While the former Top Gear trio of Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond have been popular for quite some time, the events leading to Clarkson’s firing from the BBC and May and Hammond’s decisions to also sign off from the series have made them infamous. And with infamy, comes the rumor mill, including allegations that Jeremy Clarkson was off his rocker and possibly even dealing with an alcohol problem around the time he punched Oison Tymon in the face—something Jimmy Fallon can likely sympathize with. Now, James May is coming out to defend his TV partner, explaining in an interview that he isn’t off his rocker.
If he's an alcoholic, so am I. We just like a drink. I don't think he was unwell or having a breakdown. He's deranged, but that's not the same thing. There's nothing wrong with him.
I love that he calls his co-worker and pal deranged but totally put together at the same, which is the best descriptor I think I’ve ever heard regarding the loud and amusing host and how he could have gotten into the situation he did. Clearly the situation when it happened was messed up, with highstrung emotions on either side. If you’ve kept up with the events leading to Clarkson’s firing from the BBC, he wanted a hot meal at the end of a long day and producer Oison Tymon apparently didn’t make it happen. After punching Tymon, Clarkson came clean to the BBC and lost his job because of it. Oison Tymon later sued Clarkson and the BBC over the incident, dragging this whole thing on even longer. James May and Richard Hammond ultimately opted to follow Jeremy Clarkson out the door.
Weirdly, the BBC has spent a lot of time nodding at Clarkson and co. in the months since Top Gear as we know it ended its run and Chris Evans was signed on as the host. First, there was a Top Gear special that aired over the summer that gave fans some closure. Then, as reported by the Radio Times, the network spent the winter holiday playing compilations of the series, and May told the outlet it's a little awkward.
Oh, so now they're celebrating us, but I also thought it's harsh on Chris Evans. Just as he's trying to launch his version of the program, the BBC is saying, 'Look how brilliant it was before.'
Currently, Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond have signed on with corporate giant Amazon to produce a brand new car-oriented series. Unfortunately, we’ve gone several months without knowing the title of the upcoming project, but we’ll share that as soon as Amazon makes the big announcement. In the meantime, we do know that the former Top Gear hosts have had to rework a lot of their most popular segments for the new show, as the BBC has retained the rights to most of the show’s popular segments.
Clearly the guys are ready to release their next big TV production and move past all of this BBC stuff, and Hammond has even stated he’s ready to move on. We’ll let you know as soon as the new Top Gear and the new Amazon series gets the show on the road.
