John Ranalletta Posted March 13, 2015 Share Posted March 13, 2015 Who'd know he'd blow up again? Duh... OTH, Top Gear has become one of the most boring auto shows on the telly. The stunts are inane and the cars tested are out of reach for all the the top .5% of the population. The USA version of Top Gear? How could they make a worse show? They've tried. Wouldn't be sorry to see the TG franchise fold and would gladly watch Power Garage, Kindig or Wheeler Dealers on Velocity instead. And, what's up with "What's in the Garage?" Fake suspense; and, how the does the camera crew always know in which garage to hide before Dale discovers each rare bike? Link to comment
Guest Kakugo Posted March 13, 2015 Share Posted March 13, 2015 You have to understand two things. First, Top Gear earns an absolute fortune for the BBC on export markets. I dare to say it's their main breadwinner. For Clarkson to be kicked out... he must have really taken a leak in someone's cereals (excuse my expression). And, yes, I know he has a personality as pleasant as one of my terriers'. Second, Top Gear is about as anti-PC as it gets in most countries where car shows/magazines take themselves way way too seriously while at the same time they desperately attempt to shill the latest toy car from Ford or Peugeot. Here you have three grown men goofing around with supercars or pulling ridiculous stunts... at least they are not trying to convince they are the voice of reason and don't attempt selling you overpriced junk with your choice or gasoline or diesel engine. Link to comment
John Ranalletta Posted March 13, 2015 Author Share Posted March 13, 2015 I'm not making any judgments re: Clarkson's behavior. Simply, the show fails to hold my attention given the $ BBC spends on it. If Clarkson's a boar, the other two are just boring, witness James May's two recent efforts that were as interesting as watching paint dry. Link to comment
Boffin Posted March 13, 2015 Share Posted March 13, 2015 Top gear earns about £50 million per year for the BBC, it is the corporation's biggest earner by a long way. The formula may be crass but it works. Rumour control suggests that Clarkson may have punched a producer. There was certainly a loud, potty-mouthed confrontation at a hotel after it was found that the production team had failed to arrange for hot food at the end of the day's filming. Jeremy Clarkson reported the "Fracas" to the BBC top brass himself - perhaps an attempt at damage limitation. No JC = No TG, with the associated loss of the BBCs major revenue stream. Either way, a difficult choice for the management. Andy Link to comment
Danny caddyshack Noonan Posted March 13, 2015 Share Posted March 13, 2015 Clarkson may have some issues but, he is one of the few who is willing to speak his mind.....for better or worse. His Sunday Times editorials display a mastery of the written word that is highly uncommon today. I usually tune the show out, temporarily, at least once per episode for any number of reasons. Link to comment
Guest Kakugo Posted March 13, 2015 Share Posted March 13, 2015 Top gear earns about £50 million per year for the BBC, it is the corporation's biggest earner by a long way. The formula may be crass but it works. Rumour control suggests that Clarkson may have punched a producer. There was certainly a loud, potty-mouthed confrontation at a hotel after it was found that the production team had failed to arrange for hot food at the end of the day's filming. Jeremy Clarkson reported the "Fracas" to the BBC top brass himself - perhaps an attempt at damage limitation. No JC = No TG, with the associated loss of the BBCs major revenue stream. Either way, a difficult choice for the management. Andy That's the problem? In that case I volunteer to fill in for Clarkson. I have no idea how much he earned, but I can do it for a fraction, while at the same time being far more flexible regarding food/travel/lodging conditions and far less forced when it comes to playing the anti-PC card. The fact I know absolutely nothing when it comes to cars is incidental. Link to comment
Boffin Posted March 13, 2015 Share Posted March 13, 2015 The fact I know absolutely nothing when it comes to cars is incidental. That puts you in the same boat as Jezza... Andy Link to comment
Guest Kakugo Posted March 13, 2015 Share Posted March 13, 2015 The fact I know absolutely nothing when it comes to cars is incidental. That puts you in the same boat as Jezza... Andy At least I know how to carry out most basic repairs (thermostat, O2 sensors etc). Link to comment
