10 things we learnt at the Grand Tour season three launch

"It's a nude musical review"

2y ago
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The new series of The Grand Tour was launched to media and VIPs last night in London, ahead of the release of episode one on Amazon Prime Video later this week.

Part of the event involved a Q&A with presenters Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond, which of course was as hilarious as it was insightful. Here are 10 of the favourite Grand Tour facts we discovered.

Hammond didn't crash

Unlike in series two, when he spectacular smashed up a Rimac electric hypercar (and his knee), Richard Hammond managed to avoid near-death experiences while filming the third series. That’s despite being given a “super-fast electric car” (details TBC) to play with again. Hammond also famously ended up in hospital following a jet car crash while filming Top Gear, in 2006. Last night, he joked, “It’s a shame, I broke an otherwise perfect record.”

Clarkson, however, did injure himself

Clarkson revealed that he cut his finger in a bizarre incident in Georgia: he was trying to knock the beak off a porcelain duck with a hammer, apparently. He told the audience last night that there was “arterial blood gouting all over a car park”, although his co-hosts seemed less concerned, with Hammond joking, “It’s a shame you didn’t, as you claimed you had, cut it off, ‘cause then we could have thrown the rest of you away. Oh, look, we’ve brought the wrong bit back.”

There are some... weird format changes

When asked about what’s new in season three, in terms of format, Clarkson Hammond and May listed a number of odd updates. The whole thing is in song form, they said, and the presenters are completely naked throughout. “It’s a nude musical review; let’s get it out there,” Hammond joked. At least, we hope it was a joke.

Sharing the car in Mongolia wasn't pleasant

When asked what was his least favourite moment of season three, Clarkson said: “Probably being in the car with you two. This is something that’s maybe happened four or five times in our whole careers together, that we’ve all been in the same car, and we were all in the same car in Mongolia, and that was sh*t.”

Clarkson pinpointed the very worst moment from that trip: that realisation that there was no booze.

Clarkson didn't help build the Mongolia car

Clarkson watched and made tea while Hammond and May built their car in Mongolia, he confirmed.

They did a Colombia special and didn't mention cocaine at all

“We did a whole half hour show, and talked non-stop, and didn’t once mention cocaine,” Clarkson revealed. “The Colombians were thrilled.”

James May is not good at promoting the show

When asked what he got up to during the Colombia special, James May replied: “Driving about,” adding, “We started at the top of Colombia, we went down to the bottom, we did some photography of animals sort of, And we drove on some rough roads. And I had a Fiat Panda 4×4, which was excellent, and the exhaust fell off. Hammond crapped himself…” At this point he was interrupted by Clarkson: “You’re not really selling this.” Hammond added: “That is the driest trail I’ve ever heard.”

They nearly shaved an audience member's head

One member of the audience last night asked Clarkson, Hammond and May if they had shaved anyone’s head in season three. Clarkson had to explain that they had the idea to ask people questions and reward correct answers with money, but wrong answers meant having your head shaved. Sadly for the victim(s), the segment never made the show. “We decided the item didn’t work, so we never put it on television,” Clarkson said. “It just looked like bullying.”

Amazon loves them

As already reported, although season three marks the end of studio-based car shows for Clarkson Hammond and May, Amazon has signed the trio for more series of The Grand Tour. “We love Amazon and they seem to love us, so consequently you’ve got us for a few more years yet,” Clarkson said.

The final episode is the best one yet

Clarkson said he’s more proud of the final episode, in which they look back at the Ford Mondeo, Sierra and Cortina, than anything he’s done in all the years he’s worked with Hammond and May. “I would hope that, 13 weeks from now, when you watch the final programme go out in season three, you’ll agree that that is actually the best.”

To find out what else we discovered during the Grand Tour Q&A, check out the full article at driving.co.uk.

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Comments (14)

  • Fair do’s - just watched the first one 👏🏻👏🏻improvement- keep it up . Love how HD the picture is , best looking show on TV .

      2 years ago
  • I can’t wait for this season - I love for TGT

      2 years ago
  • season 4 and 5 have been commissed

      2 years ago
  • Looks like my dry January will end on Friday night!..... Sooo excited

      2 years ago
  • Waiting for Friday.......

      2 years ago
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