Amazon has signed former Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson and his former cohosts Richard Hammond and James May to star in a new car show.
I'm very excited to announce that Hammond, May and I have signed a deal with .@AmazonVideo
— Jeremy Clarkson (@JeremyClarkson) July 30, 2015
The yet-to-be-title show is set to go into production “shortly” and will air as an Amazon Prime exclusive beginning in 2016.
“I feel like I’ve climbed out of a bi-plane and into a spaceship,” said Clarkson, whose last episode as the host of Top Gear aired on June 28th.
BBC director general Tony Hall refused to renew the 55 year old’s contract after a notorious “fracas” at a Yorkshire hotel in March when Top Gear’s frontman hit producer Oisin Tymon during a row about catering arrangements.
It is likely to go head to head with the BBC’s new version of Top Gear, which generates around £50 million a year for the Corporation. The new Amazon show will not feature Top Gear’s mysterious driver The Stig.
Last month, the network announced that it had signed Chris Evans to a three-year contract to make him the new host of Top Gear. The 49-year-old Evans is best known for his work on BBC’s Radio 2 as a breakfast show presenter.