Un-official GTPlanet BBC Topgear UK ThreadTV
- Thread starter ExigeEvan
- 10,125 comments
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- 30,028
- Cuddington, Cheshire
- JDA1982
Jumping in a truck with Hammind dressed as a cowboy would probably be more painful for May than getting beat to death with a blunt object. I don't think they felt the situation was that desperate until the camera crew started having stones hurled at them.
Maybe they had plates on the back, that's all you need in some states.
- 13,818
- Alabama
Yeah, they had "temporary tags" on. Those are the paper number plates you see in the license frame of Hammond's truck and the back window if Clarkson's Camaro. They are good for up to 30 days after the purchase of a new vehicle. After they expire, you are required to register the car and get a real license plate.
- 21,286
- GR-MI-USA
- YSSMAN
- YSSMAN
I just got done watching the episode on YouTube, and I have to say it is one of the best I've seen. While I don't always appreciate being made fun of as an American, all you can do is laugh at some of the stuff they did. Generally speaking, no, a trip from Miami to New Orleans is not an adequate representation of America, but yes it does represent an important piece of the American identity.
...I think Clarkson and crew brought up many good points along the way. Many American cars are dreadful, but their is something strangely appealing to them. Beyond that, the weather can get quite bad in the deep south, and yet there is something entirely wonderful about that as well. And although I don't like to be criticized by foreigners as to how Katrina has been handled, things are better than they were, and have gotten drastically better since they filmed that last summer.
All in all, I'm hoping to see Top Gear come back to America. I've love to see a classic New York to Los Angeles trip, or maybe have them go from Chicago to LA on Route 66. That way you can get a more accurate representation of our country.
...Hell, they're more than welcome around here. I'd love to show them how we get down up here in Michigan...
...I think Clarkson and crew brought up many good points along the way. Many American cars are dreadful, but their is something strangely appealing to them. Beyond that, the weather can get quite bad in the deep south, and yet there is something entirely wonderful about that as well. And although I don't like to be criticized by foreigners as to how Katrina has been handled, things are better than they were, and have gotten drastically better since they filmed that last summer.
All in all, I'm hoping to see Top Gear come back to America. I've love to see a classic New York to Los Angeles trip, or maybe have them go from Chicago to LA on Route 66. That way you can get a more accurate representation of our country.
...Hell, they're more than welcome around here. I'd love to show them how we get down up here in Michigan...
- 31
Dude I watch the episode twice.....It was the best episode yet....Miami is like most dangerious city....stuck in 80's.....after watching that, I really never I want to go to Alabama EVER.....Fat Stig was hilarious...I believe Clarkson got the best bargin with the Car Maro LOL. Shower.....superb...I would never thought that with the Southern Eastern Humidity. John Deer moment was the highlight....They should have more Top Gear in America.
Im Glad living in California heheh
Im Glad living in California heheh
- 20,145
- Australia
- VIPERGTS01
Yep great episode, very funny.
What happened to the US Top Gear? Didn't they pull airing of Top Gear in the US for a US version Top Gear?
What happened to the US Top Gear? Didn't they pull airing of Top Gear in the US for a US version Top Gear?
. I forgot about that American version of TopGear they were supposed to be doing.
- 21,286
- GR-MI-USA
- YSSMAN
- YSSMAN
I've been asking the same question for months, and there has yet to be an answer given. My only assumption is that Discovery thought the show to be too expensive, or maybe saw the issues the show was having in the UK, and deemed it unnecessary. I'm not certain...
...For those not in the know, we did have Top Gear in America for a few months about a year or so ago. They ran edited, re-cut versions of the show directed towards an American audience with Clarkson and the gang. The anti-American jokes were toned down just a bit, we got our own lap time board, and they would even convert the prices to American dollars for us on the bottom of the screen. Nearly everything came out of the 2004 season, and I think had a few things from the early 2005 season...
There was, as I recall, a lot of fanfare over at Top Gear UK over the possibility of having a Top Gear US. Clarkson seemed to be rather excited, as did the magazine itself. There was a full-pilot filmed out in California, and it was reported to have aired, but nothing ever came of it. Super sucks...
...After the fall-out, and American demands for Top Gear, the old episodes started showing up again on the Discovery Channel and on the Science Channel, but have again disappeared. Discovery did recently create an all-automotive block on their TLC channel called "Turbo," and although I had expected Top Gear to make it on there, it has yet to be seen.
From what I understand, Discovery and BBC America have been bombarded with questions over whether or not the show will return. As noted previously in this thread, I had been in contact with the BBC UK and BBC America, and neither really said anything about them coming back any time soon. As for the Discovery part of the deal, my guess is as good as yours...
...I'd like to see the show come to America, un-edited, and just let we stupid Americans figure things out. How hard could it be to get a tape of the Sunday show, and show it on "Turbo" later in the week? Not hard I'd guess, but apparently the folks are thinking properly...
Sage
Staff Emeritus
- 12,533
- United States
- GTP_Sage
Same here. I don’t want a cut version, I don’t want the jokes toned down, I don’t want anything edited – I want Top Gear in its pure form. How effing difficult would it be to just take the exact same tape and show it here? Part of the reason so many Americans like it is because it’s completely British humor, which is a nice deviation from what we’re normally inundated with.
Some business man somewhere is missing out on an insanely easy cash cow.
Some business man somewhere is missing out on an insanely easy cash cow.
