Ah, well that is news I hadn’t seen. Good.
He did, but they bought him out a while ago. They must have seen this coming (not hard).
Top Gear makes the BBC a massive profit and has been more than self-funding since the first rebooted series.
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Apparently they refused to present the show without him, but there’s also the question of whether they would work well with someone else.
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They refused. Lets see what they do now that he’s been sacked.
My expectation, those two will sign the backs of their paychecks while depositing them.
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So the people wanted a wild card, but they dont want to deal with the repurcussions when he finally pops off.
Cant have it both ways.
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I don’t really give a crap about cars (mine gets me from point A to point B and back in the automobile hellhole that is Texas), but those three had a very impressive way of being, as I think they often said about each other, “complete pillocks” on camera, in a quite amusing way. Clarkson was the designated asshole, but I suppose that’s the case because he is one?
But hey, at least I get to troll the car-bros out there for a while longer.
Didn’t agree with many, if any, of Clarkson’s views, but I really enjoyed the show, including his antics - in an Al Garnett sort of way, and I will miss it. But there was nothing to be done - you punch a coworker, you get fired. From any job.
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What if you’re a boxing trainer? 
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Yeah. Volatile talent is always part of the entertainment industry though - Look at Elton! - they should have dealt with him better in the years running up to all this, made him see earlier that his actions could rebound on him, but they kept on with the soft touch. A suspension after a lesser offence in the past might have taught him enough of a lesson that he learned some restraint.
I don’t think they should be punished. I just think the show works because of their friendship. 3 random folk hassling each other wouldn’t be fun to watch.
I think maybe you haven’t been paying attention. He’s had one. Recently.
That wasn’t over an assault of a junior employee. This was.
This is not the removal of a nose to spite a face.
This is removal of a face, to provide a safe working environment.
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That’s almost exactly where I end up as well.
Fair enough.
I submit that their friendship is an artefact of editing and writing. I get the sense one or both of them thinks Clarkson is a human cholostomy bag.
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Or a rock star. After years of receiving paychecks for being a dick, he must have come to believe that he was above everything. Pity.
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In many companies he would have been fired for what he did. He was in a position of power and he abused it. No excuses.
The BBC was in big trouble because the way that the top levels rode roughshod over the lower ones permitted the likes of Savile to use it as a cover. The enquiry into Savile said this culture had to change. The managers and presenters knew. It was then up to them to obey the rules.
Most of us have, I am sure, had the experience of getting back to an hotel after a long, tiring day to find the dining room closed (or whatever). We might possibly complain to the management, or at least ask where else we could go. But taking it out on an underling is unforgiveable, at least if you have had a traditional British education - as Clarkson had, though he was expelled from Repton.
See above
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That might be, all I have to go on is the show. But they do make offhand comments about when they are hanging out outside the show. “You dried your pants in my microwave” “I was at your place, and we…” sort of thing. I do get the feeling that James is friends with both of them, but I’m not sure about Hammond and Clarkson.
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I am not so sure about this. Many broadcasters will be thinking nervously about the possibilities of being sued after another “incident”, especially in the US. And he is a one trick pony.
The police are investigating and have asked the BBC to co-operate.
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I don’t recall his being suspended over previous offences. Which one was it?
That he is, but I strongly expect a bidding war to start imminently.
Update: it seems they might. Puzzled as to why they waited their turn though.
