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news
Top Gear logo.jpegTop Gear's Jeremy Clarkson hits out at cyclists: "Work hard and get a car"
Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson and co-hosts James May and Richard Hammond may have had their knuckles rapped over recent comments about Mexicans that resulted in the BBC issuing a formal apology, but happily for the doyen of the petrolhead community, there is one minority it still seems okay for him to disparage with impunity – cyclists. Oh, and Albanians too, going by last night’s show, as well as the French.
Hammond, a keen cyclist, had been talking in last night’s episode – the segment starts 21 minutes 27 seconds in – about last week’s BBC News feature about cylists wearing helmetcams “so they can video examples of road rage and people cutting them up on their bikes,” to which Clarkson interjected, “But cyclists deserve it,” the exchange continuing:
Hammond: “Don’t say that!”
Clarkson: “But they do deserve it, honestly. The other week, no honestly, there I am sitting in a traffic jam in London” – oh, the irony – “and a Frenchman, he was tried to cycle between the pavement and my car and after he’d removed most of the paint with his brake handle thing he came round to the drivers door to tell me off in that silly accent French people have.”
Hammond: “What, a French accent?”
Clarkson: “Yes, that, and I said to him, listen if you just work hard you can have a car.”
Hammond: “You are exactly the reason why I want a camera on my bicycle helmet when I cycle.”
Clarkson: “Why?”
Hammond: “When idiots like you get out of their car having cut me up – ”
Clarkson: “Who pays the road tax?”
Hammond: “Well – ”
Clarkson: “I’m sorry, I don’t mind if cyclists want to come on the road with their silly Victorian distractions, I’m not bothered, but they must behave themselves.”
News of Clarkson’s disparaging remarks against cyclists quickly spread through the Twitterverse, presumably giving a slight boost to Top Gear’s viewing figures as people who would normally not even consider tuning in switched over to see what the fuss was.
More than one pointed out that rather than being a separate species, most adult cyclists do in fact own cars – they just choose not to use them to the exclusion of all other forms of transport.
While some might hold that Clarkson’s comments are just banter, and that he’s playing a kind of pantomime villain role, the fact is that Top Gear is one of the BBC’s most successful programmes, and he also pens motoring columns for The Times and The Sun that enable his views to be read by – and perhaps influence – millions.
One cyclist is organising a group ride from Chipping Norton in Oxfordshire next Saturday with the itinerary taking in the nearby road where Clarkson lives, which we assume will be included on a number of loops – details here.
Meanwhile, the Save A Cyclist campaign urged Twitter users to “Make sure you let everybody @BBC_TopGear know what you think of Clarkson's attitude to cyclists.”
Although Clarkson, portrayed by the comedian Steve Coogan in a piece in yesterday’s Observer as akin to a school bully could be viewed as having made something of a schoolboy error in his reference to the non-existent ‘road tax,’ we’re guessing that the slip-up is a clever ruse on his part - it will let him show how clued-up he is about the whole issue of Vehicle Excise Duty and the fact that roads are funded out of general taxation when he corrects his error on next week’s programme.
At the same time as apologising to cyclists, Albanians and, yes, the French.
Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
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Great stuff. Maybe you could contact FlightFreeUK and take a lifetime pledge as a company. I'm pretty sure the founder cycles too
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Italian tourist and pussycat in Portugal.
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76 comments
The verb "To Clarkson" Def: The act of expelling excessively loud and smelly farts in a crowded public space whilst expecting those affected to find the experience hilariously funny.
Tee hee hee!
Verb: "To Hammond" or "To Hamster" Def: The act of actively ignoring ones conscience and sense of morality for either money, or the fear of being bullied by ones peer group "member" or, more usually, both at the same time.
Verb: "To May" Def: To go along with whatever nasty stuff is happening because that's what's expected of you for your fee even though you know what is the proper thing to do.
Oh you three! You are so..... funny?
This is what i hate, if your a cyclist moaning about this.. shut your gob and grow up. Its a COMEDY tv programme have you never heard of a joke. People in this world are offended to easily! Here's a way to look at it, dont give a shit what people say, dont start pointless arguments. Nob heads in cars do cut of people in other cars too its not just cyclists. get over yourself and go enjoy yoursen on a bike isnt that the point instead of instead of nit picking because a guy in his micra has come past you 'too fast'. if you dont like it dont pay attention to peoples comments everybody has a freedom of speech. Peace
A post that starts by telling people to shut their gob, and ends by declaring that everyone has free speech (they don't but we won't quibble).
