NEW SERIES: Bernie and Leepu

They wowed us with their motor skills in Bangladesh but now Bernie and Leepu are closer to home in their new series.

Chop Shop: Garage London sees our dynamic duo set up a car workshop in London's vibrant East End - one of the most culturally diverse areas of Western Europe.

The new series of Chop Shop: Garage London airing on the Discovery channel this month is smack bang in the middle of Britain's largest Bangladeshi community, Brick Lane.

Bernie deals with the practicalities of transforming bangers into blingers, whilst Leepu spearheads the creativity behind the cars.

Leepu is determined to stick to his traditional methods of using nail files, home made hammers, spiritual inspiration and raw materials to bang the bangers into shape.

Straight talking Cockney Bernie on the other hand tries, in vain to convert Leepu into using power tools and other modern mechanical ways.

The series ignites with disaster as weeks of hard work go up in flames when the Sumo, a rejuvenated BMW sets alight and brings the Chop Shop team to tears.

With stretched finances and other cars to start on from scratch, Bernie and Leepu set about working on another scrapped BMW to build into the new Sumo 2.

Chop Shop: Garage London features a host of bangers that are transformed by the magic hands of Bernie and Leepu into dream machines.

Bernie and Leepu's unique business partnership combines a wealth of knowledge and expertise, which subsequently leads the pair to become East London's most in demand car customisation team.

With over 40 years in the motoring trade, Leepu Awlia built his first car at the tender age of 17, before sharpening his skills at Venice Design Institute, California.

His miraculous motoring creations have led him to achieve iconic status back home in Bangladesh.

Meanwhile, having grown up in Bow, just a stone's throw from Chop Shop headquarters, Bernie Fineman is a veteran of the auto trade, with over 50 years of industry experience, honing his skills on classic car brands on the likes of Jaguar and Rolls Royce.

Chop Shop: Garage London can be seen this October only on the Discovery Channel.

3:13pm Wednesday 3rd October 2007

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