- 3 months ago
In Series 13 Episode 1, Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May recreate a 1949-style race from London to Edinburgh: May in a Jaguar XK120, Hammond on a Vincent Black Shadow motorbike and Clarkson aboard the steam locomotive “Tornado”. A breathtaking blend of history, speed and classic Top Gear rivalry.
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Top Gear Season 13 Episode 1, Top Gear S13E01 full episode, Race to the North Top Gear, Jaguar XK120 vs Vincent Black Shadow vs Tornado train, steam locomotive car bike race, classic motoring challenge, historic machine race Top Gear UK
Follow our channel for more car crazed mayhem. Alot more episodes to come that you don't want to miss. Like our videos and share with other car lovers!!
Thank you for supporting our channel
Top Gear Season 13 Episode 1, Top Gear S13E01 full episode, Race to the North Top Gear, Jaguar XK120 vs Vincent Black Shadow vs Tornado train, steam locomotive car bike race, classic motoring challenge, historic machine race Top Gear UK
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MotorTranscript
00:00:00.
00:00:12Tonight, Richard tries to start a motorbike.
00:00:15James fills his car with petrol.
00:00:18And I get a British Rail suntan.
00:00:21.
00:00:27We're back!
00:00:29We're back!
00:00:31We are back. Thank you, thank you.
00:00:33It's lovely to be here.
00:00:35Your applause is very kind,
00:00:37but I fear a bit premature,
00:00:39because since we were last here,
00:00:41the whole world has gone wrong.
00:00:43And in order to reflect that doom and despondency,
00:00:46we obviously had to make some changes in this series.
00:00:49So, coming up now,
00:00:51what we have is a taster of what you can expect,
00:00:53some of the down-to-earth real-world stuff,
00:00:55over the next seven weeks.
00:01:05It's out of my way, Frenchists!
00:01:10How is that happening?
00:01:16They're hot for James Lane right now.
00:01:19.
00:01:21What do we want?
00:01:22A St. Martin!
00:01:28Dear God!
00:01:40Do you actually do anything to your hair?
00:01:42Well, I wash it.
00:01:44.
00:01:45You're turning my car into a colander!
00:01:52What a hell.
00:01:53.
00:01:54.
00:01:55.
00:01:56.
00:01:57You've made it something!
00:01:58.
00:01:59.
00:02:00.
00:02:03.
00:02:04.
00:02:05.
00:02:07.
00:02:09Yeah, okay, we got that a bit wrong,
00:02:15because basically we drew up a list of all the things we're not supposed to do,
00:02:19and then we just did that list of things.
00:02:22Yeah, but why not, eh? We don't do doom and gloom, we do fun and games.
00:02:26Yes, that's exactly right.
00:02:27So let's get on with this letter, which we have received.
00:02:30It says, Dear Top Gear,
00:02:32what would your programme have been like if you were making it 60 years ago?
00:02:37Simple.
00:02:38Exactly the same.
00:02:45You join us in 1949 for a race.
00:02:52It's between the fastest car in the world, the Jaguar XK120,
00:02:58the fastest bike in the world, the Vincent Black Shadow,
00:03:03and this.
00:03:04This Peppercorn A1 Pacific-class steam locomotive is not the fastest train in the world.
00:03:14But because it was completed only three years ago, weirdly,
00:03:18it is the most modern train working in Britain today.
00:03:22So, the race.
00:03:28We would start at King's Cross in London and finish 400 miles away at the bar of the Balmoral Hotel in Edinburgh.
00:03:34The train would go on LNER's east coastline while the car and the bike would go up the Great North Road because it's 1949 and motorways haven't been invented yet.
00:03:47So, all we had to do now was decide who'd go in what.
00:03:52Is this one of your special hats?
00:03:55No.
00:03:56Do you wear just this hat and nothing else in place?
00:03:57Just pick a piece of paper.
00:04:00Come on, Hammond, you go first.
00:04:01Okay.
00:04:01That's the label.
00:04:03Oh, God, yes.
00:04:04Oh, please.
00:04:07And?
00:04:08I've got...
00:04:10I've got the bike!
00:04:12There is a God!
00:04:14There is a God!
00:04:15Yeah, that wouldn't really have worked.
00:04:16That wouldn't.
00:04:17Ready?
00:04:18May I?
00:04:22What do you mean, ah?
00:04:24On the train?
00:04:25I wanted to go on the train.
00:04:28I certainly didn't want to go on the train because the Black Shadow was my boyhood dream bike.
00:04:34I mean, as any biker will tell you, this thing is an icon.
00:04:38Just as all heavy metal can trace its roots back to Led Zeppelin,
00:04:42all modern super bikes can trace their roots back to this.
00:04:46This is Genesis.
00:04:47It really is that important.
00:04:49It's going to be an honour to ride it.
00:04:50If I'm honest, I'm absolutely chuffed to bits to be going in the car,
00:04:55especially an XK120 because this is the car that made Jaguar.
00:05:00When it was launched, it was the fastest car in the world.
00:05:02It did 126, don't you know?
00:05:04And yet it was incredibly good value because it was £1,200,
00:05:08which in today's money is about £35,000.
00:05:11So you've got a Bugatti Veyron for the price of a middling 5 series.
00:05:16It's magnificent.
00:05:17As the others drooled, Ollie was in for a shock.
00:05:23Hi there, how are you? Hello. Hi there, how are you?
00:05:27So, is that where I'm driving it?
00:05:30Unfortunately, no.
00:05:32You're the other side, you've got a car.
00:05:35Well, I'm shoveling the coal.
00:05:39I'd be shoveling a lot of coal.
00:05:42Eight tonnes of it.
00:05:44But even so, at exactly 7.23 and a bit, the race began.
00:05:51Go!
00:05:52Oh, it's got to get changed!
00:05:54Start in the net.
00:05:55Right.
00:05:55Absolute piece of cake.
00:06:06Obviously, Hammond has to go and put his leather romper suit on.
00:06:22I've had to turn a key and press a button, and I'm off.
00:06:26What a great idea the car was.
00:06:31What's the top speed of an A1?
00:06:3475.
00:06:35Is that all?
00:06:37We're limited to 75.
00:06:39Well, why don't we do 100?
00:06:41We'll never know.
00:06:43Are there speed cameras?
00:06:45Yes, yes, yes.
00:06:48Finally, I was in my levers and ready to go.
00:06:51However, starting a Vincent is quite tricky if you're a bit, um, small.
00:06:56Listen to that, it's a straight six, beautifully balanced.
00:07:13This engine, in one form or another, remained in production until the mid-80s.
00:07:18That's how good it was.
00:07:22All Vincent Blackshadows came with a bloke in a black leather jacket to start it.
00:07:29Rather than just press a button, which is so ordinary, there's no sense of occasion.
00:07:36At race speed, the train needed 33 pounds of coal every mile.
00:07:41Feeding it is a massive job.
00:07:45Oh, no, I'm rubbish! I'm worse than rubbish!
00:07:53The fact is that Jeremy Clarkson on this journey is a stoker.
00:07:58And I should think he'll be dead by the end of the platform.
00:08:03It's so hot.
00:08:05So noisy.
00:08:09Do you want to know what it's like in here?
00:08:11Get under your stairs at home during an earthquake
00:08:14and spend eight hours looking at your social heating system.
00:08:24That one's coming through.
00:08:26Blackshadow coming through.
00:08:28At last, I was on the move.
00:08:31When this thing was born...
00:08:34Oh, no!
00:08:37Oh, God.
00:08:39It's a temporary glitch.
00:08:41I, meanwhile, was praying for a breakdown.
00:08:51But this was unlikely.
00:08:55The A1s in the 1940s
00:08:57could do 250 miles a day, every day.
00:09:03They could do 150,000 miles between services.
00:09:08They were phenomenally reliable.
00:09:13That's just enough steam.
00:09:17You got us about another.
00:09:20Five miles.
00:09:21Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, thank you.
00:09:29At last, again, I was on the move.
00:09:33Okay.
00:09:33A few things to get used to.
00:09:35The gear lever is on the other side of the bike.
00:09:39So at the moment, every time I want to brake,
00:09:41I'm changing gear instead.
00:09:42And if I want to change gear, I'm braking.
00:09:45It's not ideal.
00:09:47Brakes are the originals and surprisingly good.
00:09:51The only trouble is, they're full of asbestos.
00:09:57Already, viewers, I'm at the beginning of the A1.
00:10:01Lovely, lovely, lovely.
00:10:02Everything's lovely in Jaguars.
00:10:08The train, however, was doing even better.
00:10:12Where are we?
00:10:13We've just got three partners past, so the M25.
00:10:16We've been underway 13 minutes
00:10:18and already we're aware the M25 would be
00:10:22if it had been built, which it hasn't.
