing his time between Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing. He has written for The Times, The Sunday Times, The Observer, GQ and Wallpaper among others, and for newspapers in Australia, Canada and the US.