THE END OF AN ERA HAS COME:

Many of us, indeed millions of viewers are of a heavy heart tonight. On Sunday it became official with an announcement at the end of season 4 of The Grand Tour.
The Top Gear team of Jeremy, Richard, and James have unanimously agreed that, after 17 years, as Top Gear and Grand Tour presenters, they will not be returning to the air. At least not with a show or format that resembles what we all have enjoyed since 2002. It actually began as a morning motoring show for 30 minutes with various hosts, but faltered, was revamped several times, until 2001 when BBC cancelled the show and replaced it with Fifth Gear - also with various hosts, but after the first season with lack luster results, BBC began to tinker with a newer version of Top Gear based in a studio. That's when it all changed. Andy Wilman (producer from 2001 to the end) and Jeremy Clarkson (a well respected auto personality) approached the BBC with what would become the Top Gear show we have all fallen in love with. Jeremy added Richard Hammond and Jason Dawe. That combination worked very well, but Jason Dawe was replaced in the second series by James May. That was the final bit of magic that sent Top Gear to wuthering heights, watched for 22 consecutive series over the course of 17 years, in over 100 countries worldwide.
In 2015, after a rather violent Clarkson struck a member of the Top Gear crew, BBC decided he could no longer be associated with BBC or it's affiliates. His co-presenters / friends James May and Richard Hammond were both offered huge increases to continue Top Gear without Jeremy. but they declined and did not renew their BBC contract at the end of that season. It seemed there was no hope to ever see these three together again in the format we became addicted to.
However, years earlier, and unbeknown by many, Jeremy Clarkson and Andy Wilman had formed a company that had acquired 50% of the rights to the Top Gear name, broadcast structure, and various copyrighted materials with BBC owning the remaining 50%.
In 2016, after selling their 50% shares back to the BBC, Clarkson and Wilman created, designed, and produced a brand new show called The Grand Tour on the Amazon network. it was an instant hit. It was the reunion of Clarkson, Hammond, and May with director Wilman at the helm, and a new show was born - this time in 195 countries with the largest audience in history for the Season 1 premiere episode.
However, It was announced at the last episode of season 4 that it was unanimously agreed by all three presenters that The Grand Tour will NOT continue - at least not as we know it. The three will continue, but a new format is already in the works. There will likely be no live sets, no tents, no audience. Instead, longer videos of epic challenges and road trips will continue and Amazon will continue to stream as before. It's too soon to say if this new format will be as big or as good. I reckon the only bright side is that Jeremy, Richard, and James will still be on our Telly, just different. For me, the only television show I religiously watched and the presenters I actually grew up with (as a viewer and frequent audience member), has now stopped, seemingly forever. That's a very sad thing.
Here is the ending montage form the last episode of season 4 which streamed on Sunday April 14th.

There will likely be no live sets, no tents, no audience. Instead, longer videos of epic challenges and road trips will continue and Amazon will continue to stream as before.

Honestly, this sounds like it could end up even better. They did a great job incorporating audience feedback and tweaking the show’s format between S1/2/3 (oh dear lord, the celebrity death joke should’ve been a one episode thing at most) but personally, the part of the show I like the the least is the part in the tent.

Love these guys. The road trips/challenges are the best part so if that continues it should be good. Haven't seem all of them yet but loved the Columbia special (my nine year old daughter thinks it's hilarious).

Well I hope the new format is good. I have been a fan for ages.

The new format will be better. More Mongolia trip, less conversation street please. Thanks! Shoot, I would incorporate Abby in the trips like they did in Georgia.

Grand Tour was supremely meh anyway. Let's see what they do with the new format!

Ilya wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 16, 2019 7:50 am

The new format will be better. More Mongolia trip, less conversation street please. Thanks! Shoot, I would incorporate Abby in the trips like they did in Georgia.

