As much as Jeremy Clarkson's on-air shtick on BBC's Top Gear was to be more witty yet boorish than the collective intelligence of its dull spin-off program on the US's History Channel, his comments using the lexicon of the average UK "petrolhead" got him suspended and the program's future in jeopardy. The loyal audience went on the offensive recently with a petition drive despite the looming possibility that the show would be permanently banned.
What better way to deliver a message than driving a tank through central London right up to the steps of the BBC?
At the helm was a man dressed as the enigmatic professional driver from "Top Gear," the Stig, delivering a million-strong petition calling for Clarkson to be reinstated...
"Top Gear" is the Rolls-Royce of the BBC, seen by 350 million viewers in 170 countries every week, including BBC America.
It's also a gold mine with its spinoffs and merchandising, an estimated a $1.5 billion franchise.
The show and its controversial star were profiled by "60 Minutes"' Steve Kroft in 2010.
A brutish bigot to some, a straight-talking renegade to others, Clarkson was already on final notice over previous scandals, including apparent racist remarks he made...
In his weekly newspaper column Saturday morning, Clarkson made a veiled reference to the support he's received, declaring that protest never works "because we are all plankton. And the world is run by whales."
Top Gear has often been criticised for content inside programmes by some members of the public and by Ofcom. Most of the criticisms stem from comments from the presenting team; however, other aspects of the programme have been underlined as unsuitable. Incidents and content ranging from (but not limited to) remarks considered by some viewers to be offensive, promoting irresponsible driving, ridiculing environmental issues, Germans, Mexicans, and Poles, and alleged homophobia have generated complaints. British comedian and guest of the programme Steve Coogan has criticised the programme, accusing it of lazy, adolescent humour and "casual racism"...
Top Gear also received extensive criticism in late October 2014 during filming of an episode for Series 22 in Argentina. The presenters and the associated film crew were chased out of the country by angry protesters throwing rocks at the team. This was in protest against the number plate on Jeremy Clarkson's car which supposedly made reference to the Falklands War (his platenumber was H982 FKL. The BBC maintained that the number plate was pure coincidence