And On That Bombshell: Inside the Madness and Genius of TOP GEAR
Oct 2015 · Hachette UK
4.8star
64 reviewsreport
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256
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About this ebook
I was Top Gear's script editor for 13 years and all 22 series. I basically used to check spelling and think of stupid gags about The Stig. I also got to hang around with Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May. It didn't feel like something you should get paid for.
From the disastrous pilot show of 2002 to the sudden and unexpected ending in 2015, working on Top Gear was quite a rollercoaster ride. We crossed continents, we made space ships, we bobbed across the world's busiest shipping lane in a pick-up truck. We also got chased by an angry mob, repeatedly sparked fury in newspapers, and almost killed one of our presenters.
I realised that I had quite a few stories to tell from behind the scenes on the show. I remembered whose daft idea it was to get a dog. I recalled the willfully stupid way in which we decorated our horrible office. I had a sudden flashback to the time a Bolivian drug lord threatened to kill us. I decided I should write down some of these stories. So I have. I hope you like them.
And now, a quote from James May: 'Richard Porter has asked me to "write a quote" for his new book about the ancient history of Top Gear. But this is a ridiculous request. How can one "write a quote"? Surely, by definition, a quote must be extracted from a greater body of writing, for the purpose of illustrating or supporting a point in an unrelated work. I cannot "write a quote" any more than I could "film an out-take".
'Porter, like Athens, has lost his marbles.'
From the disastrous pilot show of 2002 to the sudden and unexpected ending in 2015, working on Top Gear was quite a rollercoaster ride. We crossed continents, we made space ships, we bobbed across the world's busiest shipping lane in a pick-up truck. We also got chased by an angry mob, repeatedly sparked fury in newspapers, and almost killed one of our presenters.
I realised that I had quite a few stories to tell from behind the scenes on the show. I remembered whose daft idea it was to get a dog. I recalled the willfully stupid way in which we decorated our horrible office. I had a sudden flashback to the time a Bolivian drug lord threatened to kill us. I decided I should write down some of these stories. So I have. I hope you like them.
And now, a quote from James May: 'Richard Porter has asked me to "write a quote" for his new book about the ancient history of Top Gear. But this is a ridiculous request. How can one "write a quote"? Surely, by definition, a quote must be extracted from a greater body of writing, for the purpose of illustrating or supporting a point in an unrelated work. I cannot "write a quote" any more than I could "film an out-take".
'Porter, like Athens, has lost his marbles.'
Ratings and reviews
4.8
64 reviews
Simon Dillon
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October 23, 2015
Well written and amusing. A window into just how much work and effort it took to make Top Gear. Pleasingly realistic and honest about the failings and the mistakes along the way, and the sad end of a program that was a happy automotive escape for us for many years.
2 people found this review helpful
Siddharth “MotuSid”
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December 5, 2015
I expected it to be a torrent of puns and stuff. The way it is written though is the best way it could have been written. Thanks for keeping the Top Gear fanboy inside me a little less sad
6 people found this review helpful
Matt Treherne
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May 22, 2020
A good insight into how Top Gear was really put together and how it became so popular with car buffs and non car buffs alike...
About the author
Richard Porter worked for 13 years as writer and script editor for BBC's Top Gear. During that time he created implausible metaphors, invented Stig facts, and thought it was a good idea to write inflammatory slogans on cars for a drive through Alabama. Also in the car world, he is evo magazine's longest serving columnist, the malfunctioning brain behind sniffpetrol.com, and the author of 15 books on a range of automotive subjects, including the bestselling Crap Cars.
Away from machines, he has written serious things for the BBC science department and the Natural History Unit, and stupid things for Total Wipeout and Comic Relief. He is reasonably tall.
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