Tony Mason – What Was Pebble Mill?

Top Gear Live

Copyright resides with the original holder, no reproduction without permission

Here is a titles grab from the show: Top Gear Live.

There are two editions of Top Gear Live included on the BBC Genome project, which lists Radio Times entries. One edition of the motor show at Silverstone went out on BBC 2 in May 1998, and here is the entry for the first one in 20 July 1996:

http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/3fff773616ba49d6a3d4a304f90a01f9

“Last Thursday, the world’s first interactive motor show, Top Gear Live, opened at Silverstone, giving the public the chance to go for a test drive on the circuit that recently staged the British Grand Prix. The team from BBC2’s Top Gear programme reports from the five-day event whose attractions include motorcycle stunts, monster trucks, new cars, classic designs, karts and off-road vehicles. Presented by Jeremy Clarkson , Quentin Willson , Tiff Needell , Michele Newman , Tony Mason and Steve Berry.
Producers Jon Bentley and John Wilcox
Contributors
Presented By: Jeremy Clarkson
Presented By: Quentin Willson
Presented By: Tiff Needell
Presented By: Michele Newman
Presented By: Tony Mason
Presented By: Steve Berry.
Producers: Jon Bentley
Producers: John Wilcox”

Thanks to Ian Collins for making the still available.

Top Gear Motorsport

Thanks to Ian Collins for sharing this titles grab from Top Gear Motorsport, which was a spin off series from the popular BBC2 motoring magazine show, which focused on all types of motorsport and went out between 1995-8.

Here is the entry from the Radio Times for the first episode of the series from autumn 1995, courtesy of the BBC Genome project: http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/83b5237bb8e8487ab2b57dbfb2035870

“In the first of a 17-part series, John Cleland , recently crowned British
Touring Car Champion, reviews his season. Plus, there’s a look at Alister McRae ‘s bid for glory in the Scottish round of the Top Gear British Rally Championship, and a review of the career of five times world champion
Juan Manuel Fangio , who died earlier this year. Presented by Tiff Needell , Tony Mason and Steve Berry.
Series producer Ken Pollock ; Executive producer
Dennis Adams”

Rally Report

Rally Report was a BBC 2 series dating from the mid 1980s to the late 1990s, consisting of coverage of the Lombard RAC Rally of Great Britain, which was held annually in the autumn. The show went out each evening, and was quick turnaround. It was presented by Top Gear’s, William Woollard, from Rally headquarters with previews, live stages and twice nightly reports. It was shot on location, edited and transmitted from site. It was often a challenging production logistically. Tony Mason, presented the Rally stage reports. Rally Report was unusual as a sports programme, not made by BBC Sport. In later years it was renamed Top Gear Rally Report, to emphasise the fact that it wasn’t made by Sport, and that a lot of the Top Gear team were involved.

The producers included Phil Franklin, Brian Strachan (until 1986) and Tony Rayner with the executive producers including Derek Smith, Dennis Adams and Tom Ross.

Top Gear – Gail Herbert’s photos

Photos copyright of Gail Herbert, no reproduction without permission.

Top Gear, now known as ‘old Top Gear’, was produced at BBC Pebble Mill from 1977-2001. It was a 30 min magazine show about cars and motor transport. The presenters included Noel Edmunds, Angela Rippon, Jeremy Clarkson, Tiff Needell, William Woollard, Michelle Newman, Chris Goffey, Vicki Butler-Henderson, Jason Barlow, Tony Mason and Quentin Willson.

When production of Top Gear moved to London in 2002 some of the Birmingham production team, and presenters (Vicki Butler-Henderson, Adrian Simpson, Tiff Needell) moved to Fifth Gear on Channel 5.

Thanks to Gail Herbert, who was a production assistant on Top Gear for making her photos available. The photos date from around 1990 and include shots of presenters William Woollard and Tiff Needell, producer Ken Pollock, directors Dennis Jarvis and David Wheeler, cameraman John Williams, sound men Tony Wass and Alex Christison, and production assistants Gail Herbert and Sophie Marsh.

David Wheeler, who is featured in these photos, sitting on a donkey, makes the following comment:

Tony Mason thought it would be amusing to do a PTC from a “4×4” for use on the sand at Weston-Super-Mere. But when I called his bluff he requested that I test drive the thoroughbred before he risked his rally-bred bottom on the beast! After some reassurance he delivered the PTC… ending: “… but I don’t think Nellie here is quite up to it, so I’ll have to find some better transport”. I seem to remember tracking from an open land rover and editing the piece to Echo Beach (Martha and the Muffins) which has a great intro and fab sax solo! Great memories.. enhanced by my trip home in the Astra 2litre, 16valve GTE… “space rocket” as I recall Gail called it!

Gail test driving a Porsche