Jeremy Clarkson has been fired as host from the popular BBC show “Top Gear.” The official reason for the firing of Clarkson is that he verbally and physically attacked a production staff member. This decision was made after the BBC performed an investigation into the attack against the person on the production staff. According to a report from the Washington Post, what happened was that there was no hot food for the set and Clarkson had started yelling at the show producer, Oisin Tymon. Clarkson’s attack became more and more aggressive by yelling and using a lot of profanity. Tymon had remained silent during the verbal attack. A physical assault followed but someone else had intervened to avoid it getting worse.

Tymon never reported what Clarkson had done, but Clarkson attempted to apologize via text, email and in person. Eventually, Clarkson reported himself to BBC management and they started the investigation from there. The incident was on March 4. Clarkson was initially suspended on March 10, and now he is officially fired on March 26. However, even with this incident Clarkson is not a stranger to controversy. Clarkson is known for saying offensive jokes and being very blunt with his opinions.

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The show “Top Gear” has about 350 million viewers and the show is aired in 50 countries. Some come to watch just for the cars, but a lot watch the three hosts’ antics on the show. The other two hosts, Richard Hammond and James May, along with Clarkson, entertained millions of viewers all over the world. The fans of the show are so loyal that a petition was made to reinstate Clarkson. The petition received one million signatures. A hashtag was also created called #BringBackClarkson. The fans enjoy his inappropriate humor and his bluntness, and for many this may be the main reason they watch the show.

So what will happen to “Top Gear?” The BBC wishes to continue the show without Clarkson but the other two hosts are a little more hesitant on the matter. Hammond and May want to think about their futures on the BBC show without Clarkson. The size of the audience will be effected as well since the people who watch the show are fans of the three hosts. Maybe people will tune in to see the cars, but will it be enough to keep the show going?

There are talks of a competing television network wanting to do something like “Top Gear” and have all three hosts together again. However, that is all rumors and nothing has been confirmed. Either way, Clarkson will be missed from “Top Gear,” which will be approaching its 22nd season. Hopefully, Hammond and May go on without Clarkson, but even if they do it will not be the same. The future of “Top Gear” is up in the air right now, and there is even a possibility of no new season at all, which would be a major hit to BBC’s ratings.

Photo: David Coghe