Top Gear New Presenters.

[John]

Not watched it yet as watched a filum but will watch tonight.

The feedback on here certainly bodes well from my perspective!

The existing format didn't just instantaneously come about after the early 2000s reboot. It evolved over several series.

I remember the first shows of the Clarkson-era Top Gear in the early noughties and it was very sensible and restrained.

They featured a "used car section" thing (probably as a nod to the original TG) with some guy from another show but that didn't really work.

Took a long time to get the formula right.

 

[Dryce]

Some old, same old...but amusing in places and has opened my eyes to Ethiopia. I thought it was just a place good distance runners came from.

I thought there wasn't much traffic about on the open roads. Now IME roads are built for a reason - to be used - so I suspect that they got to close the roads and film.

If you actually know an area - eg. Scotland - and you see a trip then you realise that a lot of the shots are taken in just a few sections of road - and sometimes out of sequence - and some times obvious repeats of the same road section from different angles maybe with the cars in a different order as well - and sometimes they'll be travelling in the wrong direction.

This makes it difficult to get a feel for reality.

They're no better in some way than the travel shots and details in the film Skyfall - which shows Bond heading south on the Glen Etive road and then there's a majestic shot of the DB5 heading towards Glencoe before reaching that point. And the details given of the journey mention A9 when logically they never went on it.

No big deal - it's 'Hollywood' and fiction. Trouble is 'factual' programmes like TG and tGT will also play similar sorts of games with their edits and narrative to make it 'look right'.

 

[Dryce]

Oh, and 700 bhp in a Ferrari is not that quick, well not compared to 800bhp in a 1200kg XJ220..... now I was impressed with that
View attachment 86930

You do realise that when age verification checks come into force that you can't simply post a shot like that .......

 

[Mactech]

You do realise that when age verification checks come into force that you can't simply post a shot like that .......

Ha Ha ! I was still in my 30's (just) when I was in charge of developing that car...28 years ago. That particular car with modern turbos, engine management and tyres, I would happily put up against any of the current 'Hypercars' quarter of a century old or not.
Does it look almost 30 years old? Yes, age verification checks required

 

[Dryce]

Does it look almost 30 years old?

Long answer: Oddly I was thinking of the Ferrari and McLaren on TG when I first saw your post and with due respect to both those cars because they look great - I thought the blue XJ220 looked even better.

Short answer: No

 

[Deleted member 37751]

Other than Harris being his usual wooden self, on balance, I thought it was all right actually.

Ultimately though, I think because Top Gear is so intrinsically linked to Clarkson et al that it’ll never really be able to shed that looming presence.

Flintoff and Paddy will give it more of an entertainment feel, because that really is what the show is - an *entertainment show* - and that’s why Harris’ wooden journalistic tone will never sell - but I fear the BBC has chosen a long death as opposed to starting something new instead.

 

[Mactech]

Can you count the cost of these cars just about to be blitzed by a 'vintage' XJ220?
I seem to remember that the big cat also pounced and tried to get it's claws in that aluminium sky chicken trying to escape....

 

[artyman]

Never mind the BBC can use the extra licence fee from pensioners so they can afford to send the 'boys' off to far flung destinations, has to be good value

 

[Deletedmember130310]

View attachment 86931
Can you count the cost of these cars just about to be blitzed by a 'vintage' XJ220?
I seem to remember that the big cat also pounced and tried to get it's claws in that aluminium sky chicken trying to escape....

I vaguely recall the XJ220 didn't do too well on the Eboladrome...(on The Grand Tour)...probably because that was completely the wrong environment for it

 

[John]

Really enjoyed for a change. Chemistry seems to work and yes some of it is staged but I am happy to allow myself to be entertained by it.

Even quite liked the supercars section as I have no interest in buying one, I could never afford one and I certainly couldn't fit in one - so having someone else drive one round the track is entertaining for as long as I can remember whatever variant they've churned out this time.

Certainly will be watching future ones although I agree with you Lee, it would have been nice to have done something fresh.

But then saying that, I do enjoy the challenges ones the most especially when in random cars not suited for the job.

 

[st13phil]

Not really sure why the BBC persist with trying to ape a format that Clarkson et al invented and then played for just a little too long?

A wise man once said that you don’t get to be the best by copying whoever is acknowledged as the best, because by the time you’ve perfected what they were doing, they’ve moved on. The BBC can change the presenters as many times as they like in an effort to get “the chemistry” right, but the format is past its best before date.

For the love of God, do something different and original!

 

[ToeKnee]

I can't see what the obsession is with monkey Harris, I've watched him race and, frankly, I don't rate him yet last season he was "teaching" the celebrities to drive. All he can do is drift cars (albeit very well) and just about every car he reviews he has to drift it as that's all he can do.

 

[jaymanek]

Not too bad. No grand tour but better than last season...

 

[Darrell]

Watched most of it last night before I turned it off due to tiredness.
I thought it was quite good and funny in places. Yes, it was much the same as the old show with Clarkson etc but that was a good show so it hasnt strayed too far.
I wonder if Clarkson hadn’t been sacked by the Beeb would they still be sticking to this format?

 

[jdrrco]

Really enjoyed for a change. Chemistry seems to work and yes some of it is staged but I am happy to allow myself to be entertained by it.

Even quite liked the supercars section as I have no interest in buying one, I could never afford one and I certainly couldn't fit in one - so having someone else drive one round the track is entertaining for as long as I can remember whatever variant they've churned out this time.

Certainly will be watching future ones although I agree with you Lee, it would have been nice to have done something fresh.

But then saying that, I do enjoy the challenges ones the most especially when in random cars not suited for the job.

Like others, I'd like them to try something a little different, but Chris Harris's poor "spontaneous laughter" acting aside, I also chose to enjoy it.

Glad to see they've dropped the "Star in a... car" bit. I always forwarded past those!

 

[Yex]

Watched it yesterday and felt it was a step up from recent series. I hope Freddy and Paddy get to drive some of the more top end cars on the track during the series to show they have some driving skills as well as some good humour and presentation skills.

 

[Bellow]

Freddie and Paddy - it could have been Ant and Dec but there weren't enough licences present.
Flintoff stripped off (well, to his pants) - didn't do much for me. What'd your wives make of it?

 

[Darrell]

Freddie and Paddy - it could have been Ant and Dec but there weren't enough licences present.
Flintoff stripped off (well, to his pants) - didn't do much for me. What'd your wives make of it?

Stopping off to his boxers is exactly what I would’ve done 20 years ago.

 

[Dryce]

I can't see what the obsession is with monkey Harris, I've watched him race and, frankly, I don't rate him yet last season he was "teaching" the celebrities to drive. All he can do is drift cars (albeit very well) and just about every car he reviews he has to drift it as that's all he can do.

ISTR comments made in these forums from somebody whose opinions are respected that he was reasonably handy in a fast car.

Harris is a decent intelligent motoring journalist and the post Clarkson TG format which has over-focussed on being blokey and hamming up to the camera and even less on the cars has tended to obscure that.

 

[AMGeed]

ISTR comments made in these forums from somebody whose opinions are respected that he was reasonably handy in a fast car.

Harris is a decent intelligent motoring journalist and the post Clarkson TG format which has over-focussed on being blokey and hamming up to the camera and even less on the cars has tended to obscure that.

Also, it should be noted that most of the chat is scripted and Chris Harris is merely repeating the lines pre written for him.

This was something I noticed when my car was used on 5th Gear last year.
Every word VBH said on the show had been written for her.
Whether it works on screen or not is often down to the script as well as the delivery.