# Top Gear's Clarkson suspended **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 10, 2015, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713 "2015-03-10T18:29:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2015, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/1 "2015-03-10T18:29:21Z")
Precious few details, I’m afraid. > **[Jeremy Clarkson, Top Gear host, suspended by BBC after 'fracas'](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-31824040)** > > Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson has been suspended by the BBC "following a fracas" with a producer, the corporation says. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2015, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/2 "2015-03-10T18:46:33Z")
Huh. He admits that they told him he was on sudden-death overtime, and they’d fire him if he screwed up again. You don’t see that very often. ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2015, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/3 "2015-03-10T19:14:22Z")
Tonight…Richard buys shoes, James enjoys a sandwich, and I get in a fracas. And on that bombshell… good night! ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2015, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/4 "2015-03-10T19:45:20Z")
Clarkson tosses jibes at everybody regardless of race, creed, or national origin, but the British eloquence makes it sound like they got complimented, albeit in a back-handed sort of way. Plus, Clarkson has no problem making a huge fool of himself, especially when it’s done using the production budget. I personally consider it an honor when he insults Americans. ---
**Author:** ![chizzuk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@chizzuk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chizzuk)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/5 "2015-03-11T02:47:58Z")
According to [The Radio Times](http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2015-03-10/top-gear-series-postponed-after-jeremy-clarkson-punches-producer), he punched a producer. Don’t know how reliable this source is. According to the Mirror, which I’m sure is even less reliable, it was over a catering mix-up. ---
**Author:** ![Tabby\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Tabby\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tabby_Cat)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/6 "2015-03-11T03:03:59Z")
He really does come across as a huge dick most of the time. I wonder how James puts up with him. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/7 "2015-03-11T03:56:53Z")
I am officially offering my services, _free of charge_, to fill in for him. Call me, BBC. ---
**Author:** ![straight\_man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/straight_man/32/3027_2.png) [@straight\_man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/straight_man)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/8 "2015-03-11T04:08:55Z")
Honestly, Jeremy Clarkson is getting a bit old. If the BBC could find a good replacement, I would keep watching. It’s mostly just a question of who would fit. I could see someone very no-nonsense, particularly a woman, working well to counterbalance James and Richard, provided she had an adequate ridiculous side as well and Top Gear were sufficiently courageous to exploit it. ETA: I haven’t watched German Top Gear, but Sabrina Schmidt strikes me as the right type… if she played up her ultra-competitiveness to the point that her projects in their used-car competitions could be as rubbish as James’ and Richard’s projects because they push the envelope too far, or something like that. I mean, that’s the real question. You can’t just have a Jezza, Mk. II. So what personality would work across from James May and Richard Hammond aside from Jeremy’s overprivileged-ape schtick? ---
**Author:** ![straight\_man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/straight_man/32/3027_2.png) [@straight\_man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/straight_man)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/9 "2015-03-11T04:15:14Z")
Sorry, I mean Sabine Schmitz. Also, was I just imagining the existence of German Top Gear? ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/10 "2015-03-11T05:07:19Z")
Like they said if one of them ever died in one of their tests or adventures and they had to announce it on the show "Jeremy Clarkson has been sacked. In other news Ferrari has just announced a new entry-level line of vehicles geared towards ----------- " ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/11 "2015-03-11T05:17:08Z")
> [@straight\_man](#): > > Sorry, I mean Sabine Schmitz. Also, was I just imagining the existence of German Top Gear? A sort of version. D Motor (Sabine Schmitz, Carsten van Ryssen and Tim Schrick) is basically a Top Gear clone in a lot of ways but with some differences as well. I’ve seen a few episodes and while my German is very very rusty, I have enjoyed them quite a bit. There was also a Top Gear Australia which I believe died from poor ratings (Warren Brown, Charlie Cox, and Steve Pizzati) and a Top Gear US which should die because it basically sucks and the three hosts are annoying. ---
**Author:** ![Smid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/838e76/32.png) [@Smid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smid)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 10:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/12 "2015-03-11T10:23:56Z")
I always took what he said to be trolling the “angry tabloids” in the uk. Not really intending anything harmful. And a bit badly treated as well. I mean, he’s on a warning for something he said which was never intended for broadcast. Other times, he’s been satirising the BBC’s attitudes, such as the comments on strikers, and continues to be taken out of context. There’s a difference between: “Take the strikers outside and have them all shot.” And “I agree with the strikers. But due to the BBC’s need for balance, I have to say I would take the strikers outside and have them all shot.” It kind of shows the need for the angry tabloids and broadsheets to claim something which isn’t there. I never quite looked at the ‘slopes’ quote. I had never heard the term before, and didn’t get that it was a joke or term of abuse. But given his previous treatment (and indeed, I think the BBC producers might even be trolling too), I’d not be so sure that it was meant. Also not helped by the idiots around him. The comments on Mexican food was Hammond and May, and a bit stupid, but a bit of overeaction too. I love mexican food, and just thought “These two morons have clearly not eaten any decent mexican food, but then again there isn’t much in the uk”. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 10:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/13 "2015-03-11T10:56:00Z")
