Jeremy Clarkson delivered a characteristically cheeky message to the three new presenters of The Grand Tour when they visited his Diddly Squat farm in the Cotswolds to seek his approval ahead of taking over the show.
Francis Bourgeois, James Engelsman and Thomas Holland were unveiled as the new presenters earlier this year, filling the void left by Mr Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May.
The new series arrives on Amazon Prime Video in September, and while reception has been mixed from diehard fans, Mr Clarkson and long-time collaborator Andy Wilman have been two leading voices endorsing the new trio.
Despite his backing, Mr Clarkson couldn’t resist a tongue-in-cheek jibe at Mr Bourgeois, Mr Engelsman and Mr Holland in the new series’ opener.
James Engelsman, Francis Bourgeois, and Thomas Holland are the new Grand Tour hosts
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“Listen, guys. Seriously. Have fun with this. Good luck. Don’t f*** it up. Right?” Clarkson warned the trio in the opening episode of the revamped series.
However, in a separate aside directly to camera, Mr Clarkson struck a far more encouraging tone, revealing he had been keeping tabs on the newcomers’ progress over the 18 months since he announced his exit.
“They’re very, very good. You’re gonna love it,” he said.
Producer Mr Wilman has stayed on as a consultant for the revamped programme, and is convinced the new line-up can continue the success of the show’s predecessors.
Jeremy Clarkson welcomes the new Grand Tour hosts to his farm in the new series opener
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AMAZONSpeaking to The Times, he noted that “social media warriors” had threatened to boycott the series now that Mr Clarkson, Mr Hammond and Mr May were no longer at the helm.
“To them I’d say, give them a go,” Mr Wilman urged.
Mr Clarkson offered a similar appraisal back in March. Speaking to apprehensive hosts on the Autocar podcast, he insisted: “I’ve seen the guys being chosen in the early days, and I’ve seen some of the stuff they’ve been doing. And it’s very, very good.
“It’s different. I mean, it’s different because they’re three completely different people to us. But they’re bl**dy funny. I’m pretty confident that that will work. I mean, touch wood. But I love the idea that Grand Tour carried on in this way.”
James Engelsman and Thomas Holland in the new series of The Grand Tour
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Touching upon Mr Clarkson’s cameo, Mr Wilman revealed to The Times that Mr Hammond and Mr May will also feature in the new series.
He added that the departing team held no claim over the format. “We don’t have a monopoly on some blokes doing entertaining things around cars,” he said. “We wouldn’t want a monopoly.”
Mr Bourgeois, whose real name is Luke Nicholson, became a viral sensation in 2021 through his trainspotting reaction videos on TikTok, filmed using a head-mounted camera.
Beyond his social media fame, he has also studied mechanical engineering at university and completed a four-year internship at Rolls-Royce.
His two co-hosts share a professional history through the YouTube motoring channel Throttle House. Mr Holland founded the channel and serves as its co-presenter, while Mr Engelsman is best known as his fellow host on the platform.
The forthcoming series takes the presenters to California, where they put three American muscle cars through their paces against fighter jets.
A trip to Malaysia sees the group explore the country’s deep-rooted car culture, while also investigating how cheaply one can buy a sports car before it falls apart.
The trio additionally venture into the Angolan desert in track cars wholly unsuited to the terrain.