corradoMR2

Was never a fan of the show and him so no impact to me personally.

mmarshall

Were you referring to Clarkson, or responding to my earlier suggestion of Jay Leno as Clarkson's replacement? Both, of course, can entertain, and both are car enthusiasts.

With Clarkson, probably so, unless he just decides to retire and take it easy. With Leno, he's probably enjoying his retirement (and not having to do the TONIGHT show every night during the week).

SW17LS

Clarkson's not going to retire. As for Leno, he had no interest in retiring, they forced him into it.

Guys like this need to be on the air.

chikoo

They are entertainers. If you do not let them perform their antics they will die in a sorry state.

LordBowral

BBC board are a bunch of dopey old men locked away in a wood panelled room smoking pipes! James May and the midget will both leave now , as the show IS Clarkson . It will pop up shortly on another more enlightened network making them even more money than the silly old BBC

gyrase321

The BBC did the right thing. There's no justification for physically and verbally assaulting a co-worker. Clarkson's behavior violated the BBC's internal guidelines on workplace bullying. As Hall said in his statement: Now, British police may be launching a criminal investigation against Clarkson as well. Good luck with that.

As a car enthusiast watching Top Gear, Clarkson's insults and rants had become a distraction from what the show was supposed to be about: cars. Surely there can be an entertaining and funny car show without necessarily resorting to antics that have nothing to do with cars. If the only reason your ratings are high is because you resort to such antics, that betrays lack of real talent.

Jay Leno knows how to host a funny highly rated show that can be edgy without being insulting. He would be a good replacement, although as an American, I would rather see him as host to Top Gear America.

gyrase321

Clarkson faces possible assault charge. This report also says that Sky network has no plans to hire him.



http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/bbc/...-BBC-live.html

SW17LS

Its a tough situation all the way around. As a Top Gear and a Jeremy Clarkson fan I am sorry to see the show end (and this IS the end of this show. Top Gear may continue, but *this show* as it exists is over), with the findings in the report though its hard as a company to not fire someone who verbally and physically assaults a subordinate employee. If the report is to be believed (and I think its safe to say it is), its a lot worse than was I assumed.

I do think that in the end a lot of the problem is that the BBC has never been really capable of handling a show as hugely profitable as Top Gear, or a talent as huge as Jeremy Clarkson. Thats been a problem over time and this is an example of it coming to a head. Its like expecting PBS to be able to handle American Idol and Simon Cowell at its height in popularity...out of their league.

People like Clarkson have to be handled.

The three of these guys will be back. Netflix, something.

FrankReynoldsCPA

Clarkson, though I do like Leno. The spelling of Wooorld was in reference to the way he says it on TG.


Then you have entirely missed the point of Top Gear...and what's made it successful. Without the antics, it would be just another car show like the hundreds that have passed through the Speed Channel.......

chikoo

The producer is supposed to be the ringmaster. If he fails, the lion will eat him. It happened. Shoot the lion.

T0ked

iTrader: (2)

I have no allegiance to Clarkson. He physically assaulted someone, he has to pay the consequences. Whether he's drunk or not, tired or not, rich or not. While it is a great loss to TG-UK, so be it. There shouldn't be excuses made for him. If anyone on this board did this, we'd at least been in jail and have a slew of charges thrown at us.

Hopefully the other two continue with the show, although is seems unlikely. Everyone is replaceable, even Jeremy. But it'll be a lot more difficult to replace all 3.

In this sense, maybe TG-US will get better ratings? LOL

I'm still watching it, with or without him.

mmarshall

Yes, you have the right attitude. Though Clarkson did have a unique blend of humor, wryness, and auto-reviewing that will be difficult to replace (Leno might come close), I agree there is no such thing as an indispensable person.

gyrase321

Witty banter and slapstick humor mixed with sharp cinematography made Top Gear a hit. Ditto for insightful views about cars. That's why I watched Top Gear. I didn't watch it to listen to sexist and racist innuendos and insults directed against others for which the BBC has had to apologize repeatedly. These latter antics aren't necessarily reasons to terminate Clarkson, although they are distractions to the show and don't add value to it. But physically attacking a co-worker is a reason to terminate. That is the line the Lord Hall says "has been crossed". This isn't hard to understand.

mmarshall

Give me a break.

gyrase321

How much does Top Gear contribute to the BBC's gross revenues? I ask because it has been claimed that terminating Clarkson will result in the BBC suffering massive financial losses. From my reading of the BBC's financial statements, it looks like the whole network makes gross revenues of about 4.5 billion pounds annually. Top Gear generates about 150 million pounds. So Top Gear contributes 3.3% to BBC's top line. Assuming Top Gear is cancelled, BBC loses 3.3%. If Top Gear is continued but makes only half because of the departure of Clarkson, BBC will lose 1.65%. Even the worst case scenario of a 3.3% loss doesn't seem like the catastrophe it is portrayed to be.