The former executive producer of Top Gear condemned the BBC for what he described as a moronic approach following Jeremy Clarkson’s exit from the programme.
Andy Wilman, who served as producer on Top Gear, The Grand Tour and Clarkson’s Farm, voiced his disapproval of the broadcaster’s management of the motoring franchise after Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May departed the show in 2015.
His comments emerged during a discussion about Prime Video’s decision to introduce fresh faces to The Grand Tour, with James Engelsman, Thomas Holland and Francis Bourgeois taking on presenting duties.
The original iteration of The Grand Tour was established after Clarkson left the BBC, triggered by a physical confrontation with a producer.
Hammond and May subsequently abandoned the programme.
During an interview with The Telegraph, Wilman highlighted the contrast between how Prime Video had handled its new casting choices and the approach taken by the BBC when revamping Top Gear.
He stated that whenever the BBC returned with a new version of Top Gear, following previous failures, the corporation behaved in a manner resembling historical revisionism, as though the previous presenters had been erased from existence.
He described it as an instruction to new audiences to disregard Jeremy, James and Richard entirely and instead accept unfamiliar replacements.
Wilman noted that this erasure had not occurred with The Grand Tour’s relaunch, as the incoming presenters acknowledged their position within the show’s legacy.
He characterised the BBC’s management of the transition as moronic.
The remarks arrive as Prime Video prepares to return with The Grand Tour, almost two years after Clarkson, Hammond and May concluded their involvement with the programme.
The trio’s last episode, titled One For The Road, was broadcast in September 2024.