Television: Top Gear in hot water over G&T on ice
In the past, he has been accused of recklessness by everyone from the green lobby to road safety campaigners. But Jeremy Clarkson and his Top Gear co-hosts were condemned by their own employers yesterday for "glamorising the misuse of alcohol" by drinking at the wheel.
The BBC Trust's editorial complaints unit said a special edition of the motoring show last July, in which Clarkson and James May attempted to drive a pickup truck to the magnetic north pole, broke its guidelines.
In the programme, Clarkson and May were shown drinking gin and tonics as they raced Richard Hammond, who was using a sled pulled by a team of dogs, to reach the pole.
A viewer complained that the inclusion of the footage was "grossly irresponsible".
The show's executive producers argued that they were in international waters and therefore were not committing any offence. They added that the drinks were part of a running gag on the contrast between the two teams.
Hammond has taken on Clarkson in a series of outlandish challenges on the BBC2 show. Producers argued that the pair "were not seen in the film to be drunk or out of control of the vehicle, neither were they at any time during filming".
But the trust said the footage should not have been shown in a pre-watershed slot when children were likely to be watching because it risked glamorising their behaviour.
Other complaints about the programme, over a shot of a frostbitten penis and a claim that the way it was edited had misled viewers, were dismissed.
The unit, which deals with appeals from viewers after they have exhausted the BBC's complaints process, also cleared Question Time for broadcasting anti-Scottish comments by the former Sun editor Kelvin MacKenzie.
Last October MacKenzie told the audience: "Brown is a Scot, he is a socialist Scot who wants to spend every single penny you earn. Never forget that."
Challenged on why the prime minister's nationality was relevant, he went on: "The reality is that the Scots enjoy spending it, they do not enjoy creating it, which is the opposite of down in the south."
The trust dismissed the complaint from MP Gordon Banks, who said he had received letters from outraged constituents in Ochil and South Perthshire. It said: "There was a clear editorial justification in broadcasting the comments as they reflected a view on a politically controversial subject. To have edited them would have inhibited freedom of expression."
Steering into trouble
· In 2006 presenter Richard Hammond crashed and seriously injured himself while driving at up to 300mph at Elvington airfield, near York. The show was later criticised for making light of accidents
· In February last year a stunt involving a dead cow strapped to presenter Jeremy Clarkson's car roof prompted more than 100 complaints from concerned members of the public. The incident happened when producers challenged the presenters to produce a dinner of roadkill during a trip to the USA
· In 2004, the BBC paid £250 to the residents of a village in which Clarkson deliberately crashed a pickup truck into a mature horse chestnut tree to test the vehicle's strength
· In 2005, the BBC received complaints about a joke made by Clarkson about the Germans with reference to Hitler and Nazi stereotypes
· A long-running tirade against caravans culminated in a game of conkers played with caravans hanging by chains from two freestanding cranes
Television: Top Gear in hot water over G&T on ice | Media | The Guardian
i've really gotten into Top Gear over the past few months. watched all of series 9 and 10 and really enjoyed it. still don't own a car though (or ever have)
i used to think Jeremy Clarkson was a right twat but he's grown on me now and i kinda enjoy his crude digs at the british pc crowd.
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