Top Gear

[KevinW]

Originally Posted by KM480

I would like to see them set the STIG loose with a CSX4000 or Kirkham for a run at the power board. It would be very interest to see where on the board it would land.

- we've made similar requests, but Clarkeson is on record saying he hates 'kit cars', although somehow the Westfield/Caterham is seen as acceptable (did you see the episode when they tried to build one in the time it took the stig to drive a few hundred miles North?)

I have heard lots of people talking about TG and one of the reason for its success is the huge budget they spend on the stunts. I think this has grown over the years. When TG came out (actually 'returned to TV') a few years ago now, it was a bit of a shaky start I remember. It was well known that Clarkeson had fallen out with his fellow (original format - mainly cars, no gags) TG hosts Tiff Needle, Vicky Henderson Butler and another reporter who's name escapes me. They went to UK Channel 5 and started Fifth Gear - using the same old top gear format. Top Gear then appeared about a year after the bust up on BBC2, some people billing it the Jeremy Clarkeson show', which was the part of the problem of the break up with the old team.

It was criticized initially as being politically incorrect and bad use of the licence fee. all quickly forgotten about when it got a firm footing in the ratings.

Pub quiz factoid:
Before the Hamster was famous, we persuaded him to do the interviews for a UK Cobraclub meet at Duxford Aircraft Museum. The video is downloadable... somewhere on the web.