It was fine. It was scripted (so what?).
It’s 3 blokes driving cars. Get over it. Go and watch something else. Leave Top Gear to us half wits.

I like that Lotus, always had a soft spot for a Lotus.

I’m almost regretting not having a TV, topgear patagonia would have passed an hour or so of this dull evening in a mildly amusing fashion

It’s available on line.

cringeworthy TV

Lets face it what isn’t cringeworthy on the TV these days – it’s all talentless shows/nonceleb dancing/skating/camping or cooking.

thank god for Game of thrones /breaking bad 🙂

No. I used to like it, but it got rather formulaic and repetitive. I’m certainly not going to suggest TG is loathsome, and I still quite like the other two (recording Toy Stories whilst we watch Midwives on iPlayer) and I’m sure Jezza couldn’t care less, but I can’t stand watching him anymore having realised that it isn’t all an act.

Fell asleep in the middle of it and woke up just before the end. The bits I saw seemed quite tame compared with some of their other exploits around the world.

aracer – Member

……but I can’t stand watching him anymore having realised that it isn’t all an act.

Great programme enjoyed every minute. If only the licence fee was spent solely on quality programming like Top Gear instead of brain-dead plastic irish shite like mrs browns boys…

Philby – Member

Fell asleep in the middle of it and woke up just before the end. The bits I saw seemed quite tame compared with some of their other exploits around the world.

+1 dozed off a few times but it was probably as a result of red wine & the program being like a repeat without the good bits!

“I only got to see my dying dad because of this porsche”

go **** yourself Jeremy.

I’m 100% sure that admitting to watching Top Gear on STW is not a confession.

I started watching but didn’t see the end, the specials have been crap for a few years now.

Didn’t know it was on. Is it repeated today? I’m supposed to be a petrolhead too

Predictable (but enjoyable) easy TV. I enjoyed it after a tiring day. Looking forward to part 2.

Enough sneaky references to suggest that those guys know exactly what they are doing with the provocation – bridges, wink, wink…

If only the licence fee was spent solely on quality programming like Top Gear instead of brain-dead plastic irish shite like mrs browns boys…

As opposed to braindead ladmag shite like top gear……

Well the first episode wasn’t the most inspiring TBH but hey, part 2 tonight will be worth a watch.

teamhurtmore – Member

Enough sneaky references to suggest that those guys know exactly what they are doing with the provocation – bridges, wink, wink…

They did exactly the same thing with the good folk of Alabama about ten years ago so why the pretence that it was anything other than a p!ss-take?

That show jumped the shark years ago IMO.

Great programme enjoyed every minute. If only the licence fee was spent solely on quality programming like Top Gear instead of brain-dead plastic irish shite like mrs browns boys…

Surely you can see that they are two sides of the same coin? Lowest common denominator shit for the masses?

Like flogging a donkey on wheels. The odd subtle piss take of the argies. Lets drive round a few random fields getting stuck in the mud.. and maybe a few mountain tracks in sports cars. How about a whole donkey for the bbq?
Maybe there were lots of high brow falkland island jokes i missed?

At least it’s not a reality TV show and no sign of Tess Daley or Philip Schofield

cloudnine – Member
Like flogging a donkey on wheels. The odd subtle piss take of the argies. Lets drive round a few random fields getting stuck in the mud.. and maybe a few mountain tracks in sports cars. How about a whole donkey for the bbq?

How much did you watch, c9???

It stopped being a car programme when they started painting/ruining/destroying ANY car. All for ‘light entertainment’.

Then there’s ‘this car is epic handling’ whilst showing said car being driven round a mile-wide airfield. In real life the kerb 2m’s away would send you into a terminal street furniture death.

I wonder how many deaths etc have indirectly been caused due to TG by morons. A bloke once showed me my place in his Focus ST when I dared to overtake him whilst he played on his phone. So he booted it passed me then waited up the road to give me the loser sign. I had backed way off before this as I thought ‘he’s going to kill someone’.

Missed it, but that is what iPlayer is for. It does make me chuckle when people complain it is contrived. You do realise Dr Who isn’t a documentary right? Not everything on TV is true?
I doubt I’ll laugh all the way through, spoilers won’t spoil a thing, it’s the Top Gear Christmas special, you know exactly what you are getting! Like sprouts however, there is enough pleasure to maintain its place in my Christmas calendar.

How much did you watch, c9???

Forgot to mention the bridges and the comedy breaking down gags.

It is what it is i spose.. will watch the 2nd part still.

Can’t believe people watch Top Gear expecting anything other than lad mag-ish scripted stunts and middle aged men talking bollocks.

If you filmed me and a couple of mates riding around on our bikes for a few days I suspect it would be something pretty similar.

Anyone who likes to make themselves feel superior by slagging it off really needs to do something more worthwhile with their lives

Top Gear used to be like Fifth Gear for people into cars now its for people who drive an Astra VXR and 10yr old Timmy.

Anyone who likes to make themselves feel superior by slagging it off really needs to do something more worthwhile with their lives

Worthwhile like commenting on people posting oposing views on a thread on a forum? 😛

These threads are just Chrismas Pantomime, surely?

Oh no they aren’t!

Can’t believe people watch Top Gear expecting anything other than lad mag-ish scripted stunts and middle aged men talking bollocks.

And I Can’t believe the turkeys voting for christmas

It’s jealousy.
I’d love to drive around in a car in some great countries, and be paid for it.

You do realise, you don’t have, to watch top gear?

You do realise, you don’t have, to watch top gear?

Thing is, I quite used to like Top Gear. So it’s like one of those broken relationships that you know is over, and you should get out of, but part of you keeps longing for the old magic.

When I posted my earlier comment, it was at the point they were driving around a muddy field. In Chile. 5 minutes of watching a barrel being scraped. A barrel that has been scraped so hard, it is really just a few bendy bits of wood – which they use to fashion a bridge!!! Oh, such japery.

What will be quite entertaining is the episode when Clarkson trips over, cracks open, and foie gras leaks out.

Can I just check, is suggesting it’s “lad mag-ish scripted stunts and middle aged men talking bollocks” slagging it off?

When I posted my earlier comment, it was at the point they were driving around a muddy field. In Chile. 5 minutes of watching a barrel being scraped. A barrel that has been scraped so hard, it is really just a few bendy bits of wood – which they use to fashion a bridge!!! Oh, such japery.

What will be quite entertaining is the episode when Clarkson trips over, cracks open, and foie gras leaks out.

Oi, this is pantomime! That’s much too literary! 😀

Watched the first part, enjoyed it.

Not intellectually challenging but good fun entertainment. A welcome cheekily non-pc break from the oh so right on crap we see on TV now or fake reality.

Would much rather watch Clarkson and cohorst than some desperate fame wannabes or watered down ‘comedy’ that’s scripted to avoid offending guardian readers.

Good viewing. Doesn’t need over thinking.

Interesting that they now admit they were warned about Clarkson’s number plate early on, but chose to do nothing about it!!

but chose to do nothing about it!!

No, they said they couldn’t do anything about it. I guess all the docs had the car numbers on.

Scenery apart,this is a bit slow tonight.

Richmars – Just a though, but could they not have registered the vehicle locally and thereby get a new number plate. Admit this is not my area of expertise!!

TBH I’d like it a lot more if they stopped faking it- I don’t mean “make it all real”, I mean “stop pretending it’s real”. It’s basically a sitcom and that’s absolutely fine.

(incidentally, people who like this sort of thing but wish it was actually real-ish might want to watch some Roadkill episodes. Not always great- sometimes things go too well, if a real failure doesn’t happen they don’t invent one.)