Top Gear


12:20 pm - 1:20 pm, Today on U&Dave (19)

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About this Broadcast

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Season 20, Episode 2

Jeremy Clarkson gets behind the wheel of the Ferrari F12 Berlinetta, sampling the punch of its 730bhp V12 engine on the open roads of Scotland. Richard Hammond harnesses the power of motorsport on a quest to find the world's best taxi, and James May pays tribute to the former BBC Television Centre in White City, London, using a motorcyclist and a pair of parkour runners. Plus, the BAC Mono - an astonishingly fast car with just one seat - is put through its paces on the test track, and film director Ron Howard goes for a spin in the new Reasonably Priced Car


HD subtitles 16x9 audio-description
Leisure Hobbies Motoring

Cast & Crew

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James May (Presenter)
Richard Hammond (Presenter)
Jeremy Clarkson (Presenter)
Ron Howard (Guest)
Andy Wilman (Executive producer)

More Information

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Did You Know..

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James May (Presenter)
Born: January 16, 1963 in Bristol
Best Known For: Being Captain Slow on Top Gear.
Early-life: James Daniel May was born on January 16, 1963, in Bristol. He has a brother and two sisters. He attended school in Rotherham with Life on Mars star Dean Andrews before heading to Lancaster University to study music. After graduating, May made ends meet in a series of jobs, including working in a hospital. During a stint with an engineering company, he produced a leaflet and liked what it involved, so applied for a job as a magazine sub-editor. He then worked for Autocar, but was fired after inserting a 'secret' message in the text.
Career: May's TV career began in 1998 with the Channel 4 series Driven, which ran for four years. In 1999, he landed a presenting role on BBC's Top Gear before it was axed due to low ratings. He rejoined the revamped version of the show in its second series. Other projects for the BBC have included Oz and James's Big Wine Adventure, James May's 20th Century, James May's Big Ideas, James May's Man Lab, and James May's Toy Stories.
Quote: On his sex-symbol status: 'Perhaps they look at me in the way that I might look at a slightly tacky Jaguar XJS, and think 'that's potentially not bad, maybe I could improve that'.'
Trivia: Away from TV, he has written columns for several publications and penned the books May on Motors and Notes from the Hard Shoulder.
Richard Hammond (Presenter)
Born: December 19, 1969 in Solihull
Best Known For: Co-hosting Top Gear, alongside Jeremy Clarkson and James May.
Early-life: Richard Mark Hammond was born in Birmingham on December 19, 1969. His mum Eileen, father Alan and younger brothers Andrew and Nicholas moved to Ripon where his father ran a probate business. After attending Harrogate College of Art and Technology, Richard decided not to pursue a degree and instead took a series of part-time jobs, including working behind the bar of a pub and being a 'chicken chaser' at a local farm.
Career: His broadcasting career began on local radio, before he got his big TV break hosting a number of daytime shows on Men & Motors. In 2002, he landed a slot on BBC's Top Gear, where he was given the nickname Hamster. Other series Richard has presented include Crufts, the British Parking Awards, Should I Worry About…?, The Gunpowder Plot: Exploding the Legend, Time Commanders, and Sky One's Brainac: Science Abuse. He was also a team captain on the quiz show Petrolheads and narrated the BBC series Last Man Standing. In recent years, he has started presenting serious documentaries on such subjects as warfare and engineering, and secured a world exclusive interview with his hero, Evel Knievel. He is the current face of the rather silly but very enjoyable Total Wipeout.
Quote: On his Top Gear colleagues: 'Of course we get on - the show wouldn't work if we didn't get on. The arguments you see on-screen are for real and often carry on off-screen as well.'
Trivia: He has published books on motoring and science.
Jeremy Clarkson (Presenter)
Born: April 11, 1960 in Doncaster
Best Known For: Presenting Top Gear.
Early-life: Jeremy Charles Robert Clarkson was born on April 11th, 1960, and claims he could say 'Maserati' before he could say 'mummy'. He was the only son of affluent parents who manufactured Paddington Bear dolls. His passion for cars began as a child, but he admits to losing interest during his teens when he discovered girls and punk rock. Jeremy attended public school for five years, but was expelled shortly before he was due to take his A-levels. His first car was a Ford Cortina.
Career: Jeremy was employed as a trainee journalist on the Rotherham Advertiser, but he quit while reporting on a local agricultural show because he grew tired of the marrow-growers and Pony Club mums. He joined the family firm as a salesman and moved to London, where he found a new career as a motoring writer. In 1987, he met a Top Gear producer at a car launch and was invited on to the show. He quickly became one of its most popular presenters, but left the programme in 1998 to concentrate on other projects. Other series he has fronted include Speed, Meet The Neighbours and his own chat show, Clarkson. However, he missed talking about cars and returned to a revamped Top Gear, which is now one of the world's most-watched shows.
Quote: 'It's amazing how easily people are upset. When I said that a car snapped knicker elastic at 50 paces, I couldn't believe the furore that was created.'
Trivia: He lent his vocals to the first Cars movie, and the Forza 5 video game.
Ron Howard (Guest)
Born: March 01, 1954 in Duncan, Oklahoma
Best Known For: Playing Richie in Happy Days and his career as a Hollywood director.
Early-life: Ronald William Howard was born on March 1, 1954, in Duncan, Oklahoma. He comes from an acting family - both his father Rance and his mother, Jean Speegle, were professional thespians. His brother Clint was the child star of TV series Gentle Ben. Howard made his screen debut at 18 months in the film Frontier Woman. His family moved to Hollywood in 1959, after which he began landing roles in movies, and had a regular part in The Andy Griffith Show.
Career: Films such as The Courtship of Eddie's Father and American Graffiti turned Howard into one of the most reliable young actors of his generation. Sitcom Happy Days made him a major star around the world, but by then he was already interested in directing after being encouraged by Henry Fonda, his co-star in TV series The Smith Family. After making several short films, he wrote, directed and starred in Grand Theft Auto in 1977. Since then he's made several successful movies, including Splash, Cocoon, Parenthood, Backdraft, Apollo 13, The Grinch, A Beautiful Mind (for which he won an Oscar) and The Missing. He was also the narrator on TV series Arrested Development. His most recent work as a director includes The Da Vinci Code, Frost/Nixon, Angels & Demons and The Dilemma.
Quote: 'It was always my dream to be a director. A lot of it had to do with controlling my own destiny, because as a young actor you feel at everyone's disposal. But I wanted to become a leader in the business.'
Trivia: One of his daughters, Bryce Dallas Howard, is an actress.
Andy Wilman (Executive producer)

Before / After

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Yukon Gold
11:20 am
Top Gear
1:20 pm