00:10:25Though the train had opened up a big lead,
00:10:27it would need to stop four times on the journey for water.
00:10:31That would take time.
00:10:35Steam engines, they're beautiful things.
00:10:39They're romantic.
00:10:40The technology is fascinating,
00:10:41but they were already 20, 30 years out of date by 1949.
00:10:47It's all doomed.
00:10:49The car is the future.
00:10:50People can see it already.
00:10:52We've got a problem.
00:10:53What?
00:10:54We've got a problem.
00:10:56With what?
00:10:57We have a problem.
00:10:58We've got a steam link somewhere.
00:11:00We don't know where.
00:11:01And me?
00:11:01Is it still putting power?
00:11:03Is it still?
00:11:06If the car had any problems,
00:11:07they weren't from 1949.
00:11:09They were from 2009.
00:11:12Temporary 40-mile-an-hour speed limit
00:11:14enforced by average speed cameras.
00:11:18No-one working!
00:11:22Finally, on the A1,
00:11:24the Vincent was unleashed and hunting down the Jag.
00:11:27I am now straddling my boyhood hero.
00:11:30No, no, wait, that's not right.
00:11:32No, between my legs, no.
00:11:34No, my point is,
00:11:35think what this was like 50 years ago.
00:11:38There was everybody else tooling around in Austin's
00:11:40and Ford Pops and God knows what other dreary nonsense,
00:11:43and you come airing along on a 125-mile-an-hour superbike.
00:11:47This was so far beyond anything else.
00:11:51In fact, the Black Shadow remained the fastest production bike in the world
00:11:54until 1973.
00:11:56To fix our steam leak,
00:12:00we needed to get to our water stop in Grantham ahead of schedule.
00:12:04We had to fly,
00:12:05and that wasn't going to be easy.
00:12:08You're now climbing for 25 miles.
00:12:11What climbing?
00:12:11Yeah, it's uphill for the next 25 miles.
00:12:16Keeping this thing at top speed while going uphill
00:12:19meant the shoveling would be torture.
00:12:25Black Shadow coming through.
00:12:28Traffic jams.
00:12:29Bad for the Jag.
00:12:30Great for the bike.
00:12:32Where are you, mate?
00:12:33And if the shoveling didn't get me,
00:12:49the backdraft of soot in the tunnels would.
00:13:00Seat's nice,
00:13:01smells nice,
00:13:02views nice,
00:13:03noises nice.
00:13:06Morning, moderners.
00:13:08Meanwhile,
00:13:08far behind.
00:13:14This is what Black Shadow was built to deal with.
00:13:18Continual heavy drizzle.
00:13:20Yeah,
00:13:21this,
00:13:21it's...
00:13:22I'm fine,
00:13:23I'm fine.
00:13:23I love the bike.
00:13:24It's still my hero.
00:13:27Steve McQueen had one,
00:13:28you know.
00:13:30On the train,
00:13:31my furious shoveling up the hill
00:13:33had produced results.
00:13:35Here's the deal.
00:13:37Would you enter Grantham
00:13:38at 9.07?
00:13:41It's actually 9 o'clock on the dot.
00:13:43We've got to be out of this station
00:13:45by 9.20.
00:13:47So we've got 17 minutes
00:13:49to refill it with water.
00:13:504,000 gallons.
00:13:52We need 4,000 gallons.
00:13:534,000 gallons.
00:13:54And fix that bike.
00:13:56Yes.
00:13:58And of course,
00:13:59while we were stationary,
00:14:00the others would be catching up.
00:14:04Come on.
00:14:05I'm in the world's fastest car.
00:14:08Pays anything.
00:14:09I still ride bikes
00:14:13because
00:14:13it's a bit naughty.
00:14:16And this,
00:14:18the Vincent Black Shadow,
00:14:20well, come on,
00:14:21it's the naughtiest of them all.
00:14:23It is just a comic book character.
00:14:25Ralph Montague's smile
00:14:26had a deadly secret
00:14:28for he was
00:14:29the Black Shadow.
00:14:30That's funny.
00:14:38As the water flooded in,
00:14:40I took some time
00:14:40to inspect this
00:14:41incredible machine,
00:14:44which has been made
00:14:45because no one ever thought
00:14:46to preserve
00:14:47one of the original peppercorns.
00:14:50Then one day,
00:14:51someone found
00:14:52the original designs
00:14:53in a skip
00:14:54in York.
00:14:573 million pounds was raised
00:14:58and this is the result.
00:15:00It took them 19 years
00:15:02to build it.
00:15:0419 years.
00:15:06And every single piece
00:15:08had to be made by hand.
00:15:11And look at this
00:15:13beautiful
00:15:14RSJ.
00:15:17You know,
00:15:17somebody rang me up
00:15:18and said,
00:15:19can you make a spring
00:15:20that goes in there
00:15:21that's exactly the same
00:15:23as the one
00:15:23that was fitted
00:15:23in the 40s
00:15:24by hand
00:15:25and for next to nothing.
00:15:28It's an exquisite thing.
00:15:30And another six hours running.
00:15:37Oh, don't you?
00:15:40That's hard.
00:15:41I'll tell you what,
00:15:42I'm going to be fitter
00:15:43when I get there.
00:15:43I'm sure you will be.
00:15:44I'm sure.
00:15:45Fitter than I've ever
00:15:46been in my life.
00:15:46Oh, you'll be dead.
00:15:48Well, if I do,
00:15:49listen,
00:15:49fling me on the fire.
00:15:50Use me as fuel
00:15:52to beat Hammond and Moe.
00:15:56With the water loaded
00:15:57and the leak fixed,
00:15:58I ran James.
00:15:59May, how are you doing?
00:16:02Now I'm about 30 miles
00:16:03from Grantham.
00:16:0530 miles south of Grantham?
00:16:07James,
00:16:08you're not even
00:16:08in the same century.
00:16:10You are history, May.
00:16:11You are history.
00:16:12You're in the lead,
00:16:13but not for long, May.
00:16:14Trouble is,
00:16:15I'd have to stop for fuel,
00:16:17only I didn't know when.
00:16:21Now, this is worrying.
00:16:23The owner of this car
00:16:23has told me
00:16:24that when the petrol gauge
00:16:26reads a quarter full,
00:16:28it's actually empty
00:16:29and it's going to stop.
00:16:30And I've suddenly noticed
00:16:31that it's taken a bit of a dive
00:16:33and it's about
00:16:33that much of a quarter.
00:16:37At the next service station,
00:16:38I chickened out
00:16:39and pulled in.
00:16:42Well, that's already up
00:16:44to £13, 10 shillings
00:16:46and sixpence.
00:16:47In 1949,
00:16:48you'd have been able
00:16:48to buy a house for that.
00:16:50Inflation wasn't
00:16:51my biggest problem, though.
00:16:54Yeah!
00:16:54I do believe
00:16:56I'm now in the lead!
00:17:01Because the Jag
00:17:02drinks fuel.
00:17:04That was a disaster.
00:17:06Come on, come on, come on.
00:17:08The game of leapfrog
00:17:09between the car
00:17:10and the bike
00:17:11was now on.
00:17:12But could either of us
00:17:16bring down
00:17:16the mighty tornado?
00:17:19250 miles to Edinburgh.
00:17:21We're just so excited.
00:17:23250.
00:17:26We've got this one
00:17:27in the bag.
00:17:28exactly the same.
00:17:43No, 1949,
00:17:44exactly the same.
00:17:47Same old, same old.
00:17:48And we shall pick that up
00:17:49later on.
00:17:50But now it is time
00:17:51to do the news.
00:17:52Yeah, now as we know,
00:17:53to try and shore up
00:17:55the car industry,
00:17:56the government
00:17:56recently announced
00:17:57that if you scrap
00:17:58your old singer-gazelle,
00:18:00you get £2,000
00:18:01off the price
00:18:02of a new car.
00:18:03But why is it just cars?
00:18:05Well, what are you suggesting?
00:18:06Dear the government,
00:18:07I've just found
00:18:07some rancid bacon
00:18:09in the back of my fridge.
00:18:10Can I have a big pile
00:18:11of money to buy
00:18:11a shiny new lobster?
00:18:13What about,
00:18:14would it work for dogs?
00:18:15Because you know
00:18:15when your dogs
00:18:16get a bit old
00:18:17and incontinent
00:18:18and you have to sleep?
00:18:19Well, Peter Mandelson
00:18:20is going to come round
00:18:21and put your dog to sleep.
00:18:23He's not going to put it to sleep,
00:18:24he's going to kill it.
00:18:26Technically, yeah,
00:18:26that's what it, yeah.
00:18:27Are there any vets here?
00:18:29Because, you know,
00:18:30you are a vet.
00:18:31I'm a vet student.
