People like Jeremy Clarkson simply aren't allowed on mainstream media anymore. His jump along with Richard Hammond and James May to the online world of Amazon proves this. Indeed, his intentionally inflammatory and often scathing car reviews have landed him in so much hot water it's a wonder how he isn't medium rare on the inside by this point. Xenophobic, misogynistic, homophobic, and racist are all words some of his critics have used to describe his antics.
Even still, Jeremy seems to be completely impervious to criticism unless he physically assaults someone. Which in itself is just another nugget of craziness from a man who's known to have very few boundaries. But at the end of the day, us petrolheads can't help but love him despite his many, many faults.
But what's the real story of how Jeremy Clarkson rose from an independent writer fresh out of school to become the most iconic automotive journalist the world has ever seen? The only competition comes from his fellow Grand Tour/Top Gear hosts Hamster and Captain Slow.
Get ready to dive headfirst into a whole heck of a lot of controversies, because we're looking into the life of a man who's made millions with his scathing and sometimes problematic car reviews.
A Shy Young Boy Becomes A Bombastic and Energetic Young Man
Jeremy Clarkson's childhood looked nothing like the lavish and hyper-fast life today. He was born to a family of meager means from Doncaster in northern England in April 1960. His father Eddie was a traveling salesman and his mother Shirley, a school teacher. Jeremy's said many times that he could say Maserati before he could set mummy. This interest in cars would go on to shape the rest of his life.
The family business selling knockoff Paddington bears which eventually were given official rights by their parent company gave the Clarksons enough money to attend private school by the age of 13. It was while in school that the young and slightly awkward teenage Clarkson began to form his trademark persona.
By his own admission, Jeremy was suffering a severe bout of depression during his years at the private Hill House School Of Doncaster and then the Repton School. Severe bullying by his pears left him seeking alternative forms of attention. Indeed in Clarkson's own words, he was kicked out of the Repton School for drinking, smoking, and generally making a nuisance of himself. Even so, it was while at these private schools that Jeremy discovered his skill as a writer.
Starting Small And Clawing His Way To The Top
Long before he was the world's most famous motoring journalist, Jeremy Clarkson was cutting his teeth in journalism as a video game review writer of all things. Forty or so years before half the internet wanted to be a video game journalist, Clarkson was writing reviews of video games from Amstrad's line of personal computers.
His first job as a motoring journalist came from the Shropshire Star. Where he reviewed cars rather unlike the supercars he helped make famous like "little Peugeots and Fiats". After seven long years with the company, he got to review an Aston Martin Lagonda Coupe. Three years later, he test drove his first Lamborghini, a Countach. He'd also write for the Sunday Times during his subsequent stint on television.
Forcing His Way Onto British Television
No one, perhaps even Jeremy himself could have imagined the path his life would take when he signed with the British Broadcasting Corporation to be a presenter of their Top Gear motoring program. The show had already been a stalwart of the BBCs lineup for over a decade by the time he showed up. But with the help of people like Tiff Nedel, Vicki Butler-Henderson and a young James May for a short stint in the late '90s. Jeremy Clarkson was ready to unleash his inner potential.
An awkward stint at the start of his career where he was trying to find his voice was followed by a unique and especially inflammatory form of car journalism. Jeremy Clarkson is if nothing else, a master of understanding the reflections certain cars make on the people who buy them. Clarkson was the first to use this lens to review cars in this manner.
By combining impeccable comedic timing with his own brand of on the nose criticisms about cars and the countries that build them, he forged a career that's lasted over 30 years. After the Top Gears cancelation in 2001 and subsequent redesign the following year, Clarkson was poised as the top person to be the leading man of the show. Soon thereafter, he met a young radio DJ from Birmingham who wowed Jeremy with his wit and his small-man charm. This man was, of course, Richard Hammond.
One season with Jason Dawe, another motoring journalist didn't pan out as people hoped. Soon after, James May was brought on board to form the core of the Top Gear Trio for the next decade and a half. The rest, as they say, is history. Who knows what will happen when the sun sets on The Grand Tour, rest assured, Jeremy will be adored by millions of fans for years to come.
Sources: BBC, Daily Mail