Four years after serious accident, Top Gear program should return to TV

The BBC has confirmed that the iconic series Top Gear will return to TV. The announcement was made by Ed Havard, the broadcaster’s director of entertainment, at the Edinburgh Television Festival, and came with no cast, no date and almost no details: there was a lot of speculation, he said, and the BBC could confirm the return. The production remains with BBC Studios.

About who presents, nothing has been closed. Comedian Jimmy Carr, 53, is in talks, according to the website Deadline. Asked, Harvard replied that Carr would be a good presenter, but that he would not address the subject. Former rugby player Joe Marler, 36, who gained prominence on the reality show The Celebrity Traitors, is also considered.

The show has been off the air since the accident that almost killed presenter Andrew Flintoff, on December 13, 2022. The former cricketer was driving a Morgan Super 3, a convertible sports tricycle, at the Dunsfold Park Aerodrome test track in Surrey when the vehicle overturned and dragged him face down for about 50 meters. He fractured ribs and jaw, required surgery and was left with permanent sequelae on his face.

The return comes with an open

lawsuit In October 2023, BBC Studios closed a deal with Flintoff, valued by the British press at £9 million. The following month, the broadcaster announced that it would put the program on indefinite rest.

The case, however, is not over. In December 2025, pilot and instructor Paul Rees, 41, filed a lawsuit against BBC Studios asking for up to £150,000 for personal injuries. The lawsuit revealed something no one knew until then: there was a second person in the car. Rees occupied the passenger seat, hired to guide Flintoff while cameras and microphones recorded.

The broadcaster does not dispute only the amount. It denies negligence and maintains, in defense, that it was Rees who gave wrong and dangerous instructions on how to react when the wheel left the ground. It also states that he did not report injuries at the time or after.

Comes back almost together with the rival

On the air since 1977, Top Gear became a global phenomenon from 2003, with Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May. The three left in 2015 to do The Grand Tour, on Amazon, which aired until 2024.

After them, the BBC tested lineups in series: Chris Evans, Matt LeBlanc, Chris Harris, Rory Reid, Eddie Jordan and Sabine Schmitz passed through the program between 2016 and 2018. In 2019 Paddy McGuinness, Flintoff and Harris joined, the trio that was on the air when everything stopped.

The calendar brings the old rivals closer. The Grand Tour is also preparing its own return, scheduled for September. After ten years separated between streaming and open TV, the two programs are once again fighting for the same viewer.