Gervais may open branch of 'The Office' in China

BEIJING -- "The Office" is up for a transfer to China.

"We are about to start work on developing a Chinese 'The Office.' How cool is that?" show co-creator Ricky Gervais wrote on his blog recently.

In addition to the original British "mockumentary," there are versions in the U.S., France, Germany, Chile, Israel and the Canadian province of Quebec.

The show that mines office politics and corporate ineptitude for its laughs might face new challenges in China, where government censors tightly control media content.

Gervais joked on his blog the show might not air if Beijing sees his latest project, "An Idiot Abroad," where he sends a culturally clueless friend on a trip around the world.

Gervais did not give any clues about the timing of the Chinese show but the project appeared to be in the early stages. A spokeswoman for BBC Worldwide, the broadcaster's commercial arm which licensed some international versions of the show, said there was "no deal in place, no broadcaster, and it's not in production."

She spoke on condition of anonymity in line with corporate policy.