They’re back! And with a cracking first episode, as well. No sign at all of budget cuts here, or in the series teaser at the start of the show.
The highlight, of course, was the supposed genuine revealing of The Stig. I think it is safe to assume that the person revealed may well have taken Stig duties for this episode. But that is all. Presumably he, or rather, Michael Schumacher, owns the Ferrari FXX that was featured on the show. Judging by the power lap time set (I won’t spoil it, but it is remarkable) it certainly appeared to be a Schumacher-esque performance.
Actually, something that wasn’t a Schumacher-esque performance was his interview with Jeremy. Sure, Schumi’s driving ability sets him apart from his modern day peers, but we saw more personality in a few minutes with Jez than we did in his entire F1 career. Maybe he’s not such a bad bloke after all.
The main feature was the London-Edinburgh race. Theoretically set in 1949 the boys took the roads, and tracks, with icons of their era—Richard riding a Vincent Black Shadow, James was in a Jaguar XK 120 and Jeremy in a majestic Peppercorn A1 steam engine. The winner was both unexpected and obvious at the same time. If you follow me.
In the middle of all that Jeremy tested a new Lotus Evora and gave it a very big thumbs up.
The News section looks to be as entertaining as always, too. Great to have them back!
2 replies on “Top Gear – Series 13, Episode 1”
In one episode of UK TG, we see how far the Aussie version has to go. The whole show was, to use a Clarksonism, EPIC! It sounds stupid to say, but the UK version is just so rich in every respect that it draws you into the experience. There’s so much to offer that you don’t even need to be a car fan to enjoy this show. Train spotters would have been wetting themselves over the Peppercorn – and I have to admit that even I was glued to the TV in fascination. The way they showed that train hauling though the countryside like it wasn’t going to stop for anyone was seriously cool.
Last night’s Aussie episode was ‘thin’ to say the least. It wasn’t bad just not great. I just kept thinking how much better it would have been if the UK trio had done that Oodnadatta Track bit. First, it would have been all three, second, they wouldn’t have abandoned the Smart, third, they would have had some kind of bush mechanics malarkey etc etc
Yeah i agree Andrew, Given the same source material the Top Gear UK guys would do alot better challenges and specials based in this country than the hacks on Top Gear Aus can do with their limited budget, and fear of offending anyone. And the great shame of having a 2nd rate local show taking all the good ideas and implementing them poorly is we’ll probably never see Top Gear UK do a special in our country which imho would rank among their best ever.
Also, i’d go gay for MS. 😉