I have that booked to watch sometime soon.

The original 1970's series was little more than a road test type magazine for normal family saloons.

With commentary along the lines of..." As you can see it seats a family of four quite comfortably, with all the controls falling readily to hand and is available in four different colours.."

A bold move for the time was to have a female lead presenter, (TV news reader Angela Rippon.) alongside Journalist the late Tom Coyne.

So more of a car "reportage" than entertainment.



The Clarkson revamp was a bit limp I felt in the first series mainly due to the presenter Jason Dawe not really fitting in with Clarkson and Hammond, no chemistry as it were. It also erred on the side of the old series presentation wise.

However as soon as James May replaced Dawe then the magic happened.

The funniest I thought was the testing of the three wheel Reliant Robin, sheer brilliance with Clarkson overturning the vehicle on test at every opportunity, I later read that it was all staged, the badly hidden roll cage should have been the giveaway.

Hilarious never the less.

Some Clarkson trivia. His mother,Shirley, designed the first soft toy of Paddington bear for Jeremy and his sister Johanna, receiving official endorsement in the seventies from the Bond family. If you read the books the illustration shows the bear as shoeless but because the bears made by the Clarkson's kept falling over they fitted him with Dunlop wellington boots to solve the problem. In the end they had to manufacture their own boots as Dunlop couldn't keep up with demand! The income from this put Clarkson and his sister through public school.

The booted bear is what you see in films, TV etc today thanks to Clarkson's mother.


I have a lot a of time for fellow Yorkshireman, Clarkson ( even it is south Yorkshire, think Hatfields and McCoys.) who in my opinion is a damn good print journalist with a pithy to the point style of prose and James May isn't too shabby in that regard either.

These days Richard Hammond has started a classic car restoration business with a series of TV programs based on same. The business is called "The Smallest Cog" and the program is called "Richard Hammond's workshop." Something to look out for.

Clarkson also has his Amazon show "Clarkson's Farm."

Farming seems to be his main driving force these days as well as the old pub he has just restored and opened for business.

Some Hammond trivia, the neuro surgeon who operated on Hammond after his rocket car smash was the same lad who did both my spinal ops, at the same hospital and occupying the same bed as myself, at separate times obviously!


Your point re modern vehicles I, with heavy heart, concur. Just as early computers could be fiddled with, improved or not as the case would have it, became, thanks to I.B.M. and their beige box mentality, the end user white goods you refer to.

In both our cases, Sarge, you with motors and I with vintage tooters, we both tinker and while away an enjoyable day whilst parked outside, the "beige box" car awaits to take someone to the store.

We have a situation over here where if the vehicle is forty years old or more then no M.O.T. or road tax is needed which alongside classic car insurance make the ownership of such a vehicle a tempting prospect with only the initial purchase price and mechanical condition being a potential downside. ten grand for rusted a barn find being the starting price some greedy buggers are asking.

The only caveat to owning and running said beasty is that the vehicle should be of original manufactured spec' so no V8 in the Morris Minor then!? Also you have to keep it in mechanically sound etc.

Another interesting aspect of all this is that one can drive a heavy goods vehicle on a normal car licence providing it was first registered before Jan' 1960. The thought of old Fred here in a twenty tonner on the local by-pass did cross my mind, what with my old man being a trucker all his working life, but then the sudden realisation that 9 M.P.G would dent the pension somewhat made this mad rush of blood less seem less attractive!

So yes, Sarge, once again we are singing from the same hymn sheet and like yourself I'm glad we probably saw and experienced the best of it.