RAREFILMFINDER

What is Top Gear turning into?
The budget spent on it has nothing to do with cars as the 3 morons that head it up are so far up their ego's that the show is just about them.Did anyone see Simon Cowell put clarkson in his place.For me it showed clarkson had no idea of driving in London let alone in a supercar.As for the other 2 they are poor television at its best.
Am I the only one who thinks like this?

lenny

kelp

No your not on your own. It has gone that way hasn't it.

BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR...YOU MAY GET IT!

Chevyman

I gave up on it quite some time ago. Never liked the team of presenters

A Happy and Healthy New Year to all

"Don't tread on Greta Garbo, as you walk down the boulevard?"

Freddy

The format has had its day, it was good a couple of series ago but now looks tired.
It is now more about the presenters than the cars.

FReddy

The world wags on.

alan gowdy

I always feel vaguely offended when they ridicule some budget car for not costing £50k and being unable to get to 100 mph in 5 seconds or whatever. To me they are ridiculing, by association, those who buy such cars, either by choice or because they don't earn as much as BBC motoring show presenters. It leaves a bad taste.

"Don't forget... one of petrol, two of meths"

EHV_Emmetts

Clarkson and his co-hosts have their tongues firmly in their cheeks when presenting this show. Consequently what they say should not be taken seriously.

I remember first watching it when William Wollard was one of the presenters. In those days it took itself far too earnestly.

davidb

being a car fan ive watched this show since it started .was angela rippon or noel edmonds the first presenter ? the william woolard days are almost like harry enfields mr cholmendly warner sketches compared to how the show looks now . id like to see more real life cars rather than cars you can only afford with film stars wages .some of those segments where clarkson drives the aston/ferrari /lambo and the other two have to catch up on the bus /tandem / pogo stick are a bit tiresome

MB

Well, my son, who I think is the target audience these days - loves it.

He is nearly eighteen and not that bothered about cars - I think he likes the 'blokey talk' and Jeremy Clarkson.

I find Jeremy Clarkson quite amusing and I can watch it for a bit..

Like football, they might as well be talking another language when they start talking about cars - but, I can see the appeal of this new look. A lot of 'magazine' programmes where they interview people etc. are aimed at women or 'arty' types.

So far, I haven't seen it step over into boorish mysogyny or mindless mickytaking..mainly because the presenters are a lot brighter than they let on and know how to play with this kind of humour..but that is how I have seen this kind of thing going off the rails.. (Brainiac..etc...and just about anything Chris Evans used to come up with..)

I don't watch it all the time, though. Perhaps, there now needs to be a new BBC programme that is just about cars?

EHV_Emmetts

All the mickey taking amongst the presenters and the blokely talk is all scripted (mainly by Clarkson) and then vetted by senior production executives.

Chevyman

As far as I'm concerned that Hammond idiot owes the NHS about £100,000 for the treatment he received after being foolish enough to think he could handle a jet-powered dragster as a newbie

A Happy and Healthy New Year to all

"Don't tread on Greta Garbo, as you walk down the boulevard?"

Shadwell

Not to worry. I'm sure he'll donate that from the £750,000 he made for 4 days work filming that annoying Morrison's supermarket advert. I don't mind Top Gear too much but lately the format is looking a bit tired and it is obviously scripted to hell. And it seems to be more about them and their celb status rather that about the cars which is what the show should be about. And please, less power sliding around runways in supercars which most of us will never afford and more on ordinary motoring....

Time to keep your appointment with the Wicker Man...

penfold

In fairness..... 1) He has spent a serious amount of time since raising serious money for the Air Ambulance Service that rescued him....and much of his recuperative hospital time was, IIRC, in a private hospital.

2) No-one on Earth could have handled that car when the tyre punctured at speeds approaching 300mph.....it wasn't driver error nor was it avoidable...

Bit of a Bay Window, what??

DB7

It's no longer the car show some recall from the 70s but an entertainment show utilising cars. I enjoyed some of the earlier series with interesting 'stars' in a reasonably priced cars and some comedic challenges across The English Channel, The Deep South or across an African plain. But I think they've either rested on their laurels or ran out of steam. It needs a revamp of the format.

Chevyman

1) I hope that, when he's raised enough to repay the NHS, he carries on

2) He should never have attempted that run without the requisite experience. It takes years, and he was foolhardy to do it.

A Happy and Healthy New Year to all

"Don't tread on Greta Garbo, as you walk down the boulevard?"

christoph404

Think I would agree with Penfold on this point, mechanical failure caused the accident (punctured tyre), even the most experienced drivers have big accidents, even in Formula 1 or rally. Driving fast at very high speed on a race track is a risk regardless of your experience, thats where the excitement lies. But why does he have to repay money to the NHS? What money? I would imagine his private health care insurance or his insurance through the beeb would cover those medical costs, I would imagine the insurance premiums would be quite high to cover him then and probably even more so now. The insurance probably didn't cover the air ambulance but as Penfold has pointed out he is busy rasing money for that.Also Hammond does earn lots of money thats true, therefore he pays lots of tax (40%) so isn't he entitled to health care like everyone else? I personally don't begrudge his life saving treatment or what it cost,lets be fair, he's entitled to it. If your point is that people who take risks in sport that could cause injury should be made to pay the NHS for medical care for any injuries their "folly" inflicts on them, well thats just silly in my opinion.