Top Gear... erm... The Grand Tour

[Loz]

Watched the first episode last night. If Chris Evans' attempt was a pale shadow of the old Top Gear, then this is the old one on steroids... or a much bigger budget, anyway, from the Mad Max style opening to the pulling in Hollywood stars for 30 second jokes. The fantastic camerawork and production is even better. Even the scripted jokes had improved (OK, not hard).

There was definitely an air of being let off the leash, from the 'Clarkson leaving the Beeb starter' to the knowingly-offensive gypsy joke slipped in early doors to the admission that, now they are on the internet, they could probably 'get away with pleasuring a horse'.

Less good was the new driver, "The American". The joy of the Stig was he didn't speak, and they could do worse than to ask The American to do the same.

Would have preferred a shorter programme, though - filling up well over an hour made a lot of the sections seem a bit padded out.

[titch juicy]

Awwww that's nice that they got a racist joke in early. How clever of them.

Sounds like perfect post referendum/trump viewing. Let's hope they get their prime time BBC slot back soon.

[Mick Mac]

Gypsy jokes - great - Any leprechaun punching yet?

Knowingly offensive - I love that. Opens the mind and educates. Pokes fun at the racists - that's how the defence goes isn't it?

[emilyr0se]

.

[Loz]

Mick Mac Wrote:

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> Knowingly offensive - I love that. Opens the mind

> and educates. Pokes fun at the racists - that's

> how the defence goes isn't it?

Is that a pop at me?

[Mick Mac]

Wasn't actually, but you did write "knowingly offensive" jibe at a race group - which i guess you don't support.

But having seen what he said - "travelling the world like gypsies", I struggle to see how you see this as offensive, or did he say something else?

[JohnL]

"travelling the world like gypsies - but with car insurance"

As long as it's not a different group every week - as the show was good.

[pop9770]

Clarkson

WOW don't what ever you do use the G word or gypsies at the moment and who know how long it'll last TRAVELER is acceptable apparently ...

Sir David Attenborough take note !

I'm not even going to use H word (Hippo apologies) it's Hippopotamus from now on I don't want to offend any animals or animal lovers who may read this thread

As for TGT crock of S?IT what a waste of money the quality of the studio picture was awful and amazon isn't a patch on netflix for motion and picture quality

I'm not going to renew my sub for amazon that's for sure. ..

[miga]

JohnL Wrote:

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> "travelling the world like gypsies - but with car

> insurance"

Is thia playing on a stereotype about Romany and car insurance or is it just a bunch of words together?

[Loz]

Mick Mac Wrote:

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> Wasn't actually, but you did write "knowingly offensive" jibe at a race group - which i guess

> you don't support.

Well, I think most people would consider was offensive (on varying scales, admittedly) and I doubt even Clarkson would deny he was trying to do that and so did it knowingly, so I consider "knowingly offensive" was a pretty objective - even factual - description.

> But having seen what he said - "travelling the world like gypsies", I struggle to see how

> you see this as offensive, or did he say something else?

I had to google this to get the exact wording, but it was, "We're going to roam the world. We're gonna be like gypsies; only the cars we drive will be insured." ("Stop saying things that are going to get us fired!" Hammond hissed.)

[Michael Palaeologus]

I enjoyed it, agree re The American being a bit weak. If anything, too much car stuff and not enough self deprecating cocking about.

Knowingly offensive as most stand ups are, nothing shocking, given the presenters.

Its Marmite TV. That's free speech for you.

[Mick Mac]

Loz Wrote:

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> Mick Mac Wrote:

>

> I had to google this to get the exact wording, but

> it was, "We're going to roam the world. We're

> gonna be like gypsies; only the cars we drive will

> be insured." ("Stop saying things that are going

> to get us fired!" Hammond hissed.)

I'm guessing they are trying to build that up - knowing it's not offensive - I'd call that cocking about as MP puts it.

[malumbu]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jumping_the_shark