00:18:32A vet student.
00:18:34Well, be very careful
00:18:35because I found out
00:18:36the other day,
00:18:36vets have one of the
00:18:37highest suicide rates
00:18:38in the world.
00:18:39And I know why.
00:18:40It's because
00:18:41when you have children
00:18:42who love animals,
00:18:43they always say
00:18:43I want to be a vet
00:18:44when I grow older, okay?
00:18:45Yeah.
00:18:46And then they discover
00:18:47when they become a vet,
00:18:47all they do is drive
00:18:48around the countryside
00:18:49all day long
00:18:49executing puppies.
00:18:52That's all you'll do.
00:18:53So, in fact,
00:18:54according to that theory,
00:18:56the only people
00:18:56who should be allowed
00:18:57to be vets
00:18:57are children who hate animals.
00:18:59Yes.
00:19:00Do you like animals?
00:19:01Oh, my job.
00:19:01You're going to spend
00:19:02your life.
00:19:03Just, boom.
00:19:04Yeah.
00:19:04Hey, little girl.
00:19:05Is this your puppy?
00:19:07Boom.
00:19:08There it is.
00:19:09Have you chosen
00:19:10your weapon yet?
00:19:11What are you going to use?
00:19:12I'd have two
00:19:13in, like, a holster.
00:19:15Or a croquet mallet
00:19:16for somebody's tortoise
00:19:17that's not well.
00:19:20Sorry.
00:19:21No, we're going to put her off.
00:19:22You work hard
00:19:23and become a vet.
00:19:24Just don't kill yourself.
00:19:25Go for the cut.
00:19:26I thought vets
00:19:27had the highest
00:19:27suicide rate in the world
00:19:28because they're the only
00:19:29people who are still
00:19:29allowed to have pistols.
00:19:31What's pistols got to do with it?
00:19:32Well, because it's easier.
00:19:34Than what?
00:19:34Well, I've only got a shotgun
00:19:35and it's quite long.
00:19:37You know, you've got to get the tail.
00:19:39If you had a pistol,
00:19:40you'd have shot yourself
00:19:41by now.
00:19:41Oh, years ago.
00:19:44I'm sorry, but we have
00:19:45gone off topic slightly.
00:19:47I'm back to talking.
00:19:48Can I talk about a car again?
00:19:49Yes, go, go, go.
00:19:50News of a new Skoda.
00:19:52Here it is.
00:19:53It's a version of the Fabia.
00:19:54They've called it the Scout.
00:19:55So presumably it comes with
00:19:5610pp, a bit of string
00:19:58in the glove box
00:19:59and pitches up on your
00:20:00doorstep once a year
00:20:00to ask for a pound
00:20:02to clean itself.
00:20:04So I suppose every summer
00:20:05it goes off and sort of
00:20:06stays in the countryside
00:20:07somewhere and is
00:20:08touched inappropriately.
00:20:11Oh, no, James.
00:20:12No, no, James.
00:20:14That's the Skoda
00:20:15Catholic Church.
00:20:16Now, we've gone off
00:20:18topic again, haven't we?
00:20:18Quite badly, yes.
00:20:19Now, we have some
00:20:21bad news.
00:20:22Dacia Sandero.
00:20:24No, not the Dacia Sandero.
00:20:26Worst news, the Peel
00:20:27P50 is no longer
00:20:29the smallest car
00:20:31in the world.
00:20:32Oh, no.
00:20:33How will that affect us
00:20:34all in any way at all?
00:20:36Because you know
00:20:36those little kiddie cars
00:20:38that do that at
00:20:39motorway service stations
00:20:40if you put 10p in them?
00:20:41A man has taken one
00:20:42of those, put an engine
00:20:43in it and created
00:20:45this.
00:20:46Wow.
00:20:48I'm presuming you mean
00:20:49the one on the right
00:20:50not the Honda.
00:20:51Not the Honda.
00:20:51Not the CRV, no.
00:20:52Now, the only problem
00:20:54is he hasn't really
00:20:55left enough space
00:20:56in it for him.
00:20:58He's chucked himself
00:20:58off the engine.
00:20:59It must be quite scary
00:21:02driving along
00:21:03only knowing
00:21:04where you are
00:21:04by things
00:21:05that have just
00:21:05gone past
00:21:06side to the side.
00:21:07Side to the side.
00:21:09I heard that.
00:21:09I can't even bother
00:21:10to look.
00:21:11I can't even be bothered
00:21:12to look.
00:21:12We didn't say anything
00:21:14about Richard Hammond's
00:21:15ideal car.
00:21:17Now, somebody back there
00:21:19has.
00:21:19Big fella here
00:21:20with a tattoo.
00:21:21Now, getting off topic
00:21:23just for a moment.
00:21:24I was driving down
00:21:24here this morning
00:21:25and I couldn't help
00:21:25noticing that my
00:21:26Mercedes just said
00:21:27on the dashboard
00:21:28your service is due
00:21:29in 26 days.
00:21:31And I just thought
00:21:31how Germanic
00:21:32and boring is that?
00:21:34It's very precise.
00:21:35I know, and then I was
00:21:35thinking what's going
00:21:36to happen on the 27th day
00:21:38when inevitably
00:21:39I still haven't
00:21:40had it serviced.
00:21:42Cooler.
00:21:42Three weeks.
00:21:44I think.
00:21:45I knew it was
00:21:46the club serviced.
00:21:47No, me?
00:21:48It's funny you should
00:21:49say this, actually,
00:21:51because my little
00:21:51Fiat's overdue
00:21:52for a service.
00:21:53And I was driving
00:21:53along the other day
00:21:53and all of a sudden
00:21:54this little picture
00:21:55of a spanner
00:21:56appeared on the dashboard.
00:21:58Well, that's what
00:21:58it's calling you.
00:21:59Yeah, it works.
00:22:00You are a...
00:22:01I'm sure what it is.
00:22:02Yeah.
00:22:02So if I continue
00:22:03to ignore it
00:22:04like I am doing
00:22:05what turns into
00:22:06a picture of
00:22:06the end of a bell
00:22:08or what?
00:22:09Map of Tasmania.
00:22:11Big picture
00:22:11of a male's chicken.
00:22:14Now, last of all,
00:22:15last of all,
00:22:16I just want to mention
00:22:16this, OK?
00:22:17Land Rover
00:22:17has launched
00:22:18a mobile phone
00:22:19which they say
00:22:20is as tough
00:22:21as their vehicles,
00:22:22OK?
00:22:22I've got a picture
00:22:23of it here.
00:22:25There you go.
00:22:26Now, what I want
00:22:26to know is
00:22:27why is it all
00:22:27covered in diarrhoea?
00:22:29Because...
00:22:29Look at it.
00:22:32That is
00:22:32unquestionably
00:22:33excrement.
00:22:34Maybe what they're
00:22:35trying to say
00:22:35is it's tough enough
00:22:36to survive a trip
00:22:37through your digestive
00:22:38system
00:22:39and still be...
00:22:40Oh, my God!
00:22:41Look who's digestive
00:22:42system.
00:22:44Sir Ranulf Fiennes.
00:22:45Can we get this
00:22:45up on here?
00:22:47It's actually
00:22:47Ranulf Fiennes'
00:22:49diarrhoea.
00:22:49It's been through him.
00:22:51What he's actually
00:22:51saying as he holds
00:22:52it up there is,
00:22:53I was all bunged up
00:22:53until the phone came out
00:22:54and that was it.
00:22:55I opened the phone
00:22:55case.
00:22:56You can see
00:22:57he's just come back
00:22:58from Nepal.
00:22:59He's in LA, Kapoor!
00:23:00Oh, that explains
00:23:01his pained expression.
00:23:02Look at that.
00:23:03Oh, dear.
00:23:04Do you think he passed
00:23:04the Land Rover as well?
00:23:05Oh, my giddy auntie,
00:23:07did he get his Land Rover.
00:23:09Anyway, that is it.
00:23:11Let's get a picture
00:23:11of Ranulf Fiennes'
00:23:13excrement off the screen
00:23:14because I want to move on.
00:23:15OK?
00:23:15See, the thing is,
00:23:16when you're eight,
00:23:18everybody really wants
00:23:19a supercar, OK?
00:23:20But you can never
00:23:20really afford one
00:23:21until you are 58,
00:23:23by which time
00:23:23your skeleton is too
00:23:24old and too creaky
00:23:25to get inside.
00:23:26There has never been
00:23:28a comfortable supercar.
00:23:30It'd be like
00:23:30a comfortable guided missile.
00:23:33Until now.
00:23:38This is a new Lotus.
00:23:43It's called the Evora.
00:23:47And while that makes
00:23:48it sound like
00:23:49a ladies' dress shop
00:23:50in Harrogate,
00:23:51it presses all the
00:23:54right supercar buttons
00:23:55The engine is
00:23:59in the middle.
