Why Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May quitting The Grand Tour

The Grand Tour: One For The Road - Official trailer

The legendary trio of Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May are set to bid an emotional goodbye to The Grand Tour in their final TV special. The Grand Tour: One for the Road is being hailed as the trio's last TV special together after 23 years of presenting, racing, arguing and shouting at each other across the globe.

Their chaotic dynamic was what made BBC show Top Gear a hit, attracting millions of fans every week and elevating the trio to cult status in the UK. After a dispute on the set of a Top Gear challenge led to Jeremy Clarkson's dismissal, Richard Hammond and James May joined him to create a new motoring series on Prime Video.

From 2016 to 2019, the main series saw the trio travel the world in a tent, interviewing celebrities, reviewing cars and undertaking motoring challenges. The Grand Tour then shifted its focus to motoring challenge specials, including Eurocrash, A Scandi Flick and A Massive Hunt.

One for the Road, set to be released on Friday, September 13, will see the presenters journey to Zimbabwe in three cars they've always dreamt of owning. Despite the departure of the original presenters, the series will continue on Prime Video with a fresh line-up.

But why are Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May leaving The Grand Tour?, reports the Mirror.

Why is The Grand Tour ending?

Presenters Richard Hammond, Jeremy Clarkson and James May filming the final The Grand Tour. (Image: )

The current format of The Grand Tour is coming to an end simply because the trio believe it's time to call it a day. All three presenters have frequently expressed their desire to leave the motoring show on a high note, rather than fizzling or being forced out.

Richard Hammond shared with Ben Shephard and Cat Deeley on This Morning that they desired to conclude their show and on-screen collaboration on their own terms.

"We always wanted to land it on our own terms," Hammond stated, reflecting on Top Gear's rapid rise to iconic status.

The Grand Tour: Sand Job was one of the many specials produced on Prime Video (Image: SCU)

"It took off, we started on Top Gear together 23 years ago and it went berserk," he chuckled. "We didn't know it was gonna do that, so that was kinda out of our control we always wanted to make sure that when we finally landed our partnership together it was on our terms, at a time and a place and in a manner of our choosing, and we have."

However, now that it's done, Hammond admitted, "But having done it and the film is out Friday... it's really weird. I can't get my head around it."

Meanwhile, May, 61, expressed to The Sunday Times: "Must it end? It must. We've exhausted our take on the subject, and we always promised ourselves that we'd land our legacy safely instead of flying it into a cliff."

May also reflected on the passing of time, saying, "And we're old now. I set off as a puffy-faced youth with lustrous long dark hair that seemed to be permanently tousled by a warm zephyr, believing I'd landed a gig that might last a couple of years. I parked up grey, stooped, with a bad back, looking for my glasses so I could write this down."

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Jeremy Clarkson's new pub, The Farmer's Dog, in Asthall, near Burford in Oxfordshire (Image: Neil Robinson/PA Wire) window.topArticlesScript="https://cdn.images.express.co.uk/js/dist/article-top-articles20240911.min.js"

May concluded, "I regret none of it; none of those 20-plus years of beige food and bad living. It was tremendous. Thank you for watching."

The team will now shift their attention to individual projects and television programmes. Jeremy Clarkson is set to continue filming his highly successful series, Clarkson's Farm, concentrate on Hawkstone brewery and oversee his new pub, The Farmer's Dog.

James May will continue to present a series of travel documentaries for Prime Video, alongside focusing on his pub, The Royal Oak in Wiltshire.

Richard Hammond will carry on working on several new shows, including Richard Hammond's Workshop on Discovery+, and hosts a podcast titled Who We Are Now with his daughter Izzy.

Why Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May quitting The Grand Tour

Why Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May quitting The Grand Tour

Why Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May quitting The Grand Tour

Why Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May quitting The Grand Tour

Why Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May quitting The Grand Tour