When the news came out in December that “The Grand Tour” — Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond’s post-“Top Gear” automotive series — would be coming to an end, fans were left wondering why.
But, in a new interview with The Times, Clarkson has delivered a cheeky yet straightforward answer: it’s because he’s “unfit and fat and old.”
Clarkson told The Times that the show “is immensely physical, and when you’re unfit and fat and old, which I am…” He also feels the trio has done just about “everything you can do with a car.”
“I’ve driven cars higher than anyone else and further north than anyone else,” Clarkson said. “We’ve done everything you can do with a car. When we had meetings about what to do next, people just threw their arms in the air.”
There are still two more specials of “The Grand Tour,” one set to premiere next month and another which filmed in Zimbabwe and will launch later this year. Options to continue the series with different hosts are being explored but have not yet been greenlit, sources told Variety in December.
“James May thinks there’s never been a more interesting time for how we move around and he’s probably right, but I don’t think it’s very interesting television,” Clarkson continued. “An electric car is no different from a chest freezer or a microwave oven. There’s no glamour or excitement. This week on ‘Top Chest Freezer’! I think it suits the written media more.”
In addition to continuing his car review column for the Sunday Times and his popular Amazon show “Clarkson’s Farm,” the presenter is hosting a new series of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?,” which premieres Jan. 28 on ITV1.