00:24:01It's low.
00:24:03It's swoopy.
00:24:05And it's as agile
00:24:07as a waterboatman
00:24:08in a kettle.
00:24:13Woo-hoo!
00:24:19What a car!
00:24:25Even by supercar standards,
00:24:31this is fantastic.
00:24:34Properly,
00:24:35properly fantastic.
00:24:38All right,
00:24:39I want to go in that direction.
00:24:40Now I want to go in that direction.
00:24:43Now I want to go there.
00:24:44This is amazing.
00:24:45This is amazing.
00:24:47Oh!
00:24:49This is handling
00:24:50by telepathy.
00:24:52I'm not steering now.
00:24:54I'm simply
00:24:54using the power
00:24:56of suggestion.
00:24:56There we go!
00:25:04Where this differs
00:25:06from a normal supercar,
00:25:07though,
00:25:07is what happens
00:25:08when you crash.
00:25:11Oh, no!
00:25:12This is not so bad.
00:25:16This car
00:25:24is so comfortable
00:25:26that when you crash
00:25:27off the road
00:25:28and end up
00:25:29in a field full of buttercups,
00:25:31it doesn't really matter.
00:25:32You barely notice.
00:25:34If I were in a Ferrari
00:25:35now,
00:25:35driving off-road,
00:25:36my skeleton
00:25:37would be disintegrating.
00:25:39My torso,
00:25:41well,
00:25:41it would just become
00:25:42a big bag of mush.
00:25:44But in this,
00:25:45the suspension
00:25:46is absorbing the knocks,
00:25:48not me.
00:25:52Where is the track?
00:25:55It is genuinely
00:25:56extraordinary
00:25:57that a car
00:25:57which is soft enough
00:25:59to do this
00:25:59is hard enough
00:26:03to do this.
00:26:07It's unbelievably good.
00:26:09It's the only car
00:26:10I've ever driven
00:26:11ever
00:26:12which is a killer
00:26:13attack dog
00:26:14and an old sofa.
00:26:17That makes it
00:26:19perfect
00:26:19for the saga land.
00:26:23And there's
00:26:24more good news.
00:26:36There are seats
00:26:37in the back
00:26:38for your grandchildren,
00:26:40although they'll have
00:26:40to adopt
00:26:41the lotus position
00:26:42to get in there.
00:26:43Here,
00:26:43we have a boot
00:26:44which is big enough
00:26:45for all your cat food
00:26:46requirements,
00:26:47even if your cat
00:26:48is a tiger.
00:26:49And I know what you're
00:26:50thinking now.
00:26:51You're thinking,
00:26:52hang on a minute,
00:26:53if the seats are here
00:26:54and the boot's here
00:26:56and the front is all
00:26:56full of mechanical
00:26:58witchcraft,
00:26:58where have they put in there.
00:27:01Where have they put the engine?
00:27:01Well, I'll tell you.
00:27:04It's about here.
00:27:09The average supercar
00:27:11has a massive V-a-million engine
00:27:13that takes up all the space.
00:27:15But the ladies' dress shop
00:27:17uses a small V6
00:27:18from the car you used to have.
00:27:21a Toyota Camry.
00:27:25So, it's not
00:27:27the most powerful car
00:27:28in the world
00:27:29and it's not surprisingly
00:27:30the lightest,
00:27:32which means, of course,
00:27:33it isn't the fastest either.
00:27:364 to 60
00:27:37takes 5.1 seconds
00:27:39and you'd need
00:27:40an awfully long runway
00:27:42to reach the top speed,
00:27:43which apparently
00:27:44is 163.
00:27:46talking about yourselves.
00:27:57That's 140
00:27:59and it's time to break.
00:28:01They're good.
00:28:03They're very good.
00:28:06The thing is, though,
00:28:08it's a good engine.
00:28:10It sounds meaty
00:28:11without being deafening.
00:28:13It's talky too
00:28:14and it's very
00:28:16economically.
00:28:17You should get
00:28:1830 miles to the gallon.
00:28:21There are
00:28:22some drawbacks, though.
00:28:24The interior
00:28:25may be spacious
00:28:26and light,
00:28:26but it appears
00:28:27to have been put together
00:28:28by someone
00:28:29who thinks a Porsche
00:28:30is the bit
00:28:31that sticks out
00:28:32from the front
00:28:32of your house.
00:28:36Everything
00:28:37sounds and feels
00:28:39a bit tinny.
00:28:43And there's more.
00:28:44All you can see
00:28:45in the dials
00:28:46is a reflection
00:28:46of whatever weather
00:28:47happens to be
00:28:48prevailing at the time.
00:28:50The buttons
00:28:50appear to be the result
00:28:52of some
00:28:52primary school
00:28:54painting competition
00:28:55and the sat-nav system
00:28:56is so un-understandable
00:28:58I'd simply remove it
00:29:00and use the space
00:29:01to store my
00:29:01Werther's originals.
00:29:05As a result of this,
00:29:07some say
00:29:08you're better off
00:29:08spending your
00:29:09£50,000
00:29:10on a Porsche
00:29:11Coxta instead.
00:29:13Trust me on this one,
00:29:14though.
00:29:16You aren't.
00:29:17It's great.
00:29:33It's nothing like
00:29:34an elite.
00:29:35What?
00:29:36It's nothing like
00:29:36an elite.
00:29:37It's unbelievable.
00:29:39It's all very good.
00:29:40But...
00:29:41What?
00:29:42£51.
00:29:43£50,000?
00:29:44£50,000.
00:29:45It's a lot.
00:29:46I admit
00:29:47£50,000
00:29:47is a lot,
00:29:48OK,
00:29:49for a car
00:29:50made by
00:29:50turnip farmers
00:29:51out of
00:29:52melted-down
00:29:52toilet seats.
00:29:53But if you
00:29:55compare that
00:29:55to a Ferrari
00:29:56430,
00:29:57and you can,
00:29:58it's the
00:29:59bargain of the
00:29:59century.
00:30:00Yeah,
00:30:00but it's not
00:30:00as fast
00:30:01as a 430.
00:30:02No,
00:30:02Ferrari 430
00:30:03is here,
00:30:04£122,900.
00:30:05OK,
00:30:05now,
00:30:05we put that
00:30:06round earlier
00:30:08today,
00:30:08and it did
00:30:09a £125,7,
00:30:10but look at that.
00:30:11We'll ignore that,
00:30:11shall we?
00:30:12Ooh,
00:30:12that's all good.
00:30:13The exige looks quicker.
00:30:14But it's the same
00:30:14as a 5-litre
00:30:15Gallardo Spider.
00:30:16Yeah,
00:30:16which is a
00:30:17tremendous achievement.
00:30:18But we're not
00:30:19going to show you
00:30:20that lap,
00:30:21because instead
00:30:22we've got something
00:30:23much,
00:30:23much more
00:30:24expensive.
00:30:26Yes,
00:30:26we have,
00:30:27and here it is.
00:30:27It's the
00:30:28Ferrari FXX.
00:30:30It's a bit
00:30:30like an Enzo,
00:30:31except it has
00:30:32860 horsepower.
00:30:34And even though
00:30:35it costs a million
00:30:35pounds,
00:30:36none of the 30
00:30:37people who have
00:30:38bought one
00:30:38have ever
00:30:39taken delivery.
00:30:40No,
00:30:41seriously,
00:30:41OK,
00:30:41you buy this
00:30:42car and then
00:30:43Ferrari keep it
00:30:44at the factory.
00:30:45Yeah,
00:30:45I mean,
00:30:45they will take
00:30:46it to a racetrack
00:30:46so you can
00:30:47borrow your car
00:30:48for the day,
00:30:48but then they
00:30:49take it away again.
00:30:50Anyway,
00:30:50the point is,
00:30:51OK,
00:30:51since it's here
00:30:52and since we
00:30:52believe it could
00:30:53go very near
00:30:54to the top
00:30:55of our leaderboard,
00:30:56we thought that
00:30:57you would prefer
00:30:57to see this
00:30:58do a lap
00:30:59in the hands
00:31:00of our tame
00:31:01racing driver.
00:31:02Some say
00:31:03that he invented
00:31:04the curtain
00:31:05and that he
00:31:07recently submitted
00:31:08a £20,000
00:31:10expenses claim
00:31:11for some gravel
00:31:12for his moat.
00:31:15All we know
00:31:17is he's called
00:31:17the Stig.
00:31:21He's off.
00:31:21Lots of wheels
00:31:22spin off the line
00:31:23but then this car
00:31:23has a lot of power,
00:31:25almost as much,
00:31:25in fact,
00:31:26as an F1 car.
