Top Gear: I've become a petrol-head!

Post by **Impenitent** » Fri Jul 11, 2008 11:50 am

Top Gear has transformed me from a woman who considered a car a four-wheeled necessary means of transporting small children from point A to point B, to a Horsepower and slick Italian/German/Japanese body design enthusiast.

How did this happen?

One Monday night I sat in front of the teev with a cup of coffee and some after dinner chocolate and, unable to find the remote amongst the cushions, I resorted to watching what was on the screen.

Which happened to be three English guys pulling outrageous tricks with fast cars - racing them against jet fighters; and rock climbers; playing demolition derby with motor homes; using the words 'passion', 'soul', 'voluptuous' 'delicate' and 'whimsy' all in the same sentence to describe a chilli red mercedes sports roadster.

I adore their capacity to wear their horsepower-loving hearts on their sleeve; their blokesy sense of fun at their own intensity; their obvious intelligence and eloquence; their capacity to think outside the box; not to mention that they have me glued to the screen, alternately laughing so hard it's difficult to drink my coffee, and lusting after slick machines that guzzle a tanker's worth of petrol as soon as you open the garage door.

I love this show!

I love it! I watch it now twice a week, make time for it!

I think I've been assimilated. *whimper*

Post by **ToshoftheWuffingas** » Fri Jul 11, 2008 1:37 pm

Noooooo! Not Jeremy Clarkson! *groan!*

Post by **Alys** » Sat Jul 12, 2008 4:53 pm

Oh yes, Jeremy Clarkson is a dreadful, dreadful man

....but Top Gear is absolute genius!

I have no interest in cars either Imp, but TG is so much fun and so irreverent and the presenters are so clearly having such a fabulous time that you can't help but pick up their enthusiasm. I love it.

Post by **Alys** » Thu Jul 31, 2008 10:18 pm

Keep an eye out for the challenge match between the British and German Top Gear presenters - it's a classic episode and had us laughing out loud several times. Jeremy Clarkson and co are outrageously rude and terrible cheaters, but you just can't help rooting for them.

The quote of the night was (and I may be paraphrasing) "My arm's come off!"

Post by **Impenitent** » Fri Aug 01, 2008 12:18 am

They are penetrating Australia by stealth!

There is a Top Gear magazine out now (I saw it at at the supermarket, and advertised in petrol stations), and they've been auditioning for an Australian Top Gear, for which an acquaintance of ours apparently did audition earlier this year (unsuccessfully, apparently, though he's car crazy enough, and mechanically geeky enough - he has worked on racing cars, including F1 vehicles - and he's off the beam enough).

I'm not sure how I feel about that. I'm all for home-grown and all that but I'm not sure the world needs another seductive path to broadening the market for petrol hogging cars...and anyway, I'm loathe to lose the UK team. They're hysterically funny, absolutely loony in the stuff they come up with. I think, you know, they are perfect exponents of the "eccentric English" stereotype.

Not sure whether the episode you refer to will be screened here any time soon - I have the feeling the local broadcasters pick out episodes at random rather than showing them in any sensible order.

Still, I'll look out for it.

Post by **ToshoftheWuffingas** » Fri Aug 01, 2008 5:30 pm

Sorry but that programme is my bete noire.

In it's favour though I gather the three had a pact that if any of them were to be killed in some stunt, one of the other two would announce it on the show and then say 'Anyway.....' and go on to the next item.

Post by **Alys** » Sat Aug 02, 2008 1:19 am

I totally understand Tosh. On his own, and by any reasonable standards, Jeremy Clarkson is an abomination. But somehow...on Top Gear and only on Top Gear...he becomes funny and almost lovable.

Almost.