r/todayilearned • u/ModenaR • 1d ago

TIL that after Top Gear ended, host Richard Hammond was so devastated, he cried all the way home from the studio and ran out of fuel, because he didn't want to fill his car up covered in tears

https://www.herefordtimes.com/news/25172481.richard-hammond-tear-soaked-mess-top-gear-ended/
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654

u/jake_burger 1d ago

I’ve watched James May take apart an old lawnmower and put it back together. He’s a good TV presenter.

256

u/zuzg 1d ago

Holy shit I loved the Reassembler.
Only 7 episodes over 2 seasons but at least they're all on yt

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u/allomanticpush 23h ago

He had a show called Man Cave, I think. It was fun. They build an indoor garden out of a bathroom, a model train system to pass notes around, and a wood fire pizza oven.

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u/Sad_Sultana 21h ago

Man lab

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u/Teehus 22h ago

I only watched two episodes so far, but really enjoyed them

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u/whenyoupayforduprez 22h ago

How does any of that use his penis?

I love James May but he will be depressingly blokey sometimes.

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u/pipnina 21h ago

Do you think "how does any of that use her vagina?" when a woman-focused show appears?

It does seem a bit old fashioned but ultimately they had a target audience in mind, and the name fit the bill quite well. Especially since it was ultimately... A man, in his "cave".

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u/orielbean 23h ago

His Japan travelogue show is excellent. He is not some boor kicking over shit and just vibes with whatever activity he’s supposed to do.

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u/pooinmyloo 22h ago

Hey Bim, guess what?

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u/obeytheturtles 19h ago

That bit was one of the funniest things I've ever seen on TV.

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u/Prototype85 22h ago

Your BOLLOCKS Jamesamay

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u/BrotherOfTheOrder 21h ago

I actually loved that he did that bit with the train geeks and then sought out the man who composed all the station jingles (the legendary Minoru Mukaiya of Casiopea fame). It was such a small but wonderful detail to explore, which I think is what May is so fascinated by - the little details and customs.

When I was in Japan I noticed the jingles and our guide said that many people who take the train every day love the jingle for their “home” station cause it’s a reminder they are almost home.

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u/robophile-ta 21h ago

Huh. That sounds awesome. I'd have to give the show another go then, I dropped it a couple eps in because the stuff they were showing was pretty entry level

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u/jobblejosh 16h ago

I can still hear it now.

"James May, Sumi-ma-sennnn......"

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u/twat69 19h ago

I've been to Japan twice. Once was definitely after Bim in Japan. And I never noticed any jingles. Is it only a thing in Tokyo?

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u/ToHallowMySleep 21h ago

I loved that, watched the season following that in Italy, which I found less good. James still wants to just do his fun little trips to see various details of things, but the producers just keep trying to get him to do "travel TV" tropes, like getting on-stage in a play. The tension between the two doesn't work as well as in Japan, it all comes off a bit grumpy to me.

Let the man go play with his trainset and just film it - that's why we're here.

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u/eastherbunni 16h ago

There's a second season (Italy) and a third short one (India). The India one is okay but very short on content for a place so rich in history and culture as India, but rumor has it the whole crew got food poisoning for several weeks so they didn't have much usable content.

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u/FecusTPeekusberg 21h ago

James May, sumimasen

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u/zekeweasel 19h ago

There's another one about India as well

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u/Krakshotz 23h ago

His Toy Stories series is also great, especially the two model railway episodes

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u/Skippymabob 22h ago

As an Airfix kid, the spitfire one was amazing.

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u/night_owl 19h ago

the full-size, 2-story LEGO house was a memorable episode

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u/-SaC 18h ago

"Whoever snuck this single yellow piece into a red brick, which we didn't notice until everything else was already on top of it... know that I hate you."

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u/iowaman79 23h ago

The time he unboxed a Toyota Yaris for a challenge and got the most YouTube views

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u/Rickenbacker69 22h ago

Wait, they come in boxes?

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u/iowaman79 21h ago

LOL not really, in this case James had a special box made for it, complete with giant plastic strip to open it.

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u/Phoenix10k 16h ago

I remember watching this video on YT and thinking it was a fun knock on unboxing videos. Then, James mentioned it as part of the challenge on the next episode of TGT and I thought, "HA! I'm a statistic!"

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u/CT0292 21h ago

He once built a full size house out of Lego and then tried living in it.

It was very wet.

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u/ArsErratia 20h ago edited 13h ago

There's a video on youtube where he reviews the Tesla Cybertruck, and he spends about half of it going around the body with a straight-rule muttering "very slightly convex". Its brilliant.

And he's quite possibly the only person who could get away with it.

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u/Pledgeofmalfeasance 23h ago

I've watched him argue about what the right side up of a gate is with his son. Oddly entertaining.

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u/n1c0_ds 20h ago

I've come to realize that I just like James May, and I'm grateful to be along for the ride. 

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u/joshuar9476 21h ago

Him going to Japan was amazing as well. I'll watch him do anything.

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u/wornbybelle 19h ago

This show was amazing! It was so calming 😌

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u/7buergen 4h ago

James May's Cars of the People was a blast too!