It was always a case of when and where rather than “if”, but we now have official confirmation that Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May will be continuing their partnership, bringing fans a brand new (though likely incredibly familiar) motoring show; having recently finalised a deal with Amazon.
Clarkson was recently axed by the BBC (following a “fracas” with a producer), and while the BBC still retain the rights to motoring show Top Gear (a clear brain-child of presenter and motoring enthusiast Jeremy “Jezza” Clarkson), and will continue to air new series’ of the show with replacement presenter Chris Evans (he of Radio 2, TGI Friday, and Big Breakfast fame – not Captain America), they were saddened to lose Jeremy’s two co-hosts Richard “Hamster” Hammond, and James “Captain Slow” May; after the pair quit, saying they couldn’t continue to present Top Gear without their self-appointed leader.
Fans (many of whom blindly supported Clarkson through his suspension and firing without knowing the full facts, and continued to do so even when his inexcusable actions were revealed) will be overjoyed to hear the trio are back together, and will be continuing the Top Gear tradition (albeit under a different name – due to pesky rights issues) when filming begins this fall.
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Seen as how Clarkson and executive producer Andy Wilman (who’s also made the move to Amazon for the new show) are credited with the revival of the BBC version of Top Gear, and making it the most watched factual show of all time (with an estimated worldwide audience of around 350 million viewers), it should come as no surprise Amazon “made a significant investment” (according to a company insider) to out-bid competitors such as Netflix and Sky in order to secure the trio and their new show.
Speaking of their new three year deal, Clarkson has said he’s “very excited” and “feels like I’ve climbed out of a bi-plane into a spaceship”, May said the trio “have become part of the new age of smart TV. Ironic, isn’t it?”, with Hammond adding “Amazon? Oh yes. I have already been there. I got bitten by a bullet ant.”
As the “all-new car show” is being produced by Amazon (where VP Jay Marine says they “give program makers creative freedom to be innovative and make the shows they want to make”), it’d make sense we’ll see the new show debuting on subscription service Amazon Prime when it debuts next year (2016) – though Amazon of course have the power to license the show to other networks (obviously Dave being the obvious choice).
Matt Wheeldon – @TheMattWheeldon.
Source: Jeremy Clarkson (Twitter), Amazon.