00:31:27First corner,
00:31:28comes in fast
00:31:29as it needs to
00:31:30to keep the massive
00:31:30wing-generating
00:31:31downforce.
00:31:32Stig working hard.
00:31:35No music,
00:31:36thankfully,
00:31:36because the FXS
00:31:37doesn't have a stereo.
00:31:39Let's look at the way
00:31:40it glides around Chicago.
00:31:41It's like Batman
00:31:42on a track day.
00:31:43Hammerhead now.
00:31:44How will it cope?
00:31:45I'm guessing well.
00:31:47But look how it reacted
00:31:48to that bump
00:31:49on the way through.
00:31:50Never seen a car
00:31:50do that before.
00:31:51Is the Stig phased?
00:31:53Hard to tell.
00:31:54But let's assume not.
00:31:56Follow through.
00:31:57And surely,
00:31:58even with downforce,
00:31:58the mighty power
00:31:59at the 6.3 Leeser V12
00:32:00means he'll have to lift off.
00:32:02I don't think he did.
00:32:03I don't think he did.
00:32:05So, just two corners left.
00:32:07Here we go.
00:32:08And look now,
00:32:09look at the brake discs.
00:32:11Glowing red hot.
00:32:12This really is like
00:32:13a Formula One car,
00:32:13but with a windscreen wiper.
00:32:16Just Gambon left.
00:32:17Here he comes.
00:32:18Just flies through there
00:32:20and across the line.
00:32:23So, the gun put.
00:32:28One minute.
00:32:3017.1.
00:32:32Ready?
00:32:33One 17.1 to beat.
00:32:36The FXX did it.
00:32:37One minute.
00:32:3910.7.
00:32:43Unbelievable.
00:32:44Unbelievable.
00:32:47Unbelievable.
00:32:4910.7.
00:32:51Can we keep the doors closed?
00:32:52Where's the door open?
00:32:54Who opened the door?
00:32:57You can't come in.
00:33:00It's engaged.
00:33:01Is that the Stig?
00:33:02What?
00:33:03Why would he come in here?
00:33:04The Stig has come among us.
00:33:06I know what this is.
00:33:08I know exactly what this is.
00:33:11He was telling me the other day
00:33:12he's been fed up with newspapers
00:33:13and I suppose internet geeks as well
00:33:15speculating
00:33:16that he's
00:33:17a photocopy of salesman
00:33:18from Bolton
00:33:19nor that he lives
00:33:19in a pebbled-dashed house
00:33:20in Bristol.
00:33:21There's been a lot of that going on
00:33:22as I'm sure you know.
00:33:24So he said
00:33:24first programme
00:33:25when we're back on earth
00:33:26I'm going to come into the studio
00:33:27and I'm going to show everyone
00:33:29my head.
00:33:31He said that.
00:33:32You don't think he's
00:33:33you think he's actually
00:33:35Who here
00:33:36wants to see that?
00:33:41Who wants to see the Stig's head?
00:33:46So ladies and gentlemen
00:33:48for the first time ever
00:33:50The Stig!
00:33:53He's moving towards us.
00:33:56He's coming on the stage.
00:33:59Here he comes.
00:34:02Dan Balbat
00:34:03if you decide to take a seat here please.
00:34:08The Stig everybody!
00:34:09First of all
00:34:18massive congratulations
00:34:20on that phenomenal Ferrari lap.
00:34:23We've never seen anything like that.
00:34:24I'm buying time here.
00:34:31Because this obviously is a
00:34:33it's a big moment
00:34:34my heart's fluttering.
00:34:37If you want to do it
00:34:38on your head be it
00:34:40remove your helmet.
00:34:45He's changed his mind
00:34:46I knew he would.
00:34:48Go on.
00:34:50Be brave.
00:34:51Show the ladies and gentlemen
00:34:52that you are not
00:34:54a photocopier.
00:34:56They want to see
00:35:04it's coming.
00:35:05Is it Susan Boyle?
00:35:08Is it Susan Boyle?
00:35:10Oh my God!
00:35:14Stand up!
00:35:15Stand up!
00:35:17Look who it is!
00:35:19The Daily Mail was wrong!
00:35:22Oh my God!
00:35:25Oh you've got a head
00:35:28and ears!
00:35:30You know everything!
00:35:32Now have a seat
00:35:33because there's so much
00:35:35I want to ask.
00:35:37Where do we start?
00:35:47Honestly
00:35:48where do we start?
00:35:51First of all
00:35:52did you really once
00:35:53punch a horse
00:35:54to the ground?
00:35:58Well I did think about it
00:35:59but I have a wife
00:36:00she loves horses
00:36:01and I ended up
00:36:01in the ground.
00:36:02The stick is married!
00:36:03The stick is married
00:36:04to a horse lover
00:36:05we've established something.
00:36:07Whatever can I ask?
00:36:08Are you illegal
00:36:09in 17 US states?
00:36:11No.
00:36:12You know that's
00:36:13much much
00:36:15to exaggerate
00:36:16it's only 9 if I
00:36:179's illegal
00:36:18in 9 US states?
00:36:20I just can't believe
00:36:21now some people
00:36:22have told us
00:36:22that you only know
00:36:23two facts about ducks
00:36:24and both of them
00:36:25are wrong.
00:36:26Is that true?
00:36:28Well I mean
00:36:29obviously they don't fly
00:36:30but...
00:36:31Yeah you know right
00:36:32you don't know
00:36:32anything about ducks.
00:36:34I just
00:36:35I can't believe it
00:36:35and the other thing
00:36:36of course I've got to ask you
00:36:37before you pulled on
00:36:38the white suit
00:36:39before you were famous
00:36:40what's your real name?
00:36:44Come on!
00:36:45Tell us!
00:36:46What is it?
00:36:49It's just too amazing
00:36:50the world's all this.
00:36:53Well you have to keep up
00:36:54some secrets
00:36:56I mean...
00:36:57Come on everyone
00:36:57who is he?
00:36:59It's Michael Sumacher!
00:37:00And that's brilliant
00:37:05because...
00:37:05We've got to ask
00:37:10something about Formula 1
00:37:11I guess while you're here
00:37:12and the question I want to ask
00:37:13first of all is
00:37:13why is Lewis Hamilton
00:37:15all of a sudden
00:37:15coming last?
00:37:18He was winning
00:37:19and now he isn't.
00:37:21Do you know the answer?
00:37:21Well it is
00:37:23it is very difficult
00:37:24occasionally
00:37:25when the car
00:37:26doesn't work out
00:37:26and it's very obvious
00:37:27both of those
00:37:29silver cars
00:37:30are not doing very well.
00:37:32No they don't work at all
00:37:33because this brings me
00:37:34on to an interesting point
00:37:35about this year's
00:37:36F1 World Championship
00:37:37mainly
00:37:39a big friend of yours
00:37:40obviously
00:37:40Ross Braun
00:37:41because when he was
00:37:42at Benetton
00:37:43Benetton won
00:37:45then he went to Ferrari
00:37:46Ferrari won
00:37:48and now he's got
00:37:48his own team
00:37:49and Braun are winning
00:37:51so I don't want to be
00:37:52impolite with this question
00:37:54but was it the car?
00:37:59Do you know what I mean?
00:38:00It's just when he was
00:38:01Oh you're absolutely right
00:38:02you're absolutely right
00:38:03it is.
00:38:04The secret in the end of the day
00:38:05is what you do
00:38:06with your guys together
00:38:07you're a team
00:38:07and it's always a team work
00:38:09and if you squeeze out
00:38:11every little bit
00:38:12that's where you sort of
00:38:13prove better than the others.
00:38:14Was it true you used to have
00:38:15blood tests taken on yourself
00:38:17obviously not during the race
00:38:19that would be impossible
00:38:19for a doctor to run that
00:38:20alongside
00:38:21but in the pit stops
00:38:22they would take
00:38:23It's true
00:38:23I mean we did before the race
00:38:25after the race
00:38:26in order to see the development
00:38:27through a weekend
00:38:28and then adjust the food
00:38:30and all your supplements
00:38:32that you may have to take
00:38:33Cut out the curries
00:38:34I guess cut out the curries
00:38:36Yeah
00:38:37Yeah exactly
00:38:38So when you look back
00:38:41what for you
00:38:41were the sort of great races?
