The Grand Tour vs. Top Gear: Insights from the Producer in Dubai

The United Arabian Emirates (UAE) is a car lover’s paradise. That is why both The Grand Tour and Top Gear have done some of their filming in Dubai – even old Top Gear did. Recently, both shows have worked together with one specific production company on site: Knockout Productions. Its CEO, Kenton Oxley, talked to TheNational, which is the UAE’s primary news portal, about what it was like to work with both teams.

Top Gear’s trip to the “Yas Waterworld” was Oxley’s idea

One of the main things that Oxley stated was that his company did not only cater to the team’s producing, but also to their creative needs: When Richard Hammond drove the Mercedes G36 AMG 6×6 through and around Dubai (season 21, episode 4), the team wanted to show the car in deep water. It was Oxley’s idea to let Hammond ride the Mercedes within Yas Waterworld:

The differences in production between Top Gear and The Grand Tour

When asked about the differences between the budgets of The Grand Tour and Top Gear, Oxley explained that the budget itself doesn’t play that big a role. Rather more important than the budget posed the fact that the BBC was a government organization. In comparison to the production Team of TGT, the BBC had to keep an eye out that they won’t appear to thriftless. Therefore, Oxley accommodated them in different hotels, for example.

Another difference between Top Gear and The Grand Tour consisted in the production team’s experience: In comparison to Top Gear’s team, which has been stuck together for 23 seasons, The Grand Tour’s team is all new. “It’s very well run,” Oxley says, but they haven’t done certain things, which is why in parts they needed help in different ways than the Top Gear team.

When asked about what team he likes more to work with, he answers “they are both great”. He also says, that the difference between old Top Gear and The Grand Tour lies in the fact that Clarkson, May and Hammond are much more free in what they can do and say now. In his opinion, the rivalry between Top Gear and The Grand Tour will be “a win-win for everybody” overall. Top Gear “has responded to [The Grand Tour] and raised its own bar, too”, he concludes.

What do you think? Do you – as a viewer – feel severe differences in production between Top Gear and The Grand Tour? Tell us in the comments below.