It’s clear plodding Chris Evans is the problem with the new unimproved Top Gear
Evans and LeBlanc seem like they're hosting two different but equally boring shows, our TV critic says
RACING through the streets of London at breakneck speed Matt LeBlanc boomed: “I’d really like to see Bucking-Ham Palace and Tower Bridge.
"And the Houses of Parliament… do you know where that is?” Yeah, near the Cenotaph.
As Matt joined rally driver Jeff Block for a turbo charged sightseeing trip, there was no sign of their notorious tyre screeching doughnut around Britain’s sacred war memorial.
That much criticised stunt had been left on the cutting room floor. Good idea.
The rest of it was just two Americans zooming past the capital’s landmarks in a stupid looking car.
With clouds of smoke billowing in their wake, it wasn’t clear what the point was supposed to be. It went on for ages.
Meanwhile, Chris Evans was sick. Know the feeling.
After German track queen Sabine Schmitz gave him a lightning fast lift in a £135,000 Audi, the shouty host parked his big breakfast on the tarmac.
His petrol-head credentials in tatters, distressed Chris cried: “Stop, stop, please stop.”
Very manly. Then he puked. Sabine: “Why is it red?” Chris: “Strawberries.”
Amid disappointing viewing figures and howls of despair from fans pining for Jeremy Clarkson’s less PC more funny Top Gear, it’s now clear that Evans may be the problem.
Of the three car reports on BBC2's latest mediocre episode, his was by far the worst. Boring.
Excellent DJ and all that, fine on TFI Friday. But he’s just not much cop at this motoring stuff.
Likeable Chris Harris’ enthusiastic dispatch on the Ferrari F12tdf was miles more entertaining.
And Rory Reid’s eulogy to the new Ford Focus hatchback was a hoot. These guys aren’t bad at all.
Team them up with Jenson Button and Beeb bosses might find the winning formula they're desperately seeking.
For the most part episode three was a plodding affair. No road trips, no news slot and still no chemistry between Evans and LeBlanc.
Friends? Doesn’t look like it. Their paths barely crossed. It was almost as if they were starring in separate shows.
Excellent DJ and all that, fine on TFI Friday. But he’s just not much cop at this motoring stuff.
Kevin O'Sullivan
Although boxer Anthony Joshua and US comic Kevin Hart were decent guests, the two stars in a rally cross car lacks the charm of one star in a reasonably priced car.
Evans’ interviews drag on for ever and the entire slot takes up a quarter of the programme.
If you want to know what’s wrong with the new unimproved Top Gear look no further than the recently released YouTube footage of Clarkson trying to build a DHL parcel box.
While Richard Hammond and James May giggle in the background he makes a massive mess of it.
Three naturally witty blokes mucking around like daft kids. It makes you laugh.
In stark contrast, Evans and the gang plough their way through a plodding less-than-hilarious script and while the programme looks the same, the magic has gone.
After his vomiting incident, the red-faced redhead was so embarrassed by getting car sick on a car show he put a paper bag over his head and said: “I’m not here.”
If only.
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