> [@Smid](#): > > I never quite looked at the ‘slopes’ quote. I had never heard the term before, and didn’t get that it was a joke or term of abuse. But given his previous treatment (and indeed, I think the BBC producers might even be trolling too), I’d not be so sure that it was meant. Oh he meant it, but was almost certainly relying on the relative obscurity of the term (when compared to the well known racial terms) to “get away with it”. Clip in question: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/D-OQR5zu_J4/hqdefault.jpg "Top Gear Burma Special "There's a slope on it" HQ Clarkson clip") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-OQR5zu_J4) Urban Dictionary with reference to the term going back to 2003: > **[Urban Dictionary: slope](https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=slope)** > > A derogatory term/slur used for the purpose of describing a Vietnamese/Asian person. Describing the slope of their eyes ---
**Author:** ![Smid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/838e76/32.png) [@Smid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smid)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/14 "2015-03-11T11:07:01Z")
> [@amanset](#): > > Oh he meant it, but was almost certainly relying on the relative obscurity of the term (when compared to the well known racial terms) to “get away with it”. Hmmmn, does make me wonder who it was for… Clever racists? Oxymoron? ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/15 "2015-03-11T11:09:38Z")
> [@Tabby\_Cat](#): > > He really does come across as a huge dick most of the time. I wonder how James puts up with him. he is the model of British smugness. It’s especially grating when I run into people whose opinions on cars always start with “Well, Clarkson said…” ---
**Author:** ![Revenant\_Threshold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@Revenant\_Threshold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revenant_Threshold)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/16 "2015-03-11T11:11:15Z")
> [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > Clarkson tosses jibes at everybody regardless of race, creed, or national origin… Well, no, actually. Nor are those jibes general to all races, creeds, national origin etc. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/17 "2015-03-11T13:17:52Z")
> [@Revenant\_Threshold](#): > > Well, no, actually. Nor are those jibes general to all races, creeds, national origin etc. The one person Clarkson takes the piss out more than any other is Jeremy Clarkson, closely followed by James May and the Hamster. Then the various UK populations, then…on occasions …some of the rest of the world. Lets be honest, Whenever they do a foreign trip what comes across clearly is how wonderful the countries and the people are. And yes that includes Argentina. The one thing you can’t accuse him of is a lack of self-awareness. He knows exactly what he is and how he comes across. As do all three and that is why the relationship works. Personally I find them all funny and inoffensive but there is a point where Top Gear will have to stop and this may be the point. We don’t actually know what happened in this incident but I’m sure it’ll all come out and I’ll predict now that if Clarkson is in the wrong he’ll take full responsibility, apologise profusely and not try to duck the rap. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/18 "2015-03-11T13:22:47Z")
> [@Smid](#): > > I always took what he said to be trolling the “angry tabloids” in the uk. Eh, if it was an act, you’d think he could dial it back when it started hurting his career. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/19 "2015-03-11T13:24:56Z")
> [@chizzuk](#): > > According to [The Radio Times](http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2015-03-10/top-gear-series-postponed-after-jeremy-clarkson-punches-producer), he punched a producer. Don’t know how reliable this source is. According to the Mirror, which I’m sure is even less reliable, it was over a catering mix-up. If he really punched someone, I don’t think he can come back from that. That’s unfortunate, as I’ve enjoyed the show. ---
**Author:** ![Orwell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/dfb087/32.png) [@Orwell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orwell)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713/20 "2015-03-11T13:53:17Z")
> [@Revenant\_Threshold](#): > > Well, no, actually. Nor are those jibes general to all races, creeds, national origin etc. Well, yes, actually. I’ve seen him make fun of the English, Scottish, Irish, Germans, Spaniards, French, Americans, Japanese, Mexicans, etc. Of course, poking fun at nationalities is a bit different than races, due to political correctness and modern sensibilities, but Clarkson spreads the insults around. Including at himself. I don’t know what your second sentence means. Clarkson is terrifically funny. Although I like May and Hammond, Clarkson is the keystone of the show. I don’t see how BBC can have Top Gear without him. I recall reading that he is one of the owners of the show, so it seems he could shop TG to another network or syndicate. BBC needs Clarkson and Top Gear more than they need BBC. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-gears-clarkson-suspended/714713.md?page=2)