A scriptwriter who worked with Jeremy Clarkson for more than two decades on Top Gear and The Grand Tour has shed light on what the presenter is really like on and off set.
Richard Porter is a car fanatic who goes by the name Sniff Petrol worked alongside Jeremy, as well as Richard Hammond and James May, for 22 years.
Now, he has shared what he will miss about the three presenters since Amazon Prime Video’s The Grand Tour came to an end in 2024.
In an op-ed for Evo last month, Richard reminisced on the time he would burst into fits of laughter as Jeremy, 65, ‘told some bombastic anecdote while making a faux pas.
Richard recalled how ‘funny’ the trio were and revealed they are exactly the same as how fans saw them on screen – but he did admit that could sometimes be ‘exhausting and annoying’.
‘For the last 20-odd years people have regularly asked me what they’re like in real life and I would answer, entirely truthfully, that they were pretty much exactly the same as you saw on the screen,’ he said.
Scriptwriter Richard Porter (pictured) who worked with Jeremy Clarkson for over two decades on Top Gear and The Grand Tour has shed light on what the presenter is really like on and off set
Richard Porter is a car fanatic who goes by the name Sniff Petrol worked alongside Jeremy, as well as Richard Hammond and James May , for 22 years
‘Sometimes that could be exhausting and annoying, but most of the time it made them tremendous company.
‘I can’t remember ever being in a room with them for more than five minutes and not laughing deeply from the base of my belly as Jeremy told some bombastic anecdote about making a total faux pas in a stately home, or Richard remembered that his weekend gin thirst had accidentally got him into a fight with a banister, or James recalled a whimsical tale involving someone mistakenly believing the Kellogg’s Frosties promotional character was called Terry the Lion.’
Richard went on to say that Jeremy, Richard and James’s skill at engaging viewers was that they were genuinely having fun – and genuinely loved cars.
He added that they were highlight intelligent men who weren’t afraid to play.
Richard said: ‘There are lots of things that made Clarkson, Hammond and May work on screen and allowed them to quietly worm their way into people’s living rooms back when sitting down together to watch telly at a time allotted by the broadcaster was still the norm.
‘They were adults behaving like children; they were clever people doing stupid things; they were ambitious and adventurous, often beyond their abilities.
‘But most of all they were funny. And that’s what I’ll miss about working with them.’
It comes just days after Jeremy gave his verdict on the ‘completely different’ new hosts of The Grand Tour after a sneak peek at the new episodes.
Last month, a trio of social media stars were confirmed to be taking over the Prime Video series – after Jeremy waved goodbye to the series in 2024.
In an op-ed for Evo last month, Richard reminisced on the time he would burst into fits of laughter as Jeremy, 65, ‘told some bombastic anecdote while making a faux pas (Jeremy and Richard on Top Gear in 2013)
Richard recalled how ‘funny’ the trio were and revealed they are exactly the same as how fans saw them on screen (trio pictured in 2022)
At the time, the Clarkson’s Farm star had joked that he and his co-stars, Richard Hammond and James May, were running low on ideas and becoming ‘unfit, fat and old’.
Now, the popular series will be hosted by new faces, YouTubers Thomas Holland and James Engelsman, and TikTok sensation Francis Bourgeois.
It was teased last year that the trio, who all found fame on social media, would be taking over from Jeremy, Richard, 56, and James, 63 – before it was confirmed in February.
But there’s no bad blood for Jeremy when it comes to his replacement. who has admitted he has been impressed with what he’s seen of the series so far.
He explained to the My Week In Cars podcast that the show was still being made by Andy Wilman, the show’s old producer who was also behind Top Gear.
Jeremy said: ‘I’ve seen the guys being chosen in the early days, and I’ve seen some of the stuff they’ve been doing. And it’s very, very good.
‘It’s different because they’re three completely different people to us. But they’re bl**dy funny. You shall see.
‘I’m pretty confident that that will work. I mean, touch wood. But I love the idea that Grand Tour carried on in this way.’
Jeremy appeared in an announcement video when the new hosts were confirmed last month, taking a series of brutal swipes, but not at the current stars.
The official Grand Tour social media pages posted a video of Jeremy pretending to look through the CVs of prospective presenters looking to take over from him.
‘These are the CVs from all the people who want to be a presenter on the show,’ he tells the camera in the clip, which was captioned: ‘Jeremy has a message…’
Jeremy continued, as he rifles through the papers, and issued a take-down of his former co-star James: ‘Hello, my name is James May… God, he sounds dull!’
Looking at motoring influencer Thomas’s CV, Jeremy read from the paper: ‘Once held a 1300 metre drift. Zero evidence has been uncovered.
‘Frequently presents an opinion as if it is fact and then if challenged will change the subject. Yes, funny man.’
Clocking the CV of train enthusiast and TikTok sensation Francis’ CV, Jeremy praised: ‘I know this one, he’s the train man from the internet!’
Poking fun at the social media star, he added: ‘He’s got a cycling proficiency test, 2020 vision, but claims he can see behind him. Yes…’
Moving on, he soon sifted out Richard Hammond’s CV, before issuing his brutal verdict against the former Top Gear star: ‘Blah. I’m 5ft4,’ before throwing the paper away.