00:38:43You know I'm getting old
00:38:44to remember back
00:38:45all these races
00:38:46I remember the Hungary one
00:38:47where you had to do
00:38:48what was it
00:38:4825 effective qualifying laps
00:38:50That was a great conversation
00:38:51with Ross
00:38:52I mean
00:38:52Ross coming on the radio
00:38:54said listen
00:38:54we are in this trouble now
00:38:56and we need a kind of
00:38:5720 laps
00:38:58in this kind of lap times
00:38:59and I sounded like qualifying
00:39:02I said okay
00:39:02let's go
00:39:03and let's try
00:39:0420 qualifying laps
00:39:05one after the other
00:39:06I don't know
00:39:07the combination of Hungary
00:39:09was a special combination
00:39:10track, car
00:39:12everything just got together
00:39:13and we were able to do
00:39:14those times
00:39:15and it worked out
00:39:17but we had many
00:39:18of those great events
00:39:19together in all these years
00:39:21Are you watching this year
00:39:22or have you sort of
00:39:22No certainly
00:39:24I'm watching
00:39:26I'm travelling to some of the races
00:39:27see them live
00:39:29and others on TV
00:39:30And are you finding it
00:39:31a bit boring
00:39:32when one person
00:39:33just endlessly wins?
00:39:34When you were racing
00:39:46were there any guys
00:39:47out there
00:39:47who you thought
00:39:48this guy's
00:39:50pretty damn quick?
00:39:53Absolutely
00:39:54I mean
00:39:54I think my best time
00:39:55I had with Hekinen
00:39:56quite honestly
00:39:57that was a period
00:39:59that I really
00:39:59liked looking back to
00:40:01because we had
00:40:02fighting up
00:40:03really to the limit
00:40:04to the maximum
00:40:04and great situations
00:40:06and basically
00:40:07have a beer afterwards
00:40:08without problems
00:40:09Who was rubbish?
00:40:10Hmm?
00:40:11Who was rubbish?
00:40:14You know my English
00:40:15isn't so good
00:40:16so
00:40:16He's gone
00:40:18That's very good
00:40:21Have you got any regrets?
00:40:27I mean when you look back
00:40:27think
00:40:28wish I hadn't done that
00:40:29I mean
00:40:31in life
00:40:31you always have regrets
00:40:32you always do certain things
00:40:34that thinking afterwards
00:40:36he could have done differently
00:40:37and I'm sure you have
00:40:38some examples for me
00:40:39Yeah
00:40:40True a million
00:40:41No it's just because I mean
00:40:42let's be honest
00:40:43you have a desire to win
00:40:45That's my nature
00:40:46Yeah
00:40:46Yeah
00:40:47I mean I know
00:40:48when I play my son at chess
00:40:50if it looks like he's going to beat me
00:40:51I'll wait for him not to be looking
00:40:52and Nicky's queen
00:40:53which is the same as running into Damon
00:40:57you know it's the sort of
00:40:58you know what I'm saying
00:41:00it's just
00:41:01it's that kind of
00:41:03I'm not going to let you beat me
00:41:04because I'm just better than you
00:41:06Can I just ask finally
00:41:09before we move off for a long
00:41:10why did you stop?
00:41:11Because obviously
00:41:11I mean you were still winning at the end
00:41:13what made you wake up one day
00:41:14and say
00:41:14you know I've had enough of
00:41:15of racing an F1
00:41:17Well you know
00:41:19curry was so attractive to me
00:41:22It's very nice
00:41:26It is
00:41:27It is
00:41:28Nowadays
00:41:32obviously the Stig duties
00:41:33keep you busy
00:41:34what one day a week I guess
00:41:35What do you do in the rest of your time?
00:41:38How do you fill your days?
00:41:40Well I have several areas
00:41:42that really I fill up my time with
00:41:44and being obviously
00:41:46Ferrari advisor is one part
00:41:48and being a Bacardi ambassador
00:41:50for
00:41:51Now that's an interesting one
00:41:52I heard about this
00:41:53you're an ambassador for Bacardi
00:41:55Yeah
00:41:56A lot of girls here
00:41:57they're looking
00:41:57yeah a lot of ambassadors for Bacardi here
00:41:59look they're normal
00:42:00Yeah I see
00:42:01I see lots of potential here
00:42:02that's true
00:42:03Yeah exactly
00:42:03No the breezes will sail through here
00:42:06Now
00:42:06I think it's a great job
00:42:08the thing is you know
00:42:09Bacardi have actually asked us
00:42:10to show a clip
00:42:11okay
00:42:12of you
00:42:14and not a drink
00:42:15but anyway
00:42:15here it is
00:42:16this is a clip
00:42:16we've been asked to show
00:42:17Opera singers
00:42:21and then there's a man here with mud
00:42:29that's wide
00:42:34and then you get into another car
00:42:38and then crash into a cone
00:42:40there
00:42:42now
00:42:43there we are
00:42:44forgive me on this
00:42:46forgive me
00:42:47I have quite literally no idea
00:42:52what that's all about
00:42:54are they saying
00:42:54don't drive with mud on the window
00:42:56or don't drive with people singing
00:42:58what's the message
00:42:59I mean basically
00:42:59we tried to put out a message
00:43:01kind of almost the opposite
00:43:04of what you did on the North Pole
00:43:05don't drive with James May
00:43:07I'll support that message
00:43:09leave the gin tonic
00:43:10I heard
00:43:10something
00:43:11is this a drink drive
00:43:12that we weren't driving
00:43:14ah okay
00:43:15we were sailing
00:43:15it was frozen ocean
00:43:16so you were allowed
00:43:17so it's a drink
00:43:18basically
00:43:18I mean
00:43:19what we're trying to get over
00:43:20is to the young generation
00:43:22alcohol
00:43:22and driving
00:43:23is not really something
00:43:25that you should mix
00:43:26and the campaign is
00:43:27drinking and driving
00:43:28don't mix
00:43:28I mean
00:43:29we don't want to
00:43:30stop people from drinking
00:43:31I mean
00:43:32I have had lots of fun
00:43:33after racing
00:43:34in whatever championships
00:43:35with my mechanics
00:43:36and engineers
00:43:37would like to see
00:43:38some photographs
00:43:39of Michael
00:43:39we may have
00:43:42we may have a photograph
00:43:43here of a man
00:43:44who's entirely sober
00:43:45there we go
00:43:46there's another picture
00:43:49I'd like to show everybody
00:43:50who was sick on this man
00:43:53was sick
00:43:55and what's that
00:43:56fridge
00:43:57yes
00:43:58it's a fridge
00:43:59you pushed it over
00:44:01no no
00:44:01it must have been my brother
00:44:02so here's a clear message
00:44:05everybody
00:44:05drink responsibly
00:44:07or you'll wind up
00:44:08looking like that
00:44:09room with a fridge
00:44:11on its side
00:44:12can we just talk about
00:44:14cars briefly
00:44:15if I may
00:44:15what are you running now
00:44:17I have a nice
00:44:18500 Fiat
00:44:19is it the Abarth
00:44:20yeah
00:44:20that's a fantastic
00:44:21little car isn't it
00:44:22and you actually
00:44:23what do you drive
00:44:23most of the time
00:44:25family car
00:44:25like a Chroma
00:44:26or
00:44:27Fiat Chroma
00:44:28yeah
00:44:28that's a fantastic
00:44:32bombshell
00:44:33on which to end
00:44:33this interview
00:44:34ladies and gentlemen
00:44:36Michael Schumacher
00:44:37drives a Fiat
00:44:38Kroger
00:44:38so there we are
00:44:41everybody
00:44:41the Sting
00:44:43the Sting
00:44:44and the Rale
00:44:45thank you very much
00:44:48the Sting
00:44:49that was just a weekend outfit
00:44:55anyway
00:44:57anyway
00:44:59fantastic
00:45:00but tonight
00:45:01we are in 1949
00:45:03yeah well you're always in 1949
00:45:05yeah whatever
00:45:06we're in 1949
00:45:08and we're having a race
00:45:09I am in a Jaguar XK120
00:45:11which is the fastest car in the world
00:45:13Richard Hammond is on the Vincent Black Shadow
00:45:15which is the fastest motorcycle in the world
00:45:18and Jeremy Clarkson is on a steam train
00:45:21yes
00:45:21now the start line was here in London
00:45:24the finish line would be up here in Edinburgh
00:45:26and when we left the action
00:45:27Jeremy was in the lead
00:45:29just approaching Doncaster
00:45:30I was in second place
00:45:32and
00:45:32as you would expect
00:45:33Captain Slow was
00:45:34bringing up the rear
00:45:36steady
00:45:36hoping to take me from behind
00:45:39yeah alright
00:45:40and then press home his advantage
00:45:43and take Jeremy in the tunnel
00:45:45stop
00:45:46saying
00:45:47things like that
00:45:49you know what I mean
00:45:50come on
00:45:58come on
00:45:58come on
00:45:58to try and stay ahead of James
00:46:01who was being cautious
00:46:02with his petrol gauge
00:46:03I was stretching my fuel stops
00:46:05to the last possible moment
00:46:06any minute now
00:46:08this bike's going to start stuttering
00:46:10and I'm going to have to pull
00:46:11there's a lever down here
00:46:13to switch it to the reserve tank
00:46:14then
00:46:15I have to really panic
00:46:16about getting some more petrol
00:46:18this is it
00:46:23Doncaster
00:46:23my hometown
00:46:25the hometown of the original A1
00:46:27the hometown of the Mallard
00:46:29the fastest steam train of them all
00:46:31the flying Scotsman
00:46:32the greatest steam train of them all
00:46:34that's my old girlfriend's house
00:46:38I might have had sex
00:46:42oh is that it
00:46:43no I think that's it
00:46:44there
00:46:45here I am
00:46:48grin faced at the wheel of my Jag
00:46:50times of overtaking
00:46:53tally ho
00:46:54I have no choice but to stop for fuel
00:46:59as a result James
00:47:01is going to overtake me
00:47:03nothing I can do
00:47:05and sure enough
00:47:06oh my word it's Richard Hammond
00:47:09several miles ahead I too was stationary
00:47:16taking on more water
00:47:18Hammond where are you?
