It seems as though all we know is Clarkson, Hammond and May. They’re three of the most influential people in the motoring industry and certainly the most innovative when it comes to motoring journalism and media. But it wasn’t always the three amigos.
in 2002 when Top Gear first began — well, the rebooted version anyway — Hammond was there, as was Clarkson who was the brains behind the show alongside Andy Wilman. But there was no James. There was instead a man called Jason Dawe.
He focussed on the tip and tricks of buying used cars cheaply and efficiently and expressed an interest in buying cheap cars only to drive them until they die. This led to his demise as after the first season he was quickly asked to leave. James May took his place from Series 2 onwards.
Dawe instead headed to ITV4 where he started a program called ‘Used Car Roadshow’ alongside Penny Mallory where they tried to find the best cars in the used market. But because the majority of us would rather watch Clarkson blowing up a caravan over Dawe buying a special edition Fiesta, in 2007 his show was cancelled after low ratings.
Now he makes his money writing for motoring news outlets and writing speeches after gaining experience in after-dinner speaking. I still do not quite understand what that means but hey.
What would Top Gear have looked like if Jason Dawe remained? And what would James May be doing? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
Read more posts by Alex Harrington in Tent Talk on DriveTribe the new website by Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May.
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