How The BBC Turned Its Back On Top Gear
By now we are all familiar with the decline of Top Gear inlcuding the low ratings and replacement host problems during its last season, and of course the incidents surrounding Clarkson, Hammond, and May leaving the show for good. For those of you who may still be unfamiliar with the story, Hammond and May left the show in solidarity with their co-host, after a “fracas” involving Clarkson for which he was fired for hitting producer Oisin Tymon over a lack of proper catering at a Yorkshire hotel after a long day of filming which upset Clarkson to the point of physical violence. While Clarkson later apologized, the BBC had already given him several warnings for his behavior in regards to previous incidents and this was considered the last straw.
In a recent interview with the magazine ‘The Radio Times’ Clarkson was asked about how he felt in regards to his time at the BBC. The fracas and many other incidents that occured during his tenure on the show didn’t come up, but Clarkson did have some things to say about how the BBC treated the host, his co-hosts, and the shows success. Jeremy told the magazine that he felt the BBC never gave them a fair share of credit for the success of Top Gear, even though the show had been wildly successful both in viewership and in sheer revenue, bringing in over 56 million pounds a year. In recent years Top Gear has become one of the most successful and widely viewed shows in the entire world and it seems ludicrous that the BBC would have responded to it’s success in such a way.
Jeremy was later quoted in the interview, comparing the folks at Amazon to those at the BBC, as saying “When we finish a film on The Grand Tour we send it to Amazon, and they ring us up and squeak, ‘It’s brilliant, we love it! We can’t wait! It’s so good!’…..You never got that from the BBC.”
Clarkson went on in the interview to talk about some of his regrets during his time at Top Gear, and how he tried to make right on those mistakes. In one particular case, Jeremy said in regards to the ‘Mexico Controversy’ that he personally went to see the Mexican ambassador of his own accord following the incident, and after apologizing “…got absolutely paralytic on tequila with him.”
With the rampant excitement over The Grand Tour and its premiere on Amazon Prime next week, it’s impossible not to see the flaws in the BBC’s actions even more now. The show (Top Gear), has already lost one of it’s new hosts, Chris Evans, following the shows record low viewership and poor critic reviews, leaving co-host Matt Leblanc as the shows lead presenter. Despite this, Clarkson and the boy’s truly do wish the best for Top Gear, and we wish the best for both Top Gear and of course, The Grand Tour.
Be sure and tune into the premiere of The Grand Tour next week, and let us know what you think, and as always like and follow Grand Tour Nation for all the most exciting news, stories, and more about The Grand Tour, Top Gear, and the boys!