00:47:20I'm about 30 miles south of Doncaster
00:47:23oh dear
00:47:24we're in York
00:47:25what?
00:47:26where's James?
00:47:27he's just overtaken me
00:47:29but his Jag is drinking fuel
00:47:31so with a bit of luck
00:47:32he'll have to stop for fuel before I do
00:47:34and I can overtake him again
00:47:34oh you'll catch fire
00:47:35what's that noise?
00:47:39it's me being told off
00:47:40not to use a mobile phone by the man
00:47:42go and tell him
00:47:43it's 1949
00:47:44so we can't have mobile phones
00:47:46yes
00:47:48that was wheel spin
00:47:50on a 96 tonne train
00:47:53that is a steam train isn't it
00:47:54it's not got some nuclear device on board as well
00:48:01no
00:48:02what it had on board was a fresh crew
00:48:04and that meant a fresh set of muscles
00:48:09holy cow
00:48:11the whole train is now really zigzagging
00:48:14I got a tank slapper in a train of 75 miles an hour
00:48:24three minutes early
00:48:29we're early
00:48:31three minutes
00:48:32you're doing a good job
00:48:33James was now in front of me
00:48:37but my bold fuel strategy would keep me in the game
00:48:39okay
00:48:41settling into the cruise now
00:48:44looking good
00:48:45and going well
00:48:46the bike running
00:48:48absolutely
00:48:50like a metronome
00:48:51meanwhile on the train
00:48:55I'd been told I could cook lunch
00:48:57in the world's most fearsome aga
00:48:59who's on for a bacon sandwich?
00:49:03it didn't go well
00:49:05oh no
00:49:08so bacon just flew out of the top of our train
00:49:12yeah
00:49:14shove over you dozy cow
00:49:15in a bid to close the gap on the pacific class aga
00:49:19James had become captain road rage
00:49:22get in the left-hand lane
00:49:25I'm trying to beat the train you imbecile
00:49:28yay look at that
00:49:30that's good
00:49:32they told me that coal-fired eggs would be delicious
00:49:38they were lying
00:49:40still
00:49:48could be worse
00:49:50quick summary
00:49:54of the turn my life has taken
00:49:57I'm 20 miles south
00:49:59not north
00:50:00of Doncaster
00:50:01by the side of the A1
00:50:03in the rain
00:50:05the motorcycle is slightly broken
00:50:08what I did was leave the fuel tap on
00:50:10the reserve tap on
00:50:11so the bike pulled a load of sludge through
00:50:14from the bottom of the fuel tank
00:50:15clogged up the left-hand carburettor
00:50:17and has now stopped
00:50:18that's the situation
00:50:21it is however a very manly pursuit motorcycle
00:50:24and I'm enjoying it
00:50:25testosterone surging around my system
00:50:27or it could be rain actually
00:50:29it's getting in the
00:50:30it's rain
00:50:31surging around my system
00:50:33James was overflowing
00:50:37with Top Gear sympathy
00:50:38so you're fine
00:50:40but the bike is in bits
00:50:41a bit
00:50:42what a rotten bit of luck
00:50:43no no
00:50:45and if you don't mind taking your head
00:50:46and boiling it
00:50:47that would be wonderful
00:50:48he's had it
00:50:50it's me and Jezza
00:50:52it's car versus train
00:50:54keep going
00:50:56but this crew
00:51:03with me shoveling
00:51:04were a match for anyone
00:51:06hold tight
00:51:08it's a little rough
00:51:09through Durham
00:51:10and the cathedral
00:51:11just as we go over this fire
00:51:12Durham, Durham cathedral
00:51:14we're in Durham
00:51:16we're doing 75 miles an hour
00:51:19through the city centre
00:51:20oh yes
00:51:21don't know if I'm gaining
00:51:24keep calm and carry on
00:51:25oh we're motoring now
00:51:30oh ho
00:51:31ahead lay our biggest stop
00:51:39half an hour in Newcastle
00:51:41to take on water
00:51:42and more coal
00:51:43but despite this
00:51:45I was still confident
00:51:46we are so far ahead
00:51:49it's embarrassing
00:51:50however
00:51:52there was a surprise in store
00:51:54we could just throw in the towel
00:52:05that's not the Black Shadow's way
00:52:08then as the train slowed for Newcastle
00:52:13there was another surprise in store
00:52:15where are you now
00:52:16where are you
00:52:17I'm about 20 miles south of Newcastle
00:52:2020 miles south of Newcastle
00:52:22yeah
00:52:23you're going to go in the
00:52:24only 20 miles
00:52:26yeah
00:52:27I'm gaining on you
00:52:29the car's only 20 miles south of Newcastle
00:52:32bingo
00:52:35bingo
00:52:35bingo
00:52:36here we go
00:52:37right so we're stationary for 34 minutes
00:52:40that's correct
00:52:41he's going to come past
00:52:43he's going to be 20 miles
00:52:45he's 10 miles ahead of us
00:52:46when we set off
00:52:47with some work to do then
00:52:48still
00:52:49could be worse
00:52:51this I think is still that rain
00:52:54that we had left behind
00:52:56but I got caught up in again
00:52:57because I was delayed
00:52:59having to rebuild my carburettor
00:53:01as a result
00:53:03getting quite wet
00:53:04very wet
00:53:06so
00:53:06it's Saturday morning
00:53:11and the continuing adventures
00:53:13of the Black Shadow
00:53:14continue
00:53:16as I was loading the coal
00:53:20sorry
00:53:22the phone rang
00:53:24James what's happening
00:53:26well I'm terribly sorry old Chad
00:53:28but I've just gone past you
00:53:30you're in the lead
00:53:31I am
00:53:32make millions of coal
00:53:34go in there
00:53:35enjoy your time in the lead
00:53:38because it will be short lived
00:53:40what an appalling optimist
00:53:42114 miles to Edinburgh
00:53:47both the train and the car
00:53:50had to do another stop
00:53:51and from here on
00:53:52big chunks of the A1
00:53:54were single carriageway
00:53:55so I wasn't popping the court
00:53:57just yet
00:53:58however
00:54:00in this stunning part of the world
00:54:02and with the sun coming out
00:54:04I was falling in love
00:54:05with the XK
00:54:06I'll be honest
00:54:08when I first fired
00:54:09the old girl up
00:54:10I thought
00:54:11well that's lovely
00:54:12there's only a matter of time
00:54:13before there's an ignition issue
00:54:15a carburetor issue
00:54:16a bearing issue
00:54:17but no
00:54:18it's wonderful
00:54:20the engine was designed
00:54:21in the evenings
00:54:23during the war
00:54:24during the blackout usually
00:54:26the body was shaped
00:54:28by the boss of the company
00:54:29the whole thing was completed
00:54:30in a matter of a few months
00:54:32and look at it
00:54:32I love it
00:54:34and I will win
00:54:36not if we had anything
00:54:39to do with it
00:54:39come on
00:54:4310 miles
00:54:4510 miles
00:54:46that's all we've got to make up
00:54:48dual carriageway
00:54:49oh god this engine's good
00:54:52come on
00:54:55oh yeah we're working now
00:54:58oh just give me a chance
00:55:00just a chance
00:55:01I'm in the fastest car in the world
00:55:03I'm doing this
00:55:09to beat the car
00:55:11why am I doing it
00:55:12still
00:55:14could be worse
00:55:15oh
00:55:16oh
00:55:16oh
00:55:18oh
00:55:20oh
00:55:22oh my pain
00:55:24south of Berwick
00:55:27it was still
00:55:27neck and neck
00:55:28but James had a problem
00:55:30come on
00:55:33nobody coming out
00:55:36of this thing
00:55:37owns that fiesta
00:55:38this is what happens
00:55:43when you make
00:55:44petrol stations
00:55:45into supermarkets
00:55:46as well
00:55:46people spend hours
00:55:47in there
00:55:47buying bloody bananas
00:55:49and croissants
00:55:49and other things
00:55:50that you don't need
00:55:51yes yes
00:55:59in the car
00:55:59in the car
00:56:00don't worry about the handbag
00:56:01James's lengthy fuel stop
00:56:06was just what we needed
00:56:07to close the gap
00:56:08but then
00:56:10where's the water gone
00:56:13where's the water gone
00:56:15there's no water