Quite a dichotomy you've got there.
-cept i dont have a roll cage and airbags protecting me if i get smacked at 40mph+ clarkson et al may have advanced driving etc and input from the stig but, they are doing their daft driving on closed roads. sadly some pillock out there will think that they can pull the same stunt on the main road and kill somebody. They are a danger to themselves and others not just cyclists and influenced by the adrealin junkies on TG and 5thGear!!!
The fact that some pillock will copy a stunt and kill someone is not reason to get rid of the stunt. This argument could also be used against cyclists who try to copy their heroes and plummet down the side of mountains at ridiculous speeds. Shall we therefore get rid of mountain descents on the Tour or ban downhill mountain biking? Clarkson is not seriously suggesting any harm to cyclists. No more than he, as I suggested earlier, really expects us to shoot those who sit in yellow boxes at junctions.
Top Gear is a funny program. Those of us who watch should watch it if we don't like the humour. If you don't watch it, you've already sent BBC your message. Let's not get so uppity about something so petty. Let's tke on the real criminals - those who flout the law and have no regard for the safety of other road users, whatever their choice of transport.
@thehairs1970 - sure its funny, i watch it, i have also driven for 25+years and have driven all manner of vehicles bar HGV's. Sadly, there are individuals out there who will try and drive like the Top Gear presenters and will wrap themselves around a lamp post, in the same way some cyclist will try and do a Cav in racing for the lights and end up being the mascot on the grill of a HGV!!!
As cyclists we know how fragile our bodies are especially if we get bounced by a passing vehicle or lose a wheel on a fast decent.
Motorists are sadly these days reliant on all the safety features in the modern car. Watch the next time your out bike or car and see how many late brakers at junctions there are or drivers who take the wrong line in corners!
Yes Clarkson et al are good drivers and funny, sadly their audience are not necessarily so and the Top Gear presenters are more the fools for encouraging others to flout the Highway Code oh include the light jumping, kerb hopping unluminated numbers who go around on bikes amongst the flouters!!!
Hello again James, I can see quite a few spelling mistakes and some elementary grammatical errors in your submission plus a rather over generous helping of bullshit too.
Bisous mon chere
Take it easy mate, it's comedy, a laugh, poking fun at some TV personalities. We're just doing for free what Jezza and his mates do for pay, so YOU get over youself chummy!
Bisous mon chere
Give us a kiss James but while I remember... what's you car and reg number just in case, not that you don't have a sense of humour of course!
If Jeremy Clarkson ever retires or is carried off by wolves you're welcome to take Don Cherry from us here in Canada. His qualifications include a blinding wardrobe, a love of cars and a hearty disrespect for cyclists and other "left-wing pinkos". And if you order now we'll throw in Toronto's mayor Rob Ford at no extra charge. But remember, all sales are final.
Hmmm..... A very tempting offer particularly the "carried off by wolves" option but alas I fear getting rid of JC will be more tricky than removing dog shit from bike shoe cleats but thanks for the amusing options.
I've deleted it, it was just toooo funny and just a bit toooo libelous
To all those saying Clarkson is just a harmless entertainer: I guess then it is a coincidence that most of his "jokes" also happen to push his own personal right-wing, pro-motoring-at-all-costs, anti-environmentalism agenda? And that his targets happen to be out-groups, not because he is a cowardly bully, but because minorities are intrinsically greater sources of humour. Or that there is nothing sinister about the fact that he has turned his derision outward, away from these shores, since his preferred political party got into power at home. (Incidentally, does it bother anyone else that Clarkson and his two goons seem to have replaced Michael Palin as the BBC's first choice when they want to show us exotic foreign lands. So we now only get to see the wonders of the world via the view from a car, with locals cast as unknowable foreigners, usually serving in the capacity of car mechanics, rather than the interesting individuals you meet when you explore by foot, bike, bus or train.)
I don't have a car (quite unusual for a cycle enthusiast)so I don't have any vehicle excise duty to pay for. But I do have a television licence, I have never watched Top Gear so why am I contributing to the upkeep of Clarkson and his motor vehicles via the BBC?
TopGear is the TV equivalent of 'Lads Mag', it has so very little to do with real life. The only thing missing is scantily clad girlies. When was the last time they really, actually reviewed a car that the average BBC viewer could / would buy?
Alas, it's also a VERY big money spinner for the BBC who sell it round the world. So they'll pay Jessa and Co. to continue to be a cartoon series.. We DO take cartoons seriously, don't we?
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