Speaking to BBC Radio 2’s Chris Evans (who has been rumoured to take over Top Gear in Clarkson’s absence), former Top Gear host and noted producer-puncher Jeremy Clarkson gave his first radio interview since his sacking, covering everything from what he’s been doing in his down time, what he’ll do next and when we’ll see the last three episodes of the popular car show.
Image: Getty
On being unemployed…
“Being unemployed, weirdly, means you actually get busier than if you had a job,” he said, before talking about improvements to his tennis game. “I played tennis for two hours yesterday…my forehand is improving immeasurably.”
Clarkson said that the Top Gear trio is still working and making films for their upcoming world tour, which heads to Australia in July.
“We’re able to make our own films [for the tour] now with no meddling, really…There’s a million things that we’re going to be doing in the show…it’s just under a different name.”
On being sacked…
He went on to describe his sacking as his “own silly fault” and expressed sadness at leaving something he’d worked so hard on.
“I was at the BBC for 27 years and I did Top Gear for 12, and it really was my baby. I absolutely adored it and I worked all the time on it and I paid attention to every little bit of it and then suddenly you’re not asked to do that anymore. Then you do feel that there’s a big hole that needs to be filled.”
On what’s next…
Jeremy’s on his way soon to do one last lap of the Top Gear test track at Dunsfold, which he says is going to be an emotional experience.
When it comes to TV, Clarkson says he’s been meeting and listening to a lot of different broadcasters around the world about how TV works in the modern era.
“I’ve not talked [about a TV show], I’ve listened. The world has changed and now you have to figure out how the world works. Once you figure out how it works then you have to figure out what to do in it.”
“You’d be a fool to just jump into something. You need to figure out what to do,” he added.
On the last episodes of Top Gear…
When Clarkson threw his punch, there were three episodes still left to air that audiences never got to see.
Jeremy said that he didn’t think that was incredibly fair, given that the episodes were shot by the public broadcaster and belong to the audience which already paid for them.
The episodes, however, may not be lost forever.
Top Gear producer Andy Wilman is currently editing them right now and they will be screened later on in the year.
Clarkson teased that one of the films in the lost episodes involve the trio buying 4X4 cars for “only a few hundred pounds” and then completing challenges in them.
You can listen to the interview below.