Filming the Johannesburg episode in a tent (we hope was air conditioned!)

https://www.facebook.com/gtorangutan/

Clarkson explains to Hammond and May the importance of never doing a rally stage hungover.

From the Grand Tour You Tube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZ1Sc5xjWpUnp_o_lUTkvgQ

the latest from Clarkson, Hammond and May - the Grand Tour will be the name of their new show, but they are still rough as hell on rental cars

Found on http://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/entertainment/news/a30060/grand-tour-clarkson-hammond-may-breaking-cars/  and the guys have a you tube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZ1Sc5xjWpUnp_o_lUTkvgQ

Amazon just revealed that there will be a live studio recording of The Grand Tour in California. Enter now for a chance to win a trip to be part of the studio audience.

The Grand Tour is hitting the road this autumn to film shows in the UK, USA and Germany. To celebrate we're giving away tickets to fans in each location so you can come and join us.

Enter the Sweepstakes before midnight Pacific time on July 12, 2016 for a chance to win the opportunity to be in the audience, including travel, accommodation and a chance to meet the guys.

By entering the Sweepstakes, you consent to being placed on a mailing list for promotional and other materials from Amazon.com.

US: http://www.amazon.com/GTtickets
DE: http://www.amazon.de/GTtickets
UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/GTtickets

The prize consists of:

• Round trip economy class airfare for the winner and one guest departing from a major airport near the winner’s residence (within the 50 United States or the District of Columbia) and arriving at an airport near the destination location in California (the “Airport”);
• 2 nights standard hotel accommodations for the winner and his/her guest (single room, double occupancy) at an area hotel in or near the California destination location to be determined by Sponsor in their sole discretion (the “Hotel”); • Roundtrip ground transportation for the winner and his/her guest to/from Airport and Hotel, and to/from Hotel and Studio Recording; and
• $200 spending cash for winner only (awarded in the form of a Visa gift card) which may be used to purchase food and beverages while on trip.

Subject to talent timing and availability: the prize winner will have the chance of meeting Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May

A random drawing will be held on or about July 13, 2016 from among all eligible entries received throughout the Sweepstakes Period. We will notify the potential winner by phone or e-mail within 3 business days following the drawing

https://www.facebook.com/thegrandtour/
https://www.facebook.com/gtorangutan/
https://www.amazon.com/b?node=14771131011&tag=kinja-20

However, if you can afford to travel to Johannesburg, for July 17th 2016, there isn't any sweepstakes at all, tickets are free, and in less than a minute you can reserve up to 4 tickets, by just registering at Applause.com

After months of deliberation and lots of useful suggestions from the public, for which the guys are very grateful, Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May have decided that, because they are taking their new Amazon Prime Show around the world, it will be called The Grand Tour, and YOU are invited to join them in Johannesburg for the very first show.

http://www.applausestore.com/book-the-grand-tour

Other things about the new Top Gear I just learned

The shouty guy, Chris Evans, only works 4 hours a day on Top Gear. He still works his primary job, as a morning radio DJ

Evans is getting paid a lot to host Top Gear, his three-year contract is reportedly for $4.27 million  – to work just 20 hours a week.

Once the final cast came together, things actually got worse instead of better. The original air date of May 8 was pushed back to May 22 to give them an extra two weeks. That wasn’t enough.

Plans for 16 episodes aired in two eight-episode seasons were shuffled. Instead, the first season will include only six episodes with no clear statement on how the second season will play out.

http://bestride.com/news/entertainment/top-gear-chris-evans-work-day
http://www.autoblog.com/2016/03/28/top-gear-chris-evans-four-hour-workdays/

"the Drive" watched the 4th episode of the new Top Gear, and had a cow over how bad it was

looks like it won't be worth a second season... the 4th episode had the lowest ratings in the past 10 years of the show.

That is incredibly horrible. Any idea what they are paying the new crew to make the show worth watching? I'd guess, twice as much as the results are worth, maybe 3 times.

http://www.thedrive.com/a-list/4088/top-gears-fourth-episode-was-perhaps-the-worst-so-far

Flop Gear cast creates a new low... lowest audience in a decade. 3 of the presenters didn't appear. And the guest star in a reasonably priced car? Doesn't drive a car. Ker-flop

lowest opening show viewing figures in a decade... wow. The last time the ratings were this bad, was 2006

How bad was it? People switched over to Antiques Roadshow. Yeah... that's pretty bad when you'd rather learn about what was found in a attic than try to be entertained


Summed up perfectly in this quote: Top Gear 2016 is to original Top Gear as Ghostbusters 2016 is to original Ghostbusters  a tweet from James Delingpole

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/05/30/top-gears-first-episode-branded-boring-and-badly-presented-by-fa/

The news comes as host Chris is odds on to be fired from Top Gear after figures confirmed the show was a ratings flop.

Bookies now offer odds of ¼ that it would be the last series of the show with Chris Evans at the helm and ½ that the show would be axed altogether.

Top Gear drew an average of just 4.3 million viewers, and at the same time, other channel, Antiques Roadshow drew 3.8 million viewers. Yeah, all the hype, and ridiculously overpriced hosts, and they barely had better ratings than vases and sofas.

Top Gear lost its regular title of being Sunday night’s most watched show in England to Countryfile, which peaked at 5.3million viewers and had an impressive 27% share of viewers.

Brad Pitt was supposed to be the guest star, he bailed, they replaced him with a cook and an actor who has zero car credibility

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/tv/7186064/US-fans-take-a-swipe-at-charmless-Top-Gear-as-revamped-show-makes-debut.html

Jalopnik did a good review of it... http://jalopnik.com/what-the-hell-top-gear-1779481253

So did Drive:
http://www.thedrive.com/a-list/3743/12-thoughts-on-the-revamped-top-gear-premiere

The new Top Gear... huh, seems to have problems. Here is the new version of the "star in a reasonably priced car" - It's a rally cross mini (over priced BMW), and they use paved and dirt segments of the airport

I don't think it has any of the charm the well known experience had. Time will tell if it gets less distracting. Maybe it was just the known places where we'd pay closer attention to see if the drivers would lose it on Hammerhead, or miss the last corner and womble on the grass before the finish line

another typical office day, guys goofing off looking at cars for sale

So, who is the woman in the new Top Gear host team? Very accomplished, at many things, and has been racing on the ring probably more than anyone else... she was BMW's driver

Sabine Schmitz is as famed as a motor racing driver for BMW and Porsche is she is famous for driving the BMW 'Ring Taxi' around the Nurburgring race track, for 14 years, where tourists could pay to ride along with a pro driver

She has also been on Top Gear before, in 2004 she competed with Jeremy in a Jag around the Ring, and beat him by 47 seconds... and raced him in a van... yeah, a van, and was only 9 seconds off his pace



skip the first 4 minutes



she won the 24 Hours Nurburgring in 1996 and 97.
She also trained as a hotel manager and sommelier, and she owned a bar-restaurant in Nurburg

And if fast cars weren't challenge enough, Sabine qualified as a helicopter pilot in 2004.

For a good interview of Sabine: http://www.m5board.com/vbulletin/most-memorable-threads/39033-answers-sabine-ring-taxi-driver.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-3444138/How-Sabine-Schmitz-new-Gear-host.html

Thanks Steve!