Grand Tour’s up in smoke
Clarkson admits show chaos after Hammond crash
FILMING of The Grand Tour has been thrown into chaos by Richard Hammond’s epic car crash.
Co-star Jeremy Clarkson said he had been forced to rewrite “all of the scripts and ideas” for the big-budget Amazon show.
“Many of you have been asking if Hammond’s broken knee will affect season two of the Grand Tour – and the short answer is: yes,” he said.
Hammond dodged death when the electric supercar he was driving at 220mph plunged 100ft down a Swiss hill before catching fire at the weekend. Clarkson said yesterday: “As I write, James May is sitting in the hellhole that is Gatwick Airport waiting for a budget airline to take him to a shoot that Hammond should have been doing. Meanwhile, I’ve been up since dawn, rewriting all of the scripts and ideas.
“Meanwhile, he is lying in a bed in the Swiss Alps, while pretty nurses attend to his every need, and give him drugs.”
The dad of two is due back in the office next week. This was “a good thing”, the former Top Gear star said: “We are out of toner for the photocopier, the girl who makes coffee is on holiday and the store room needs re-organising. These, I feel, are jobs he can do on one leg.”
Last night Hammond wrote online: “I’m pleased to announce that after two sleepless nights and several hours’ surgery, my Swiss Army Knee is finished and works.
“It bends in the middle and whilst a problem at airport security, is at least rustproof.”