Scaff
Moderator
- 29,816
- He/Him
- ScaffUK
A big part of the problem is that a number of people on the BBC board would be quite happy to see Top Gear fail and have been quite open about it in the past (JC has even mentioned it on air a few times). The BBC is funded by public money and the pressure they get from certain groups in the UK (including parts of the government) to change or pull the program is huge. Fortunately for those of us who are capable of understanding that TG is entertainment and not an instruction manual for dangerous behaviour, the popularity of the show in the UK means that if the BBC did pull the show the public backlash would be huge. However the BBC seem to do all they can to ensure that the show does not grow, can you imagine how much popularity in the USA would scare them.
Unfortunately you guys are partly the victim of PC morons in the UK.
Sorry about that
Scaff
ExigeEvan
Premium
- 17,192
You will never get the full un-cut version of TopGear in the US because it is filmed without advert breaks and fills a ~ 60 minute slot. Sometimes TopGear is shown on BBC channels that have adverts and when it is cut you lose alot of the banter and jokes. It's really not as good as the full version.
- 21,286
- GR-MI-USA
- YSSMAN
- YSSMAN
Bad news: The BBC has gotten a bit frisky with the YouTube folks again. Quite a few videos have been cut-off from the service, including a few that I had posted which had received many hits. Too bad really, but then again, the law when it came to something such as this was a bit murky, and although I wouldn't completely defend my position in posting them on the internet, I don't think the BBC is acting properly in this situation. It is a publicly-broadcasted and funded show, and it isn't like we are making money off of it.
Oh well... One more nail in the coffin for the Top Gear to come to America...
Oh well... One more nail in the coffin for the Top Gear to come to America...
- 16,736
- Southampton, UK
- Pebb--
- Pebb
On this weeks Top Gear
Space travel
The challenge is a simple one: to build a cheap space rocket based on a car.
Enter a reluctant-looking Reliant Robin and the nice men from the British Rocketry Association (the same chaps who helped fire the Mini off the ski-jump in the TG Winter Olympics Episode) armed with enough rocket fuel to generate eight tonnes of thrust.
Will TG's biggest challenge yet go down in flames or prove as explosive as, ahem, pro-homosexuality slogans in Alabama? It's an episode not to be missed.
Turbo fan
James and Richard love the Porsche 911. Jeremy hates it.
So with a new 911 Turbo out, it seemed only fair to let Captain Slow and the Hamster take it for a blast. However, it seemed far funnier to hand the 480bhp supercar over to JC to see whether it was good enough to convert a life-long Ferrari fan.
Top Pegg
There aren't many celebrities that rave about the performance of our Chevrolet Lacetti. But after being relegated to rural police duties in a Vauxhall Astra diesel for his new cop comedy Hot Fuzz, Simon Pegg (Shaun from Shaun of the dead) leapt delightedly into our Reasonably Priced Car for few hot laps of the TG track.
Fine tuning
Apparently a 612bhp Mercedes SL65 AMG is a bit sedate for some people. So when the boys found out that unhinged German tuners Brabus offer a 720bhp version of the SL, they thought it only polite to introduce the SV12 S BiTurbo to our test track...and the Stig. Will the most powerful roadster in the world prove too much even for our tame racing driver?
Space travel
The challenge is a simple one: to build a cheap space rocket based on a car.
Enter a reluctant-looking Reliant Robin and the nice men from the British Rocketry Association (the same chaps who helped fire the Mini off the ski-jump in the TG Winter Olympics Episode) armed with enough rocket fuel to generate eight tonnes of thrust.
Will TG's biggest challenge yet go down in flames or prove as explosive as, ahem, pro-homosexuality slogans in Alabama? It's an episode not to be missed.
Turbo fan
James and Richard love the Porsche 911. Jeremy hates it.
So with a new 911 Turbo out, it seemed only fair to let Captain Slow and the Hamster take it for a blast. However, it seemed far funnier to hand the 480bhp supercar over to JC to see whether it was good enough to convert a life-long Ferrari fan.
Top Pegg
There aren't many celebrities that rave about the performance of our Chevrolet Lacetti. But after being relegated to rural police duties in a Vauxhall Astra diesel for his new cop comedy Hot Fuzz, Simon Pegg (Shaun from Shaun of the dead) leapt delightedly into our Reasonably Priced Car for few hot laps of the TG track.
Fine tuning
Apparently a 612bhp Mercedes SL65 AMG is a bit sedate for some people. So when the boys found out that unhinged German tuners Brabus offer a 720bhp version of the SL, they thought it only polite to introduce the SV12 S BiTurbo to our test track...and the Stig. Will the most powerful roadster in the world prove too much even for our tame racing driver?
- 9,089
- Scotland
- 738
- DJC330Wagon
That robin launch was just up the road from me. I've been to a few rallies at the same military range and on weekdays you see the RAF doing bombing run training on it.
I was surprised at how well it went up. 8 tons of thrust does the trick.
I was surprised at how well it went up. 8 tons of thrust does the trick.
- 30,028
- Cuddington, Cheshire
- JDA1982
Pretty good episode again, this series has been good so far (not that isn't normally), the Reliant shuttle was great, the Barabus reminded me of the first time I tried to drive the Speed 12 in GT3, before I got the hang of it.
Robin
Premium
- 16,799
- United Kingdom
JC is going to be a happy man next week
Hahaha They always use her as the benchmark for the cool wall maybe they should get her to take a look at it and resolve some issues! I cannot believe Clarksons bought a Lambo Gallardo Spyder! He's gonna look abit odd in it but fair play!
The chainsaw bit was so funny, Clarksons hate for motorbikes... gosh health and safety are going to be all over him now..... and I will laugh everytime I see that hole in the cool wall again!
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