If 'fantastic' is a litle over the top, I thought it very good. Certainly in a different class to 'Driven' and some of the other rubbish that we have seen recently.
JC is peerless.
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I thought it was great, i was a bit worried it was going to be like Driven having a base and a test track, but its a right laugh.
I'm glad Clarkson has brought some of his humour from his videos onto TV.
Jumping bikes with a bus next week looks, err interesting too.
Can't wait to see the rest of the series, it's excellent.
Did anyone else notice Clarkson's reference to "Jumping from 5th Gear into TopGear" when he was driving the Zonda??!!! Wonder if he did that on purpose!
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I thought it was great, i was a bit worried it was going to be like Driven having a base and a test track, but its a right laugh. I'm glad Clarkson has brought some of his humour from his videos onto TV. Jumping bikes with a bus next week looks, err interesting too. Can't wait to see the rest of the series, it's excellent. Did anyone else notice Clarkson's reference to "Jumping from 5th Gear into TopGear" when he was driving the Zonda??!!! Wonder if he did that on purpose!
It was very good - far more like the good old days of TG in its quality. I noticed the "5th gear to top gear" thing too - very clever and I'm sure deliberate.
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Did anyone else notice Clarkson's reference to "Jumping from 5th Gear into TopGear" when he was driving the Zonda??!!! Wonder if he did that on purpose!
I think he did it on purpose - because I noticed the way he emphasised it and wondered whether any one would have got the slight he was making of Channel5, or Five, as it likes to be known now.
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Did anyone else notice Clarkson's reference to "Jumping from 5th Gear into TopGear" when he was driving the Zonda??!!! Wonder if he did that on purpose!
The presenters are still at it.
If you missed tonight's 5th Gear, Tiff said of a six-speed 911:
Top Gear was too long but it came alive in 5th Gear.
It'll get personal soon!
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A really enjoyable hour, it flew by.
I initially thought the 'silent watchers' in the background of the studio shots were a bit strange, but got used to them! Otherwise excellent.
P.
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I'd been wondering what strange car I'd overtaken on the M25 on Wednesday morning (well it was slowing to come off on the A3) so now I know it was a Zonda. Actually thought it looks better on screen than it does in the flesh though, but I heard it ahead of me before I saw where the noise was coming from!
After abandoning watching the last Top Gear, which Driven and the others now seem to want to copy, this series looks very promising. Will the Suzuki Liana last the series? Has anyone seen another one?
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I seem to be the odd one out so far, but I thought it was dreadful - a sort of blend of the worst of Driven with a chat show. New presenter chappy was even more irritating than JC - quite an achievement, really...
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So, are we going to get a reduction in the BBC licence tax, now they're making programmes in scruffy old hangars?
Who the hell dreamed up Salami Gonga?
BIG mistake, looking for fast grannies.
Mustn't encourage them.......Hell's Grannies buying TVR's?.........bigger threat than Saddam unleashed
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Place your bets, gentlemen.
How long before Transport 2000 start hammering on Greg Dyke's door?
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No, you aren't on your own, I thought it a lot of it was dross, particularly the time-wasting rubbish about trying to beat the speed camera.
I thought the Zonda was pretty ugly - badly proportioned - and reading David Millar's comments about it looking better on the screen than in the flesh......
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Just watched it on video (Heartbeat took preference)
Excellent viewing.
Anyone know if they're reviewing the "all new" Vectra at all. can't wait for Jezza's views on that one.
My only critism was the other bloke (can't remember his name, you know the one from Men & Motors) trying too hard to be another Jezza Clarkson.
Oh yes, there was one other thing, Citroen Berlingo good? I don't think so.
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Any guesses who Stig was?
Johnny Herbert maybe?
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I'd like to bet it's an unemployed Touring Car pilot, or could it be a rally man........bit tail-happy at times. Thought it was Murray Walker at first, but he didn't stall them.
Then again, could be Frankie Detorri...............
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I thought JC is past his sell by date.
Terrible and stale.
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Pro's - not too much dodgy music and camerwork; test track concept.
Con's - chat show style content; celebrity nonsense; speed camera stuff.
