by There was a double dose of good news for Top Gear fans this week.
First, Richard Hammond claimed that the BBC motoring show, currently on hiatus following Freddie Flintoff’s horrific accident, would almost certainly return one day.
Then, Amazon’s Prime Video released the latest epic installment of The Grand Tour, with Hammond and his old Top Gear roadies Jeremy Clarkson and James May.
Now, just in case anyone was worried that the trio might have finally grown up a bit, I’m happy to report that their desert-based adventure, which loosely follows the tire marks on the Paris/Dakar legend. So yes. Many schoolboys still laugh at them.
I’m also happy to tell you that it’s up there with their best specials.
It’s a high-octane visual feast, with plenty of gags and gags to tide you over the two hour and fifteen minute runtime. There’s even an A-Team interlude – theme tune and all – that will have amateur engineers and fans of naff 80s TV shows purring with glee.
Watch a trailer for The Grand Tour: Sand Job
The conclusion that could be drawn from Hammond’s comments is that Top Gear’s uncertainty at the moment and that this is their penultimate journey for Amazon is clear, if a little bleak. Even? Surely the BBC should swallow its po-faced pride and bring them back home.
At the very least the network should be looking to do the public a service by negotiating some arrangement with Amazon that would allow Baby The Grand Tour to be shown to an even wider audience.
The BBC loves repeats, after all. And, ratings-wise, The Grand Tour would certainly do well for BBC1 or BBC2 on a quiet Sunday.
In the long term, is there any real reason why Clarkson, May and Hammond shouldn’t return and fulfill their BBC destinies – as a real-life incarnation of the three old blokes from Last Of The Summer Wine.
Let’s face it, if the recent thrashing of the likes of Ken Bruce, Sue Barker and poor Steve Wright is anything to go by, the BBC’s obsession with youth is not shared by a significant number of its fee-paying viewers.
For them, personality and chemistry are the most important thing. Even in its heaviest moments, stunted up, Sand Job Clarkson, May and Hammond still create bagfuls.
Their tour begins in the outpost of Choum in Mauritania, where the trio are awaiting delivery of their latest souped-up supercars – Jaguar, Maserati and Aston Martin.
You may have seen the amazing promo trailer featuring drone footage of one of the world’s longest trains coming into Choum. Let me tell you, the whole sequence is even more amazing.
It will leave you wondering if Mauritania’s railways can have corners or bends, and is just one of several amazing pieces of camerawork during the 135-minute Sahara marathon.
It’s not even close to being the best though. I won’t spoil things for you, but there is a scene near the end that is pure Hollywood. All I can say is that it’s a great beach, three very happy beats from a later age and some heavy rock and roll.
This trip to West Africa is not all smiles. As the producers pointed out at the start, much of it takes place in a Foreign Office red zone where terrorism cannot be ruled out. Real terrorism, that is. Not just the traitorous terrorists Clarkson and Hammond filling May’s car with sand.
There is also the heat to deal with. It is touching 50°C during the day, and there are moments when you really fear for their health. Especially Clarkson’s. Without wishing to sound too personal, Jezza is not the only car that appears to be carrying a “beefed upside” on this trip.
He stubbornly refuses to even wear a sun hat at first.
May is just a little more safety conscious, choosing to wear a bandana as if paying homage to Dennis Hopper in Apocalypse Now. As for Hammond, you won’t be surprised to hear that he’s the most likely not to make it home in one piece.
One hot and sticky afternoon in camp, a clearly determined Clarkson throws an almighty stroke and snaps: “I’m trying to remember if I’ve ever been this irritated.”
No, just a few pictures have surfaced online of Meghan and Harry living their best lives in Montecito.
He is only worried about the shoddy tent that has been provided for him. The inconsequential piece of equipment is almost the straw that breaks the camel’s back, and you have to bet on the bravery of the production team given Clarkson’s track record in his responses to TV underlines not giving him what he wants.
Does the journey have a happy ending though? I’m not telling. Let’s just say, if you’re predicting a riot you might just be in the right field.
The Grand Tour: Sand Job is now streaming on Prime Video.
