Top Gear returns next month

  • Sign in required

    Please sign in to your account to add a vehicle to favourite

  • Share this article

Top Gear returns next month with Matt LeBlanc, Chris Harris and Rory Reid. Picture/Supplied

Top Gear returns next month with Matt LeBlanc, Chris Harris and Rory Reid. Picture/Supplied

 

The show is making a return to British screens on March 5 this year.

However Top Gear's 2017 comeback has been met with huge backlash from fans - after the rebooted series, which featured a brand new line-up, received flat reviews last year.

Viewers took to Twitter on Tuesday to vent their frustration over the car series' return, with many claiming the show is 'over' and has no hope of success following the failed 2016 series, starring Matt LeBlanc and Chris Evans.

The show was given a revamp in May last year, when host Jeremy Clarkson's contract was not renewed - causing his popular co-stars Richard Hammond and James May to quit. 

Top Gear presenter Rory Reid. Picture/Suplied

Matt and Chris were then drafted in as the new front men, but the show suffered a huge drop in ratings - causing Evans, 50, to quit after one series.

However, the Friends actor is making a return to the 2017 edition of the show, alongside motoring journalists Chris Harris and Rory Reid - although many fans have been left questioning why it has been brought back at all.

One fan wrote angrily on Twitter: 'Top Gear is over!! #BBC needs to accept that!' while another questioned in agreement: 'How is this [show] still a thing?'

Meanwhile a third disappointed fan added bluntly: '@BBCTopGear is dead' before referring to the original hosting trio's new car show on Amazon Video: 'Grand Tour is killing it.'

Yet, many other fans expressed hope that the new version of the beloved car series will find its feet once again without Chris, who was met with negative reviews last series, as presenter.

One commented that the first series 'wasn't bad' and that without Radio 2 presenter Chris he is 'expecting this round to be better.' 

Others mirrored his sentiment, writing: 'The team looks loads better and I imagine the format may change for the better too. Much more excitement this time!' while another confirmed they will be 'tuning in'.  

On Monday, bosses of the BBC Two show unveiled the first promo shot of the new series on Twitter. 

The main image shows returning star Matt beaming as he's flanked by co-hosts Chris and Rory while standing among a collection of luxury cars.

With a space shuttle taking off in the background and a helicopter hovering overhead in the cloudy skies, the dramatic shot notably excludes Chris Evans, who quit the show after one series.

Radio presenter Chris made his departure following plummeting ratings and poor reviews, saying he gave it his best shot but it was 'not enough'.

Following his resignation, Chris said Matt was the 'captain' that the programme needed going forward and should remain on the show, dismissing reports that the pair's relationship had broken down amid flagging audience figures.

The first trailer for the latest series was released earlier in February and featured an array of supercars and extraordinary vehicles, from the Aston Martin DB11 to the Ferrari FXX K, to the Russian eight-wheeled Avtoros Shaman. 

Top Gear's Chris Harris. Picture/Supplied

In the 90-second teaser for the series, the former Friends star rescued a group of naked ramblers on the Isle of Man in his enormous Avtoros Shaman.

In one shot, a tuxedoed Matt was seen getting cornered by police in Montenegro while another showed him, Chris Harris and Rory Reid enduring an awkward BBC car insurance interview interwoven with clips from the new series.

They were quizzed by a strict risk assessor on prior motoring convictions, whether they would participate in competitive driving, and if they required fire cover. 

Top Gear's Matt LeBlanc. Picture/Supplied

Responding to the final question, Matt told the interviewer 'no fire' before The Stig made a timely entrance with a small flame burning his sleeve.

Meanwhile, Reid was seen crashing his taxi in Kazakhstan and Harris drifted the Ferrari FXX K in Daytona, Florida.

The £2million track-only hyper hybrid car will go from 0-62mph in under three seconds, topping out at 217mph - so it's safe to say there's some content for serious.

-Daily Mail