Top Gear might or might not be back

Trampas

op Gear will return, BBC insists
Top Gear hosts Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May

Top Gear will return in the summer, the BBC has said - despite host Jeremy Clarkson declaring that it will not.

At the end of latest series last week, the BBC Two announcer assured viewers the show would be back in the summer.

But in his newspaper column in The Sun, Clarkson said: "Can I just say, here and now, it won't be."

A BBC spokesman responded by saying: "Top Gear will be back. A summer special is planned." A new series would reach screens in the autumn, he added.

Ratings winner

"We're expecting all three boys to present the programmes."

But he refused to give any further details or explain the confusion.

The show made a successful comeback in January, four months after co-host Richard Hammond was involved in a serious high-speed crash while filming.

An estimated eight million people tuned in to see the last episode in the series on Sunday - BBC Two's largest audience for 10 years.

mike65

Hmmmmmm! :eek:

Maybe he's just playing with us (or Sun gazers).

Mike.

Mr. Presentable

It'll be back, but not necessarily with Clarkson. Jezza thinks he's bigger than the show, that he *is* the show. I bet Vicki replaces him.

DeBeere

Well I certainly don't watch it just to see James May, Hammond and Clarkson 'make' the show.

Wishbone Ash

There's a dedicated Top Gear Forum now. http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?forumid=900

Altreab

nipplenuts wrote:

It'll be back, but not necessarily with Clarkson. Jezza thinks he's bigger than the show, that he *is* the show. I bet Vicki replaces him.

Oh lets hope Sabine Schmidt of Nurbergring fame replaces him

P.S She drove the ring in just over 10 minutes in a 130 BHP Ford Transit Van

jimogr

Trampas wrote:

But in his newspaper column in The Sun, Clarkson said: "Can I just say, here and now, it won't be."

Is that online? Can't seem to find it.

mike65

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/6439449.stm

Mike.

ninty9er

Vicki would be good or Tiff, but Wilson's more the Clarkson personality

jimogr

mike65 wrote:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/6439449.stm

Mike.

Thanks Mike, had that alright, was looking for the column in the Sun.

mike65

VBH is awful. If we 'have' to have a woman I'd look to Penny Mallory

Mike.

zilog_jones

It woudn't be the same without Clarkson. He's been on it since the late '80s, and after he left in '99 (around the time he started doing that godawful talk show?) it went to sh1t and was cancelled until the "new format" Top Gear appeared.

OfflerCrocGod

Dump James May and get in Tom Ford the fat guy from Fifth Gear - I think he is their best presenter and he already works for Top Gear anyway.

testicle

Top Gear may not be back, Clarkson Hammond and May, may just have been tempted over to C4 or ITV.

dubtom

I rekon Clarkson has got the hump because he's realised that he's not the top dog since hammonds accident. I've only seen one show this season and hammond introduced the stig, something that clarkson has done on every other show I've seen(I watch a lot of repeats on living, some going years back)I think the show would benifit a new person to replace clarkson,he's a loud mouth, more ego than talent.

Mitch Connor

nah - that has happened before, Hammond has introduced the Stig a few times, and has had a crack at the fast car on the show (usually a 'jezza' thing) as well, in the same show.

Cmar-Ireland

The show made a successful comeback in January

Must have missed that one.... The show has been rubbish since it came back.

Mc-BigE

Cmar-Ireland wrote:

The show has been rubbish since it came back.

Rubbish??? What about the american trip to New Orleans?
surely the best show of the lot.

the stretched panda/Saabalfa/MGTF wasn't bad either.

Cmar-Ireland

Mc-BigE wrote:

Rubbish??? What about the american trip to New Orleans?
surely the best show of the lot.

the stretched panda/Saabalfa/MGTF wasn't bad either.

LOL, to each, their own. I thought the US trip was the worst TG ever...

prospect

If VBH, Q.Wilson or the unbearable Tiff appear on TG, I will switch off my TV. What a bunch of cretins...


Sabine, shes welcome any day

bogmanfan

I'd plump for Adrian Simpson. His Thunderraces experience would be good in the new format Top Gear I reckon. Would have come in hand with the stretch limos anyway.

E92

prospect wrote:

If VBH, Q.Wilson or the unbearable Tiff appear on TG, I will switch off my TV. What a bunch of cretins...


Sabine, shes welcome any day

Sabine is welcome anyday in the hopefully unlikely event that Clarkson departs for good. Its because of Clarkson that the show is what it is today. Dont get me wrong, the Hamster and Captain Slow are ledgends in their own right too, but it just wouldnt be the same without Clarkson. Next time could they do one of those races across the continent please:) I couldnt agree more with you about those other 3 cretins prospect either, Tiff is the worst(painful to listen to), cant remember Wilson in the same way JC cant remember the new Honda Legend, though VBH isnt bad at all, but nowhere as good as Clarkson of course. I have to say I wasnt over the moon about the latest series,yes the trip to America was hillarious and I nearly died with laughter with the limo challenge, and of course the first episode was very memorable, and the others were good too, but they werent as unbelieveably good as previous series were. I want to see more car reviews(especially where Clarkson slates the car with his famous'its rubbish' slogan:D ), less of the 'star in a reasonably priced car' bits(talk more about the cars or make that bit shorter) and could they please please please get the Veyron around that test track;) . Oh btw, I'd prefer if Clarkson gets to give us the story of the Stig, Clarkson seems to give a better introduction and also is mnore descriptive about what goes on. If he did leave or the BBC decided to axe the show, thats suicidal; 8million people watch it every Sunday making it the BBCs and indeed Britains most watched show(IIRC).

zilog_jones

E92 wrote:

Tiff is the worst(painful to listen to)

I agree he's not the best presenter around, but back when his part of the show was actually participating in races (in the '80s and early '90s) he was quite interesting. And obviously thanks to this, he knows how to drive. Quentin Willson wouldn't really have any place in the current format programme.

The series has changed so much since back in the good ol' days it's quite hard to believe. I don't have Channel 5 so don't know how Fifth Gear compares (I've only seen a few of the early episodes on Discovery).

IMO the latest Top Gear series has taken a turn for the worse - too much arsing about building shyte or going on trips and not enough actual cars. They barely even bother with the news any more. Maybe they should just start over from scratch (for the second time ), with all new presenters and a new format again.

dubtom

Some of you may have seen this before, the stig actually says something, 'he's the best' aparently. Sound a bit young to me.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VihIf1Fi-BM