Following the cancellation of BBC’s Top Gear in 2023 due to a near-death injury involving host Andrew ‘Freddie’ Flintoff and Amazon’s The Grand Tour airing its final special not long after, the world was left without its two biggest automotive television shows. The Amazon trio of Jeremy Clarkson, James May, and Richard Hammond, who originally starred on Top Gear, announced their plans to depart from The Grand Tour back in 2023.
Rumors have been circulating since their retirement as to who would replace them, and if the show would even continue at all. YouTubers Thomas Holland and James Engelsman, known for their car review channel Throttle House, were thought to be likely replacements along with a less obvious third host, fellow YouTuber Francis Bourgeois, who is known for his train spotting videos. We now know those rumors were indeed true. The Throttle House duo will join the train spotter to form the next Grand Tour trio.
Though we’ve known about the new hosts for several months now, the official announcement was marked with a video message from none other than Jeremy Clarkson himself. He even pulled the old Grand Tour tent, which has not been used since season three, out of retirement for the occasion. The video is pretty humorous, joking about all the resumes they received from people who wanted to be the new hosts. Some say a short man and someone named James May were among them. All we know is, they weren’t picked.
He then reads a snippet from Holland’s application, which reads, “frequently presents an opinion as if it is fact, and then if challenged, will change the subject.” This is clearly a reference to Clarkson’s own on-camera persona, which is very similar. Engelsman’s description is similar, noting he “once reviewed a car using only sarcasm.”
It’s the first on-track review from any of the old presenters in at least a decade.
Even with a YouTube-level production budget, the Throttle House duo have created some of the most impressive car reviews available on the internet. So as fellow automotive journalists, we are excited to see what they can create with a multi-billion-dollar corporation backing them up.
When doing a casting call for arguably the world’s largest and most important automotive streaming program, it’s easy to see why Thomas Holland and James Engelsman were chosen as the heirs apparent to Clarkson, May, and Hammond. Throttle House currently has 3.35 million subscribers on Youtube, and Holland already maintains great on-camera chemistry with Engelsman, which is what made the original trio work so well together. So what about Francis Bourgeois?
A UK-based specialist is working to restore the engine to its former glory, and then some.
He’s clearly the unknown part of the equation, having little public experience reviewing cars (aside from his pink Honda Jazz on Instagram). But that doesn’t mean he’s an unknown presenter. His TikTok following matches Throttle House’s YouTube reach with 3.3 million, he has 2.6 million followers on Instagram, and his train-spotting videos regularly rack up millions of views. Fans of Top Gear may remember the show was first recast following Clarkson, May, and Hammond’s departure. Will Bourgeois be a surprise hit like Matt LeBlanc, or a poor fit like Chris Evans?
We will find out soon. According to the video announcement, the next iteration of The Grand Tour is coming this year.
Source: Amazon Prime
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I am all in for James & Thomas. But months ago when rumors leaked, I began watching (or tried at least) on Francois and his joy for trains. A few minutes in I thought, please no, let this one be the rumor. Will see how the trio pans out.