Better than Drivel, sorry I mean Driven !
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Pros - well at least the cameraman uses a tripod
cons - the whooping clapping audience adds nothing
- that item about the speed cameras - what a waste of time that was
- celebrity stuff - another waste of time
I don't think i'll be watching next week
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Although far from perfect it was so much better than Drivel. As it was obviously live I thought they did reasonably well but probably will refine it for future shows.
The studio bits were a bit poor, and I didn't really care about Harry Enfield as he obviously has no interest in cars. In fact, the whole 'celebrity drives a suzuki around a test track' is ill-conceived.
Berlingo review was quite good - I thought it was strange how he told people to stay away from the diesel (the HDI being v. good) until I saw that HJ says Citroen has all but sold out of HDI Berlingos. Misleading.
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Really tried to watch it..... took a break and did some hoovering halfway through.... tried again after that... but nope... still couldn't get into it.
Will try again next week, but will leave the Sunday dinner dishes in the sink just in case!
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Just wondering whether our judgement of the new 'Top Gear' is being coloured by the very poor quality of the other motoring shows.
Thinking about it 'Top Gear GTi' isn't bad - it's just a pity it's not on terrestrial TV.
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Thinking about it 'Top Gear GTi' isn't bad - it's just a pity it's not on terrestrial TV.
Correct - TG Gti isn't bad. Sometimes it is good but as soon as Steve Berry opens his mouth and tries to be funny/pally it becomes truly awful.
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Don't know about anyone else here but what I want in a programme about motoring and cars is sensible comment on the former and lots of relevant information and clear/steady pictures of the latter. To be fair, we had some of that in Top Gear but still too much silly nonsense - what did all that stuff about Stig and bland driving music add to the sum of our knowledge about the cars or the issues ?
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Excellent at best and very promising at worse.
As for that Zonda thing, well if you have to blow the cost of a modest house down South on an impractical car then that's the one for me.
And to cap it all we have a much awaited programme with the top man returning and what do we get heading the bill....a thumbs up for a quirky Citroen. Motoring reporting at its very best.
Driven W & W!
;-)
MM
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I agree. Compared to what's on offer it wasn't bad but compared to Top Gear in the earlier Clarkson/Wilson/Needell era - it sucked.
What's all that cod with celebrity. Who the hell cares? Especially after telling us that it wasn't going to be in the celebrity/style makeover format.
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I was gonna leave this thread but I thoug hit was utter drivel.
Top Gear is not supposed to be a chat show.
AFAIC JC is not an invaluble member of the top gear team. Quentin and Tiff *are*.
They could have cut it down to 25 minutes and left nothing out.
Clarkson should go cap in hand to 5th gear...
5th gear is still the best motoring show IMHO, shame it clashes with 'What the Tudors Did for Us.'
--
These are my own opinions, and not necessarily those of all Toads.
www.private-eye.co.uk/innews
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>>They could have cut it down to 25 minutes and left nothing out.
Now that is true, I guess the normal weekly programme will be 30 mins and a great deal tighter.
>>5th gear is still the best motoring show IMHO, shame it clashes with 'What the Tudors Did for Us.'
Even worse it could clash with Tipping The Velvet.
;-)
MM
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>>They could have cut it down to 25 minutes and left nothing out. Now that is true, I guess the normal weekly programme will be 30 mins and a great deal tighter.
Yeah. It was still entertaining. I liked the track stuff and the cooking oil and the speed camera. I sort of liked the stig idea but he was slightly too much like the gimp idea from PF. It was the chat show bits I wasn't keen on. Better would be if the Celebs were racing related celebs... How about Moss v's Stewart v's Lauda v's {insert lighting fast codger}.
>>5th gear is still the best motoring show IMHO, shame it clashes with 'What the Tudors Did for Us.'
Even worse it could clash with Tipping The Velvet.
Am I really that transparent? ;-) ;-) ;-) I mainly enjoy the clever dialog and strong plot together with fine acting performances.
--
These are my own opinions, and not necessarily those of all Toads.
www.private-eye.co.uk/innews
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"I mainly enjoy the clever dialog and strong plot together with fine acting performances."
