BBC Top Gear-The epitome of entertainment

The show

Top gear is a British motoring show that focuses primarily on cars, along with occasional reviews of other motoring vehicles. The show is currently presented by Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond. Eighteen series of the show have aired so far, and the nineteenth series is under production. The show airs on BBC 2, and starting series fourteen, also on BBC HD. The show has a record number of viewers worldwide with 350 million viewers across the world per week. It has also recorded the highest number of downloads from torrent clients. The show has received widespread praise for its quirky and interesting presentation formats and has won numerous awards such as an International Emmy (2005) and the British National Television Awards (2006, 2007, 2008, and 2011).

Format

The show, which airs on a Sunday, is recorded on the preceding Wednesday at Dunsfold Aerodrome, Waverley, Surrey to a standing audience and follows a pattern in each episode. Every episode sees one of the presenters reviewing one or more cars which are then tested on their track by an anonymous racing driver called the Stig. The Stig sets a lap time for the reviewed car and it is then placed according to the time on the power lap board, which ranks various cars based on their lap times around the top gear track. The current leader of the power lap board is the Aerial Atom V8. The next part of the show is the News, where all three presenters talk about car and motor vehicle news from across the globe. The news has been voted as the funniest segment of the entire show by viewers. After the news, there is usually a "challenge" as the presenters refer to it, which is usually involving races of cars against other vehicles, or trying to find the ideal car for a specific situation, group of people, or profession. Following the challenge is the "Star in a Reasonably Priced Car" segment where celebrities are invited to do a lap of the track in a car. The show has seen three reasonably priced cars- The Suzuki Liana, Chevrolet Lacetti and the current Kia Cee'd. The celebrities' times are posted on a celebrity lap board, with the current leader being Matt Leblanc. F1 drivers are placed on a separate lap board due to their superior experience and driving skills and the current leader of the F1 lap board is Sebastian Vettel.

The hosts

Jeremy Clarkson is the most outspoken of all the three presenters, known for his love for cars that are high on power output and his severe criticisms of badly made or poorly performing cars. His sense of humor is largely based on his fantastic similes and metaphors for which he is widely known. His comments have also drawn criticisms from various ethnic groups, nationalities and car makers for being racist, derogatory and biased. His top gear nickname is "the top gear orangutan", based on his inability to "use his brain", as put by fellow presenter Richard Hammond. Clarkson also writes weekly columns for newspapers like The Sunday Times and The Sun.

Richard Hammond is the daredevil of top gear. His style of presenting and his good looks have earned him a good number of fans. Hammond's nickname in top gear is "hamster", because of his short stature and he has been at the receiving end of many of Clarkson's jokes. Hammond also presents Planet Earth along with Julia Bradbury.

James May is the perfect gentleman and raconteur of the show. He is frequently criticized by the other presenters for his slow and careful driving style, which has earned him his nickname, "captain slow". However, May has done some fast driving also, when he took a Bugatti Veyron Super Sport to its proposed top speed of 414kmph. He also writes for the motoring section of the Daily Telegraph.

The stig

The Stig is the anonymous racing driver who is responsible for setting power lap times in the show. He usually wears a racing suit and a helmet with a tinted visor, and his identity is known to few in the Top Gear crew. The first Stig wore a black racing suit and black helmet and when Perry McCarthy revealed that he was the black Stig, the three presenters "killed him off" by supposedly throwing him over an aircraft carrier. The next two Stigs wore a white racing suit and a white helmet with a blue tinted visor. The first white Stig revealed himself in August 2010, as Ben Collins, a formula one test driver. Since then he lost his job as the Stig and the presenters refer to this Stig as "sacked Stig". The current Stig is the second white Stig who joined after the first white Stig was sacked. The Stig has been portrayed as a silent, creature with below human intelligence and exceptional driving abilities. The Stig never talks during the show and is never seen without his helmet. Before the Stig's power lap drive, the presenters (usually Clarkson) reveals any two ludicrous facts about the Stig, such as its left arm being magnetic, or its tears being explosive. Although there is only one "main" Stig, there are several "spin-off" Stigs which appear during the various trips the presenters make to various parts of the world, which are referred to as "The Stigs Cousin".

Top gear specials

The show also features special episodes when the presenters travel to other countries with used cars and test the cars there by driving long distances and testing their endurance. So far, they have released 6 specials Vietnam, America, Botswana, Middle East, Bolivia and India. Also, there have been two other specials Polar special, where the presenters drive a Toyota Hilux to the Magnetic North pole, and a winter Olympics special, where they show car based Olympic events. Top Gear also have a live version of their shows, and they also play a part in Sport Relief, to raise funds for a cause.

Local versions

The popularity of the show has led to its being broadcast in 170 different countries. Although local versions of the show have been launched in Russia, The United States, Germany, Australia and South Korea, but they been reported to lack the originality, the charm, or the humor of the BBC version.

The epitome of entertainment

Top gear is thus, the perfect blend of humor, fact, and knowledge, making it the ideal recipe for entertainment. It is an hour of pure, unadulterated fun, making it the perfect entertainment program. As the popular English phrase goes "It cannot get any better".