Clarkson Cometh

Top Gear meandered on in much the same way until 1988, and the arrival of one Jeremy Charles Robert Clarkson, a former local news journalist. Loudmouthed, outspoken, and dressed in the worst men’s fashions the 1980s had to offer, Clarkson’s arrival changed the show pretty much overnight. Rather than supplying dry technical information about a given car, Jezzer focused instead on how the car performed, whether it looked cool, whether it would make you sexier, what type of person would buy it and so on and so forth. Basically, he was simply being Jeremy Clarkson, and his no-nonsense approach and acerbic put-downs soon made him a favourite with viewers, as did his verbal attacks on cars he considered terrible.

Top Gear in Trouble

It was in this way, however, that the show first encountered the controversy which has attended it in varying degrees ever since. Unafraid to speak his mind, Jeremy found time to slag off many cars, including the Vauxhall Vectra, the Toyota Corolla, and anything made by British Leyland. This approach generated repercussions throughout the motor industry and occasional fury from sections of the general public. In addition, Jeremy was (and still is) also famously outspoken about foreigners and environmentalists, though how much of this is ironic is still up for debate.

Jeremy’s manner only affected the show’s popularity positively, however, and Clarkson continued to present the show until 1999 - whereupon he left, saying that he’d taken Top Gear “as far as he could”. Little did he know.

After Jeremy’s departure the show really was in trouble – ratings were on the slide and the show went through a number of different presenters in an attempt to fill the gap left by Clarkson. Quentin Wilson, Kate Humble, Jason Barlow, and many others – (including, most notably, James May) – stepped in to hold the fort. Ratings recovered somewhat, but, despite everyone’s best efforts, the show was pulled in 2001.

Top Gear Reboot

After Jeremy’s departure and the show’s cancellation, long-standing Top Gear presenter Quentin Wilson and the production team moved the show to Channel Five, but couldn’t secure the rights to the name, so Fifth Gear was born. The BBC, meanwhile, had completed their re-think of the original show, and in 2002, brand new Top Gear was launched.

The show was an instant hit. Abandoning the straightforward consumer review approach in favour of whizz-bang stunts and ludicrously expensive supercars, the show conveyed the essence of what motoring is about – fun, exhilaration and excitement. The presenting team achieved perfect balance in the rebooted version too, now consisting of Jeremy Clarkson, former local radio DJ Richard Hammond, and James May. (May replaced Jason Dawe who left after just one series).

Top Gear in Trouble 2

All of this success has done nothing to blunt the show’s edge, and Jeremy Clarkson seems unable to get through a show without offending somebody, somewhere. Since 2002, the show has been accused of causing offence to various people, including several entire nations. The official BBC policy on Clarksonisms is to play down their import, insisting that nobody in their right mind could take Jeremy seriously, a view apparently shared by Jeremy himself. After his most recent high-profile hoo-hah (where he made a sinister guess at how lorry drivers spend the average day – you remember), he wrote in his Sunday Times column: “There are more important things to worry about than what some balding and irrelevant middle-aged man might have said on a crappy BBC2 motoring show”. Tell ‘em, Jezzer.

Richard Hammond’s Crash

There have been a few safety issues with many of the stunts featured, but none more dramatic than Richard Hammond’s high-speed crash in 2006. Testing a high-powered dragster, Hammond’s front tyre failed at an incredible 288mph. Despite his skilled handling of the vehicle, Hammond couldn’t maintain control and the car crashed.

Richard then spent some time in Leeds General Infirmary, suffering from head injuries, where his family and fellow Top Gear presenters visited him. All sorts of questions were asked during this time about how safe the show was and whether the stunt should have gone ahead, but the main feeling among the general public was of concern for Richard, and he received thousands of messages of goodwill from all over the world.

He returned to Top Gear on the provision that neither James nor Jeremy ever mention the accident again, a request which they have both consistently failed to fulfil.

The Stig

One of the more intriguing elements of Top Gear has been the “tame racing driver”, The Stig, whose job on the show is to test the world’s fastest cars on the Top Gear track . There have been two Stigs so far – a Black Stig – dressed all in black leather and sacked because he revealed his true identity – and the current, iconic White Stig, whose identity remains unknown, despite the hoax “unmasking” of him on the show which revealed him to be Michael Schumacher.