BBC drops Top Gear host Clarkson over producer attack
by Agency staff,
2015-03-25 18:27:44.0
LONDON — The BBC said on Wednesday it would not renew the contract of Jeremy Clarkson, the lead presenter of its popular motoring programme Top Gear who was suspended after a "fracas" with a producer.
Mr Clarkson, 54, who has generated both controversy and profits for Britain’s publicly funded broadcaster, was already on a final warning over accusations last year that he had used racist language while filming the show.
"It is with great regret that I have told Jeremy Clarkson today that the BBC will not be renewing his contract," Tony Hall, the BBC director-general, said in a statement.
Top Gear, which is aired in more than 200 countries, is one of the BBC’s most profitable shows but its lead host, a friend of Prime Minister David Cameron, has offended, among others, environmental groups, mental health charities and cyclists with his forthright manner.
Last October the show sparked a diplomatic incident between Britain and Argentina, two countries which went to war in 1982 over the Falkland islands.
A Top Gear television crew was forced to flee Argentina after driving a Porsche 928 GT with the registration number H982 FKL — which some people suggested could refer to the Falklands conflict.
Mr Hall said he had not taken the decision lightly, and that he remained a great fan of Clarkson, whom he described as a “huge talent“.
“I know how popular the programme is and I also know that this decision will divide opinion,” he added.
More than a million people from around the world signed an online petition calling for the BBC to reinstate Mr Clarkson after he was initially suspended.
In a report, the BBC said producer Oisin Tymon was subject to an unprovoked physical and verbal attack by Clarkson at a hotel in northern England earlier this month, which left him with swelling and bleeding to his lip.
“The verbal abuse was sustained over a longer period, both at the time of the physical attack and subsequently,” the report said, adding the abuse included strong expletives and threats to sack Tymon.
After the attack, the report said, Mr Tymon was understood to have gone to hospital for a check-up.
Mr Clarkson reported the incident himself and the report said it was not disputed by the presenter or any witness that Mr Tymon was the victim of an unprovoked attack.
Reuters
Jeremy Clarkson during the rehearsal of the popular TV show 'Top Gear Live' in Amsterdam on April 26 2013. The BBC announced on March 10 2015 that they have suspended Clarkson with immediate effect after an incident with a producer. The BBC said it also pulls the show from its broadcast schedule for the next two Sundays. EPA/KOEN VAN WEEL
LONDON — The BBC said on Wednesday it would not renew the contract of Jeremy Clarkson, the lead presenter of its popular motoring programme Top Gear who was suspended after a "fracas" with a producer.
Mr Clarkson, 54, who has generated both controversy and profits for Britain’s publicly funded broadcaster, was already on a final warning over accusations last year that he had used racist language while filming the show.
"It is with great regret that I have told Jeremy Clarkson today that the BBC will not be renewing his contract," Tony Hall, the BBC director-general, said in a statement.
Top Gear, which is aired in more than 200 countries, is one of the BBC’s most profitable shows but its lead host, a friend of Prime Minister David Cameron, has offended, among others, environmental groups, mental health charities and cyclists with his forthright manner.
Last October the show sparked a diplomatic incident between Britain and Argentina, two countries which went to war in 1982 over the Falkland islands.
A Top Gear television crew was forced to flee Argentina after driving a Porsche 928 GT with the registration number H982 FKL — which some people suggested could refer to the Falklands conflict.
Mr Hall said he had not taken the decision lightly, and that he remained a great fan of Clarkson, whom he described as a “huge talent“.
“I know how popular the programme is and I also know that this decision will divide opinion,” he added.
More than a million people from around the world signed an online petition calling for the BBC to reinstate Mr Clarkson after he was initially suspended.
In a report, the BBC said producer Oisin Tymon was subject to an unprovoked physical and verbal attack by Clarkson at a hotel in northern England earlier this month, which left him with swelling and bleeding to his lip.
“The verbal abuse was sustained over a longer period, both at the time of the physical attack and subsequently,” the report said, adding the abuse included strong expletives and threats to sack Tymon.
After the attack, the report said, Mr Tymon was understood to have gone to hospital for a check-up.
Mr Clarkson reported the incident himself and the report said it was not disputed by the presenter or any witness that Mr Tymon was the victim of an unprovoked attack.
Reuters
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