Top Gear: Clarkson, Hammond & May sign for another 3 years

It’s been revealed that Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May have signed up for another 3 years of Top Gear.

There may not be a new series of Top Gear on its way until 2013, but we now know that Top Gear as we know it – with Jeremy, Richard and James – is safe for another three years after the trio signed a new deal with the BBC, tying them in to Top Gear until 2016.

So, despite the naysayers claiming Top Gear has had its day and will end soon, we can guarantee another three years of the nation’s (and the world’s) favourite car entertainment programme.

In related news, it seems that Jeremy Clarkson has sold his stake in Bedder 6 – the company he set up with Top Gear producer Andy Wilman to exploit the Top Gear brand around the world – to the BBC.

It’s said that the 50 per cent of Bedder 6 owned by Clarkson and Wilman – the other 50 per cent was sold to the Beeb some time ago – has netted Jeremy a nice round £5 million. But that doesn’t seem much for a company that appears to be making sizeable profits and is probably worth ten times what Jeremy is said to have received for his stake.

So it seems likely that Jeremy is trousering £5 million for his shares but with a deal to give him a percentage of the profits of Bedder 6 – in return, of course, for his ongoing promotion of the Top Gear brand – which probably means he gets to bank the £5 million and still get the same sort of income from Bedder 6 as he’s been getting.

Seems like a nice deal.