00:56:18going to the boiler
00:56:19we need to get water
00:56:21in the boiler now
00:56:22it's not going to blow up
00:56:23is it
00:56:24not yet
00:56:25this is a worry now
00:56:27these are supposed
00:56:29to be full of water
00:56:30as you can see
00:56:31that look
00:56:32there's just a tiny little
00:56:33if we lose all the water
00:56:36the fire has to come out
00:56:38otherwise we've got
00:56:39a disaster
00:56:40I'm now about 65 miles
00:56:43away from Edinburgh
00:56:44I can't get hold of Jeremy
00:56:45he's obviously on the move
00:56:47too much noise
00:56:48for him to hear the phone
00:56:49one of the water injectors
00:56:54that feeds the boiler
00:56:55had stopped working
00:56:56we've got to ease up now
00:56:58purely because we're losing steam
00:57:00I need to shovel
00:57:01sorry
00:57:02you want me to shoveling
00:57:03I need to shovel
00:57:04I'm sacks
00:57:06speed is right down
00:57:14the water is right down
00:57:16he's shoveling mainly
00:57:17and that means
00:57:19at only 50 miles an hour
00:57:2050
00:57:2150, 55
00:57:2260 mile an hour
00:57:23yeah
00:57:23until we can get it back
00:57:24temperature
00:57:28oil
00:57:29everything
00:57:29no it's fine
00:57:30it's fine
00:57:31everything's fine
00:57:33after several tense moments
00:57:35relief
00:57:36what happened
00:57:38it just came back
00:57:39cold down
00:57:41came back
00:57:42don't they say
00:57:43steam engines have moves
00:57:44it was its time of the month
00:57:47for about 10 minutes
00:57:48the sea
00:57:50we're going along the sea
00:57:52this was turning into a great race
00:58:00for two of us
00:58:02okay
00:58:05time to get back on
00:58:07my hero
00:58:08that's a good thing
00:58:09just past Scott's Corner now
00:58:12but 150, 160 miles yet to run
00:58:15can't film a right hand at all
00:58:17but this
00:58:18this is
00:58:18this is a marathon
00:58:20not a sprint
00:58:21as we left Berwick
00:58:25for the final charge
00:58:26the question was
00:58:27had our injector problem
00:58:28given James back the lead
00:58:30hello
00:58:32are you north
00:58:34or south of Berwick
00:58:36north
00:58:37north
00:58:38yes
00:58:39you're joking
00:58:40yeah but not by much
00:58:42how far north of Berwick
00:58:44are you
00:58:45less than 10 miles
00:58:47how far
00:58:48less than 10 miles
00:58:5017
00:58:51no
00:58:52less than 10
00:58:5430
00:58:56less than 10
00:58:58what a cock end
00:59:03honestly
00:59:04come on
00:59:09get shoveling
00:59:11keep shoveling
00:59:13oh god the road narrows down to one lane
00:59:18that's going to slow me down
00:59:20come on
00:59:23get marming it
00:59:24sorry
00:59:26they really want to win
00:59:29oh god the barb
00:59:35one of the barb lorries is overtaking the other one on the only dual carriageway pit
00:59:39you selfish turd
00:59:41what the hell was that
00:59:49that's a wheel spin
00:59:50you've got a wheel spin
00:59:53at 70 miles an hour
00:59:55where the hell's jezer
00:59:59i wish i knew
01:00:00we're now going alongside the a1 it's just here
01:00:05where is he
01:00:07where is he
01:00:08this is as close as it's ever been
01:00:11if i see that green monster appear on the right
01:00:1420 minutes
01:00:17edinburgh
01:00:20116 miles
01:00:22i just said
01:00:23so it's still very much a three-way race
01:00:26there can't be more than about seven or eight miles between us
01:00:31oh god
01:00:32we got a red
01:00:34no it's not
01:00:38it's two yellows
01:00:39it's two yellows
01:00:41what's happening is
01:00:42we're following a stupid commuter train
01:00:45and he's stopping at every station
01:00:47and he's stopping at every station
01:00:48which is causing us to have to slow down
01:00:50less than 10 miles to go
01:00:53but ram it
01:00:58ram the stopper train
01:00:59he could have gone past
01:01:03i like to think i'd have seen the smoke
01:01:04it might be too far off
01:01:06i just don't know
01:01:08that's green
01:01:09go go go go
01:01:12we need acceleration out of this thing
01:01:15those lights have really caught us behind now
01:01:17it's a few miles
01:01:21following the city centre sign
01:01:23steam
01:01:25coal
01:01:26fire
01:01:27fire
01:01:28steam
01:01:28steam
01:01:29speed
01:01:31come on
01:01:34wait seven minutes to go
01:01:38red
01:01:40i'm gonna have to seriously run
01:01:48how do i get to the balmoral hotel
01:01:51win or lose
01:01:54we did our best
01:01:55which way is it
01:02:02go boom
01:02:04unlike james may
01:02:08i will only run on television
01:02:10these shoes
01:02:15where's the bar
01:02:20you have permission to say oh cock
01:02:28you shouldn't
01:02:32you shouldn't laugh
01:02:34at the man who's coming
01:02:36a noble second
01:02:39jeremy
01:02:41jeremy speak to me
01:02:43yeah
01:02:44never want to see another steam train
01:02:53well done mate
01:02:55you did well
01:02:56actually you did very well
01:02:57because that can't have been
01:02:58that was man contact
01:03:00have you heard from hammond
01:03:05oh god
01:03:08the feeling's coming back
01:03:12god that's worse
01:03:14now i can feel it
01:03:16and it's just hurt
01:03:17thank you but
01:03:20i'm sorry
01:03:21what that
01:03:21what that shows
01:03:23is that even
01:03:2360 years ago
01:03:25cars were better than trains
01:03:27and on that
01:03:28it's not really a bombshell
01:03:30that's not a bombshell
01:03:31we can't end on that
01:03:32but
01:03:32i know what is a bombshell
01:03:34you were probably wondering
01:03:36why
01:03:36michael schumacher
01:03:37never did a lap
01:03:39in the suzuki liana
01:03:40well don't worry
01:03:42he did
01:03:43this should be something else
01:03:45and he's off
01:03:50he's stalled
01:03:50oh my god
01:03:52michael schumacher
01:03:53has stalled the liana
01:03:54but he's off now
01:03:56that's not good
01:03:59he's obviously not used
01:04:01to a manual
01:04:02oh no
01:04:04here we go
01:04:04first corner
01:04:05okay let's have a look
01:04:06at the
01:04:06oh no that's not the right
01:04:07line
01:04:08no that's badly wrong
01:04:09but he's made it round
01:04:10he's made it round
01:04:11look at the way he holds
01:04:12that rear end there
01:04:13as he heads now
01:04:14down towards Chicago
01:04:15wide again
01:04:18he's not gonna make it
01:04:19he's going off
01:04:20he's going off
01:04:21oh no
01:04:21he got a camera
01:04:23he missed the cameraman
01:04:23no that's okay
01:04:24it's okay
01:04:25he smashed the windscreen
01:04:27follow through
01:04:29is he flat out
01:04:30no I don't think he is
01:04:32coming up to the tyres
01:04:34he's going the wrong way
01:04:38you're going the wrong way man
01:04:40here he is
01:04:43final corner
01:04:44Michael Schumacher
01:04:47is lost
01:04:48everybody
01:04:48you know what I'm thinking
01:04:52I'm thinking
01:04:54wait wait
01:04:55I don't think
01:04:58I don't think Michael Schumacher
01:05:00is the Stig
01:05:01I think he made it up
01:05:03now that is a bombshell
01:05:05we can end on that
01:05:06see you next week
01:05:07goodnight
01:05:08next on BBC 2
01:05:18meeting the men
01:05:18who have walked on the moon
01:05:19James May
01:05:20explores how space
01:05:21changed the earth
01:05:22on BBC 3
01:05:23another fast car
01:05:24fix for you
01:05:25in 25 minutes
01:05:26with today's
01:05:26Formula 1
01:05:27British Grand Prix
01:05:28highlights
01:05:29and on BBC 4
01:05:30now profiling
01:05:31King Henry VIII
01:05:32and his fast lighting
01:05:33relationship
01:05:34with art
01:05:35King Henry VIII
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