Heโs known for a lot of things, and having a semi-serious and insightful chat with the media isnโt exactly one of them.
Heโs also a man that really needs no introduction. Motoring icon Jeremy Clarkson has held the throne for decades as the car journalist of all car journalists.
After an entirely amicable departure from the original car show that in some Voldermort-esque manner shall not be named, Clarkson, along with with the complete trio of Richard Hammond and James May, set off on a new adventure last year titled โThe Grand Tour.โ
The pressure was on and uncertainty surrounded whether Clarkson & co. would be able to carry their successful momentum across platforms to Amazon Prime Video, where they, along with their executive producer, would be the sole decision makers in the showโs direction. Despite hitting the odd speed bump or two from its conception to execution in their inaugural outing, the hotly anticipated second season is about to drop in full force.
In an interview that can really only be read in his unmistakable voice, Clarkson sat down for a chat with Boss Hunting ahead of the showโs second season launch. Seriously, picture Jeremy Clarksonโs dry wit and contemplative narration as you continue below.
JC: Good Evening John, good evening.
BH: Good morning Jeremy howโs it going mate?
JC: Very good how are you?
BH: Yeah well thanks mate โ thanks for your time this morning I know this is the first cab off the rank, early start for you so I appreciate it.
JC: Itโs 10 in the morning now actually so itโs not too bad to be honest!
BH: The other two arenโt in the office yet?
JC: Theyโre around somewhere, but youโre lumbered with me Iโm afraid.
BH: Thatโs alright mate we can work with that. Whenโs the last time you were out here?
JC: Last time we were in Ozโฆwas the Northern Territory trip where we had the Nissan, the Bentley and the ahโฆBMW thatโs right, thatโs the last time. We were in Australia like twice or three times a year for years and years before that, and then the last 12 months or so itโs been nothing. I donโt know why really, itโs mostly been Europe, and for no obvious reason thatโs just how things have worked out.
BH: Have you had the chance to drive any of Australiaโs token touring roads in your time here? Any Tasmanian gems for instance or the Great Ocean Road?
JC: Iโve driven most of Australiaโs coastline actually over the years. Iโve been to Perth, Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Alice, Darwin โ so I know my way around the country quite well. I just donโt know why we havenโt been out there recently โ you know stories pop up and they have to be done here or it has to be done there. Weโll definitely try and do it next year, thatโs for sure.
BH: What are your opinions or presumptions towards Australia as a driving country? Obviously the show, both the previous and now The Grand Tour resonate so well here with such a large audience, is there anything in particular that stands out for Australia when you think of us as a nation behind the wheel?
JC: There was one thing out in โ oh God โ in the Western Suburbs, whatโs the track called in Sydney?
BH: The Motorsport Park at Eastern Creek?
JC: Yeah so we had a V8 pickup truck, you know one of those V8 racing machines. I went to try and set a lap as fast as I could in front of the crowd, and absolutely nobody was interested. Then, I went out and thought โah to hell with thisโ and just showboated, stuck its arse out, made a shit tonne of smoke and everyone got to their feet and applauded wildly. So I thought, okay, Iโve got it now. But apparently the police donโt like hooning there, I canโt see why. I would have thought burglary was worse to be honest, but anyway. That seems to be Australia. They appreciate exuberant driving, which was nice to see.
BH: Thatโs us to a tee mate, make a lot of noise and a lot of smoke and youโve pretty much nailed it.
JC: And Australia has produced, and least in my opinion, perhaps one of the nicest and fastest drivers in the current Formula 1 crop as well, who doesnโt necessarily showboat.
BH: For season 1 of The Grand Tour, it was very much a show about cars but I donโt think it was exactly a car show. Can we expect the same โold dogs, new tricksโ concept for season 2? Is there anything that didnโt work previously that youโre looking to kinda re-jig?
JC: Youโre right, it isnโt a car show, youโre dead right on that one. And absolutely, there were a number of things we looked at from the first season and thought nah, not sure about that. So we changed them and it doesnโt necessarily mean theyโll work either, because itโs just us three and we donโt really know what weโre doing. Itโs broadly similar, although things that people said they didnโt like weโve tried to change.
We recorded episode one yesterday, the one in which Richard Hammond ended up in hospital because he had his crash. Itโs not a car show but there are cars in it, thatโs the best way of describing it.
BH: Letโs come back to Hammond if you donโt mind, firstly, I assume heโs doing quite well since his close shave in Switzerland?
JC: Yep, heโs fine! Heโs hilariously now 7 millimetres shorter than he was before [laughs].
BH: The nature of the beast I suppose! Most of the driving on both Top Gear and The Grand Tour, despite being under some sort of supervision I assume, would still present some close calls โ any particular moments youโve ever thought, holy shit, that could have gone really bad?
JC: There is no close supervision, there is absolutely nobody else to tell us what we can and canโt do. I always think, well, what would look best on television? Then try and do that. We all do โ well perhaps not James, heโs never been faster than 25 mph in his entire life. But thatโs part of his stick and people love him for his slowness, but Hammond and I have no supervision. No one says you have to wear a helmet or you canโt do that, you do the best you can to provide the best entertainment that you can.
