Things have been touch-and-go for the television show nearest and dearest to almost every automotive enthusiast heart, and now the BBC says Top Gear is, for the time being, a no go.
One of the longest running television shows of all time is suspended indefinitely, the BBC announced Monday. The heart-rending news comes just a few weeks after the BBC insisted that it wasn’t going to shelve Top Gear. The show was originally suspended back in May following presenter Freddie Flintoff’s massive crash at the Top Gear test track a year ago. Injuries Flintoff sustained during the crash were described by the BBC as the primary reason for casting off the show, according to Deadline:
Top Gear will not be seen for the “foreseeable future” on TV, the BBC has said.
The show has been off air since host Andrew Flintoff picked up “life-alteringly significant” injuries following a crash, which led to a £9M ($11.2M) payout for the cricketing legend and a health and safety review.
In the past few minutes, the BBC has put out a statement saying it has “decided to rest the UK show for the foreseeable future,” citing “exceptional circumstances.”
Flintoff reportedly was uncomfortable with conditions at the track the day he dumped a Morgan Super 3. He had to be evacuated via helicopter to a hospital where he was treated for extensive injuries to his face (the Morgan did not have air bags.) The BBC eventually paid out £9 million to Flintoof. This wasn’t Flintoff’s first crash while filming the show, either. He lost footing in a Subaru Brat while filming. He’s also not the only presenter to suffer life-altering injuries. Richard Hammond ended up in a coma for weeks in 2006 after crashing a turbo jet engine-powered dragster called Vampire. Hammond also suffered a terrible crash in a Rimac electric supercar in 2017 (while filming for Amazon’s Top Gear-adjacent series Grand Tour.)
Clearly safety is an issue on this set and, considering the powerful cars the presenters drive in often wild and entertaining ways, it seems difficult to raise the standards of safety on such a show. This will likely be tough news for enthusiast to take. Top Gear has been on air since 1977, and in that time the presenters used a mix of comedy and wild enthusiasm to draw in millions of viewers. Even if you aren’t a gear head, Top Gear was always a fun watch.
Today, pour a cup of tea out for a real one.