Clarkson Hammond and May Make Their Return 18/11/16
The Grand Tour is incoming; on the 18th of November The Grand Tour will debut on Amazon Prime. This new adventure with Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May has been long awaited by fans of the trio, fans who have some pretty hefty expectations of what’s to come. All of the headlines over the past year have been about the incredible budget the show’s been given, the fans who envelop them wherever they go and all the cars that are expected to be seen. But realistically what can we expect to see from the ex Top Gear trio?
Incredible Cars
Of course there’s the obvious one. Cars were at the heart of the previous show and were merely surrounded by the talents and hijinks of the presenters, and it’s likely to continue with GT. In the trailer we see the likes of the Aston Martin DB11 and Vulcan, the Rolls Royce Dawn, the Dodge Challenger, the Alfa Romeo 4C and then, of course, the big three. Whilst in their absence we’ve already seen the Ferrari LaFerrari, McLaren P1 and Porsche 918 go head to head, we haven’t seen them on such a grand stage. What will be interesting is if the bet continues: will we see Jennifer Clarkson presenting The Grand Tour or will they refrain from mentioning anything from the old show for fear of lawyers? Throughout the filming of the new show we have seen constant teases of behind-the-scenes footage of the trio messing around together in numerous amazing locations and it’s exciting to see them almost reinvigorated by the new freedom Amazon has given them.
Amazing Location
Just in the trailer for the new show we see incredible locations the group have gone to, from sprawling deserts to rainy English racetracks followed by gorgeous beaches to the tight ancient streets of Italy. Clarkson claims the show has travelled over 1 billion miles throughout the filming, going to 4 different continents and numerous different countries. Durin this the main studio segments have been filmed in a tent in LA, Johannesburg Whitby, Rotterdam, Lapland, Stuttgart, Nashville, Loch Ness and Dubai, truly bringing the show to a worldwide audience.
Insane Challenges
Top Gear was always known for its insane challenges, be it driving to the North Pole in a Toyota Hilux, driving across Iraq in two-seater sports cars and even driving over an active volcano. The Grand Tour is expected to continue that tradition with footage of the trio driving around the UK in a modified off-road Mercedes SL. It’s still unknown if this was for the show or just Clarkson messing around. But in the trailer we see them taking on amphibious cars for the third time, taking modern two-seater sports cars across Africa and the usual array of tyre-squealing and burnt rubber.
The Competition
Although the trio have remained silent with their thoughts of the newly revamped Top Gear, it would be expected that they are happy it didn’t do as well as expected. Afterall, it gives them the opportunity to blow the fans’ socks off with their new enterprise. Clarkson, Hammond and May were the heart of the old show and that’s exactly what the fans want from the new show, the camaraderie and ‘cocking about’ of the old show, just with a brand new skin. There are certainly high expectations for the show but unlike the new Top Gear they have the ability to make them.
Also, Richard Hammond now has a beard for some unknown reason.