You always have people saying โoh you donโt do all your own drivingโ but then every time something goes wrong people realise and say โoh they actually do.โ We are car journalists, thatโs our job.
BH: I had the presumption that thereโd be someone behind the scenes saying, okay, thatโs gonna get a bit too risky, or we prefer you do it this way โ not that you wouldnโt do your own drivingโฆ
JC: People forget that itโs our production company, we run the show, the only people behind the scenes are us. We make a TV show that Amazon then transmits, thatโs it really.
BH: Thatโs quite refreshing to hear.
JC: Now thereโs nobody saying โoh you canโt say thatโ or whatever. The company is jointly owned by the three of us, and Andy Wilman whoโs the producer. Heโs never on the shoots though, heโs in the edits, or so he says โ we donโt actually know where he is half the time.
BH: Iโve just picked up the new Jaguar F-Type to review for the week, I know you had the V6 also a little while back, is there anything I should look out for, do you have any resonating thoughts from when you had that car?
JC: What youโve got, the V6, itโs the best one. The V8 is too expensive. Okay, like, thatโs a lot of money and what am I getting over the V6? The answer is not much. Tell you what though, we just drove the new two-litre one yesterday and that was pretty good.
BH: The Ingenium engine?
JC: Yeah the little one, it still manages to make quite an exciting crackle.
BH: Iโve heard, and for the price point thatโs not bad at all.
JC: I agree, and I think itโs a really pretty car. My colleagues arenโt so sure but I think itโs very pretty.
BH: Letโs chat about the hype that is hypercars. McLaren have just announced theyโre doing a hypercar, as Mercedes-AMG and Aston Martin have also previously, do you see this landscape going anywhere in particular or have any of these cars caught your eye for good or bad reasons?
JC: They say the sun shines more brightly just before it dies. I think thatโs probably what weโre seeing. Thereโs a couple of countries around the world that have announced the end of internal combustion engines, it seems the internal combustion engine is having one last hurrah with some properly exciting cars. I mean Iโve got the McLaren 720S parked outside my house right now, but since I only had to drive about 2 miles I took the Golf GTI. Going through London you do not want the McLaren 720S.
BH: Not with the excess on that thing too โ at least that would be my primary concern!
JC: The excess isnโt so bad, the ride on the other hand is quite trying.
BH: Interesting, I think weโre getting the 720 towards the end of the year so looking forward to sharing those thoughts.
JC: Find a smooth road! Thatโs my advice for when you get behind the wheel of that thing.
BH: Following on from this โlast hurrahโ for the internal combustion engine, I assume youโve driven the Tesla Model S and X P100Dโs?
JC: Iโve driven the Model X, the big one, the seven-seater. It had ludicrous mode and it was indeed ludicrous. It represents a whole new way of looking at what a car is. Itโs just a fun thing. A 9-year-old, given the choice of a BMW M4 or one of those things โ the 9-year-old is gonna want a car that has a sketch pad on the dash board and plays music to itself, wiggling its doors around for no reason other than itโs fun. Actually, I can see that will probably work. That Rimac that Hammond was driving when he crashed, the speed of that thing was absolutely unbelievable. Itโs staggering. Itโs not like with electricity weโre gonna be going slowly. I donโt know where that electricity is gonna come from to charge them all up, but Iโm not desperately worried about cars becoming boring, because I donโt think they will be.
BH: I couldnโt agree with you more, since driving the Teslas I canโt look at cars the same again. They canโt be compared, itโs an entirely new ball game.
JC: Iโll miss the sound of a Lamborghini V12 in an Italian tunnel. I will miss that sound. But you know, at least you donโt lose any of the speed with batteries thatโs for sure.
BH: Letโs talk about your other passions besides cars (and until recently, cigarettes), what gets you going that doesnโt have four wheels?
JC: Well as you know Iโve given up smoking now, so life has no meaning or purpose anymore [laughs]. Itโs like being in Australia 24/7 as you canโt really smoke there either, so now I donโt smoke at all and life is just dreary, and I canโt see any point in living anymore without cigarettes. Thatโs about it really. Going out, getting drunk, canโt smoke.
BH: If you could stop the production of any car in the world today, what car would that be?
JC: Mitsubishi Phev Outlander. Have you seen that? That is a truly awful car.
BH: Iโll have to see what all the fuss is about.
JC: Put the regenerative braking on then youโll see what Iโm on about, then smash that nose into the wall.
BH: On the flip side then, if you could bring any car back into production thatโs been discontinued, what would be your pick?
JC: [Pauses] Lexus LFA. Hands down.
BH: Yes! Have you experienced the LC 500?
JC: Doesnโt really matter as itโs the V10 engine I miss. It sounded like a wounded dog that thing. Itโs the most wailful sound Iโve ever heard. Itโs just fabulous. That is the greatest engine I have ever experienced and I thought the car was just as trippy because of it.
BH: Thatโs all from me mate, thanks for the chat. Much appreciated Jeremy.
JC: No worries at all! Thanks for calling.
Season 2 of The Grand Tour is available in Australia on Amazon Prime Video Dec 8th.