Indeed. Look no further for a that series really needs a sequel - just so that the full splendour of the costumes and sets can be appreciated.
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I don't believe it!! I'm agreeing with Toad again.. Ought to call it 'Jeremy Clarksons Motoring Hour'. Still, given the opposition, (perlease remove Drivel, it's dire.)it certainly beats Monarch & Heartbeat. Give Sunday evenings a purpose.
Like the hour long format, went quite fast. The show is like the curates egg really.
I look upon Jeremy as a Jeremy Beadle type. You love to hate him, but would you prefer Willy Woolard?
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Steve S: You and I are obviously in the BBC's Highbrow demographic!
GS: Exactly, Sunday night TV is unwatchable. [1] At least Clarkson, no matter how poor, will still be better than having to resort to that last ditch form of entertainment; the book & stereo.
[1] I once tried to watch Heartbeat because a mate was in it. He was quite a central character in the plot of the episode so I had to wach the lot. It was painful.
--
These are my own opinions, and not necessarily those of all Toads.
www.private-eye.co.uk/innews
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I liked it a lot. So did me mum. We both laughed. Not only has the camera man bought a tripod, he has stopped taking mind altering drugs.
I wonder if 'Stig' is a snipe at Tiff Needell?
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I enjoyed it all, although I agree that bits of it could get a bit tedious if repeated every week with only minor changes - Celebrity in a Moderately Priced Car or whatever it was called springs to mind here - but it was a fresh new start and I liked the hour long format.
Nobody else here has mentioned the new Lambo by the way, I thought it looked absolutely stunning, far better than the Zonda even though it lacked the out & out performance.. sort of stealth fighter meets supermodel styling..
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Agree entirely about the Lambo, Boff. Absolutely gorgeous, and it looked almost as though it had been carved out of solid. An absolute bargain, too, compared with the Zonda!
BTW, was the track time for the Suzuki (about 1'50") taken at the same track as the Lambo and Zonda (which managed about 1'25" if memory serves)? If so, that makes the Suzuki only about 30% slower than the fastest road cars on the planet when corners are involved. Not a bad effort really...
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I think the first in the new series was getting very politically correct with the playing of soothing music whilst racing round the test track and saying that the berlingo is anything other than crap (remember this is still a van and handles like one).
Taking this into account it was great viewing and now the next will not have the explaining time and more car time.
Nice hooligan touch to show you can drive too fast for a gatso , maybe they will carry on this and show the possibilities of doing the same with all other devices such as hand held radars , truvello etc.
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Agree entirely about the Lambo, Boff. Absolutely gorgeous, and it looked almost as though it had been carved out of solid. An absolute bargain, too, compared with the Zonda! BTW, was the track time for the Suzuki (about 1'50") taken at the same track as the Lambo and Zonda (which managed about 1'25" if memory serves)? If so, that makes the Suzuki only about 30% slower than the fastest road cars on the planet when corners are involved. Not a bad effort really...
I'm glad someone else noticed that! An amateur with no interest in cars in a Suzuki was 30 per cent off the pace of a racing driver in a Lambo.
--
These are my own opinions, and not necessarily those of all Toads.
www.private-eye.co.uk/innews
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I guess it's only confirmation of the rule that says that the old dear in a 2CV that you hurtled past ten minutes earlier will chug up behind you at the next set of lights. Makes one wonder why we are all so obsessed with performance...
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But who was the "audience" - slightly disturbing looking group. They looked to me like a full demographic cross section from the last census.
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>>But who was the "audience" - slightly disturbing looking group. They looked to me like a full demographic cross section from the last census.<<
Maybe they borrowed the audience from a Top of the Pops 2 ??
It did look odd those people standing round watching them in the studio.
Overall it was OK but it will fresh ideas each week if its going to sucessful. Who wants to see another celebrity drive round a test track ?
The Lambo, better looking than any current Ferrari. Almost worth trying the lottery again.
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I hope all those 'observers' weren't on the BBC payroll - they didn't seem to be doing very much and I can think of more deserving recipients for our licence money !
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