The BBC has stopped its traditional “Top Gear” motor show indefinitely. The decision may dismay car enthusiasts, but, the British broadcaster said, “it's the right thing to do.”
In a statement shared during a Tuesday morning broadcast, the British Broadcasting Corp. said it will “rest” the show “for the foreseeable future” due to “exceptional circumstances.” The UK broadcaster has hosted the “Top Gear” revival since October 2002, and news of the hiatus comes a month after it reached a “deal” with host Andrew “Freddie” Flintoff in connection with an accident at the program's test track in December 2022.
Flintoff's deal with the BBC in October reportedly amounted to $11.3 million.
The cricket star, one of “Top Gear’s” newest trio of presenters, was hospitalized on Dec. 13, 2022, with non-life-threatening injuries after a “high-speed” car crash while filming on the track. test site at Dunsfold airfield, the Guardian reported. After the accident, which occurred in Surrey, England, BBC Studios conducted an investigation into the accident and decided to stop filming for season 34 in March. In a statement shared with Variety that month, the BBC said it will carry out a “health and safety review of the programme, in accordance with our procedures”.
The Times of London also reported in March that Flintoff, 45, had left “Top Gear” after the accident.
The BBC said Tuesday that it “remains committed” to Flintoff, Paddy McGuinness and Chris Harris, who have co-presented “Top Gear” since 2019. “Top Gear” premiered in 2002 as a revival of the original “Top Gear” series on the BBC. 1970s and has been adapted in the US with a different roster of presenters.
Stars who have presented “Top Gear” include trio Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May. Clarkson and “Top Gear” split in 2015 after the TV personality got into a physical altercation with producer Oisin Tymon.
“Obviously none of us wanted to find ourselves in this position,” former BBC director general Tony Hall said in a 2015 statement. “This decision should not detract from the extraordinary contribution Jeremy Clarkson has made to the BBC.” .
Hammond and May left the show shortly after Clarkson's departure and launched a similar show, “The Grand Tour,” with him for Amazon.
“Top Gear” has also featured English radio and television personality Chris Evans and “Friends” star Matt LeBlanc. Evans' tenure on the car show was short-lived, but LeBlanc served as co-host from 2016 to 2019. Upon his departure, LeBlanc said he had “a lot of fun” on the series, but in the end, “the time commitment and extensive travel “They took away his time with friends and family.
The BBC, which said it has new projects in development with each of the presenters, added that more information about “Top Gear” will be shared in “the near future.” Meanwhile, other “Top Gear” companies, including international magazines and series, will not be affected by the pause.