Unfortunately, after Jeremy sold the Top Gear rights back to BBC, they would have aggressively come after him if he used Top Gear formats like "star in a reasonably priced car" or "The News", or "The Stig intros". I reckon it's true when they say you cannot improve on perfection. Most of the features of Grand Tour seemed to be an attempt to make a sequel to the brilliant Top Gear series. Sequels always fall short of the mark. I have great memories as a frequent audience member in my youth, but it's up to Jeremy for constantly putting the BBC on defense due to his constant inappropriate remarks and questionable behavior that eventually ruined everything with the BBC. Nobody else to blame but him. I accepted him and his faults so he is forgiven and I remain a huge fan.
Since Grand Tour can no longer do most of what entertained a live audience, it seems this is the only way to move forward and we still get excellent road trips and specials. BBC can't claim rights to those features. I'm optimistic about upcoming seasons and they have full support from Amazon.

I remember one of the hardest times I've laughed at a tv show is when Jeremy was testing that euro car (the robin?) with three wheels. and like literally every turn he took he flipped the car on it's side. the people walking down the street just watching like WTF

I feel betrayed by this post! It's like it was an elaborate trick or something...

I'm in with the others. New format sounds good to me, and we still get the trio on the tube. No issue.

crimson45 wrote: ↑

Thu Apr 18, 2019 1:50 pm

I remember one of the hardest times I've laughed at a tv show is when Jeremy was testing that euro car (the robin?) with three wheels. and like literally every turn he took he flipped the car on it's side. the people walking down the street just watching like WTF

Ditto. I almost threw up from laughing so hard.

Dattebayo wrote: ↑

Fri Apr 19, 2019 6:54 am

I feel betrayed by this post! It's like it was an elaborate trick or something...

I'm in with the others. New format sounds good to me, and we still get the trio on the tube. No issue.

I'm sorry you felt mislead by the title. It is true that Grand Tour, son of Top Gear, is ending. Nothing misleading about that. It indeed IS an end to an era - the era of Top Gear / Grand Tour being a live show, the end of audience participation, the end of news and information stories, the end of test driving new cars on the TG track, the end of celebrities attempting a time trial on a race trac, the end of "Black Stig" Perry McCarthy, replaced by "White Stig" Ben Collins and the track drivers that assumed Ben Collins' role after his identity, a guarded secret lasting from series 3 thru series 15 was made public during a court battle over his book: The Man In The White Suit (that was a bloody HUGE thing!). All that was Top Gear / Grand Tour has been for over 17 years has, indeed, ended.
The new era will simply be pre-recorded videos - the ONLY part of Top Gear that will live on. I, too, am looking forward to more of those, but I grew up in the era that was Top Gear - attending live shows and other live appearances with Jezza, Richard, and James. My dad took me as a child, and I continued after I got a license and a car. That, for me, is a very fond memory of my youth and I shall miss it.

I came upon Top Gear by accident, on a flight to Australia in 2009. (I'm Canadian).
It was obviously a long flight, and the lady sitting next to me was watching something on the TV in front of her, with headsets on, and was laughing uncontrollably.
I finally had to ask her what was so funny. What were you watching?
Turns out she was watching the Vietnam special road trip from Top Gear. (The episode where they buy small motorcycles).
I had never even heard of Top Gear, but I had plenty of time to kill, so I watched it on the plane.
To say I was hooked is an understatement.
When I got back home a few weeks later, I started watching Top Gear regularly. I have seen every episode from the start of the James May era.
When they switched to Amazon, I subscribed to Amazon just to be able to watch Grand tour.
I have not watched any Top Gear episodes since they left.
As for their future plans, I'm looking forwards to the road trips, as I was not a big fan of some of the stuff from the tent.
The dead celebrity shtick in the first season was a bust, and some of the Conversation street segments are a bore.
Of all the road trip specials they've done, the Vietnam trip is still my favourite. I've seen it a dozen times, and still makes me laugh.

Vietnam is also my fav. One of the most beautiful places and the laughs were icing on the cake! Next favorite would be Africa