Glenn Reed Posted March 13, 2015 Share Posted March 13, 2015 And you don't hate motorbikes the way he does... Link to comment
John Ranalletta Posted March 15, 2015 Author Share Posted March 15, 2015 Clarkson quits TG Link to comment
tallman Posted March 15, 2015 Share Posted March 15, 2015 Lose-lose. Both sides will look back and regret this but the show had spiraled downward recently. This is/was a big buck$ revenue producer for BBC... Hard to recreate , or sustain, the chemistry that make a show interesting over time. Link to comment
Guest Kakugo Posted March 15, 2015 Share Posted March 15, 2015 At the moment it's anybody's guess. What we do know is that Clarkson's, May's and Hammond's contracts were all running out at the end of March and that James May confirmed nobody has approached him yet for a renewal. "Follow the money" may be a legitimate suggestion. I think Channel 4 or Sky would have no problem paying Clarkson whatever he was earning at the BBC to work for them. Probably the same for Hammond and May. The only loser would be the BBC... but the sums in question are so large it just doesn't make any sense. Link to comment
Mike Posted March 16, 2015 Share Posted March 16, 2015 Clarkson quits TG I did like the show, but I suppose the world will go on. The accounts I've read of the confrontation--and they are somewhat sparse--suggest that Clarkson was way over the line, getting drunk, then loudly berating and ultimately punching a junior staffer when he wasn't fed in the manner he insisted upon. Sometimes when things get to that point, it's a good sign that a run should come to an end. Link to comment
russell_bynum Posted March 16, 2015 Share Posted March 16, 2015 Clarkson quits TG I did like the show, but I suppose the world will go on. The accounts I've read of the confrontation--and they are somewhat sparse--suggest that Clarkson was way over the line, getting drunk, then loudly berating and ultimately punching a junior staffer when he wasn't fed in the manner he insisted upon. Sometimes when things get to that point, it's a good sign that a run should come to an end. Top Gear was one of only two shows that I watch on TV (not counting a handful of racing series) so this is a bummer. I do agree that it was getting a bit stale...though I still enjoyed it more often than not. But at the end of the day...it's just a TV show. Link to comment
Lone_RT_rider Posted March 16, 2015 Share Posted March 16, 2015 But at the end of the day...it's just a TV show. Yep, but thank god for DVR's. I love that show. At one point I had close to 100 episodes recorded. Link to comment
russell_bynum Posted March 16, 2015 Share Posted March 16, 2015 Wouldn't be sorry to see the TG franchise fold and would gladly watch Power Garage, Kindig or Wheeler Dealers on Velocity instead. I haven't seen or heard of the other two (I'll look them up), but I've seen a handful of Wheeler Dealer episodes on YouTube. It is sometimes interesting, but seems pretty pointless. The "Profit" they make on most of the cars is only there because they pretend the mechanic works for free. And I wouldn't put it in the same category as TG. A guy replacing the alternator and Tie Rods on an 88 VW doesn't have the same appeal as watching Michael Schumacher lap in an FXX or a couple of bumbling idiots try to build a space shuttle out of a Reliant Robin. The fact that TG plays with cars that you can only buy if you own at least two petrochemical companies is one of the things I like about it. Likewise the fact that their challenges are ridiculous. Link to comment
EffBee Posted March 16, 2015 Share Posted March 16, 2015 It was stale and had been for a while. But even then, it was better than just about anything else out there, including the greenified crap that passes for F1 these days. And regardless of public opinion about Clarkson or the show, the VietNam episodes will live in infamy. Link to comment
russell_bynum Posted March 16, 2015 Share Posted March 16, 2015 It was stale and had been for a while. But even then, it was better than just about anything else out there, including the greenified crap that passes for F1 these days. And regardless of public opinion about Clarkson or the show, the VietNam episodes will live in infamy. True story. Link to comment
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