Saint-Nazaire (, Gallo: ), is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France.

The town has a major harbour, on the right bank of the Loire River estuary, near the Atlantic Ocean. The town is at the south of the second-largest swamp in France, called "la Brière". Given its location, Saint-Nazaire has a long tradition of fishing and shipbuilding.

History

Antiquity

According to the 15th-century chronicler Alain Bouchart, Brutus of Troy, the mythical ancestor of the Bretons, travelled toward Saint-Nazaire to set foot upon the new homeland of his people. Historical accounts note that at the end of the Roman Empire, some Britons colonized the Loire estuary, and later, the peninsula containing Guérande. The furthest extent of the ancient Breton language in the Loire region is Donges, to the east of Saint-Nazaire.

Middle Ages

After this point, the history of Saint-Nazaire, like much of Europe during the Dark Ages, is not well understood. Battles occurred, such as in 1380 when Jehan d'Ust defended the city in the name of John V, Duke of Brittany (known in France as Jean IV) against the Castilian fleet during the Hundred Years' War. After this time, Saint-Nazaire became the seat of a parish extending from Penhoët to Pornichet, part of the Viscountcy of Saint-Nazaire.

Like the whole of Brittany, Saint-Nazaire formed part of the Duchy of Brittany until 1532, when it was annexed by France. In 1624, the city was threatened by the Calvinists. In 1756, a fort was built on the order of the governor of Brittany to protect the town, which by then had 600 inhabitants. Until the French revolution, Saint-Nazaire belonged to the province of Brittany.

19th century industrialization

The modern Saint-Nazaire was created by the administration of Napoleon III, and came about from the various national and regional truces which had prevented its development up to that point. The population of 3216 in 1800 shows that battered history, with a mainly local (Brière), of Low-Brittany (of Morbihan in the Finistère-south), and minor representation from most other areas of France. From this point forward the population of Saint-Nazaire experienced an exponential growth, which was reflected in its nickname of "Little Breton California", or "Liverpool of the West".

In 1802, a roadway was built to develop the port, which extended by 1835, to a breakwater with a navigational lighthouse at its end. The development, included new basins for ships to unload to barges which carried goods further up the river. This development moved the town into the area of the city which is now called the district of "Little Morocco". This development made the town the base for the passenger steamships of the Nantes-Saint-Nazaire line, as well as making the town the alternate port for ships which could not access Nantes. In 1856, the first wet dock basin was dug in the handle of "Halluard City", making it possible for ships to moor and turn. This brought about the construction of the town's first railway connection. In 1857, the Chemin de Fer de Paris à Orléans railroad company of Orléans connected Saint-Nazaire to Nantes. In 1862, the first transatlantic telegraph lines were installed from France towards South America, which came ashore at Saint-Nazaire. 1862 also saw the construction of major ship building facilities, including those of Chantier Scott, which launched of the first French constructed ships with metal hulls (the company went bankrupt in 1866). In 1868, Saint-Nazaire became a sub-prefecture in lieu of the town of Savenay. A second dock basin was created at Penhoët in 1881, to allow the servicing of larger ships, but a lock gate built to access it cut the town in two, thus creating Old Saint-Nazaire and an artificial island called "Little Morocco".

In early 1870, Nantes born Pierre Waldeck-Rousseau joined the bar in Saint-Nazaire. In September he became, in spite of his youth, secretary to the municipal commission temporarily appointed to carry on the town business. He organized the National Defense at Saint-Nazaire, and marched out with his contingent, though they saw no active service due to lack of ammunition (their private store having been commandeered by the state). In 1873, he moved to the bar of Rennes, following the establishment of the Third Republic in 1871.

On 30 March 1894, a strike occurred at the forging mills of Trignac in opposition to a reduction of the work force. What had seemed a small dispute escalated after a shooting in Fourmies, resulting in the town getting its national nickname of "Red City". Socialists flocked to the town in defense of the striking workers joining in the declaration of the "Fusillade de Fourmies".

In 1900, the commune of Pornichet was created by stripping off the larger commune of Saint-Nazaire.

First World War

Inter-war period

Although having built the SS ''Paris'', between 1913 and 1921, and SS ''Ile de France'' between 1925 and 1926, as a result of the 1930s Great Depression the French government commissioned a series of state programs to aid national economic activity. The state owned shipping company Compagnie Générale Transatlantique commissioned the ship builders of Saint-Nazaire to construct a new large passenger ship, which as a result between 1928 and 1934 created the Albert Caquot engineered the Louis Joubert dry dock - at 3937 feet x 196.850 feet, the largest of its kind in the world at the time - necessary to be able to accommodate the construction of the SS ''Normandie''. In 1932, the casino of Saint-Nazaire came bankrupt and was resold to the town of Nantes: the site was redeveloped from 1935 with the first part of the current Saint-Louis school.

As a result of the national general strike of June 1936, to ensure completion of the nationally prestigious project SS ''Normandie,'' the government nationalised the various private shipyards into one state owned entity, the 1861 founded Chantiers de l'Atlantique.

World War II

On 17 June 1940 an estimated 9,000 British Army soldiers were embarked aboard the Clyde-built troopship RMS ''Lancastria'', which was then attacked and sunk by German Junkers Ju 88 bombers, mainly from Kampfgeschwader 30, taking with her around 4,000 victims. It is the worst disaster in British maritime history, and the worst loss of life for British forces in the whole of World War II. Winston Churchill banned all news coverage of the disaster on learning of it and it remained largely forgotten by history.

U-Boat pens

The base provided a home during the war to many of the most well known U-Boat staff, including:

The base still stands today, as its extremely sturdy construction makes demolition uneconomical. The base is now used by cafes, a bar and on the roof is a exhibition about Saint-Nazaire.

St. Nazaire Raid

After Operation Rheinübung on 18–27 May 1941, in which the ''Bismarck'' and heavy cruiser ''Prinz Eugen'' were to have ended the operational raid at Saint-Nazaire, but which resulted in the sinking of HMS Hood and the sinking of the Bismarck; the need for the Allies to take the Joubert dry dock out of operation was increased.

On 28 March 1942, a force of 611 British Commandos and the Royal Navy launched the St. Nazaire Raid against the shipyards of Saint-Nazaire, codenamed Operation Chariot. An obsolete American-built destroyer HMS ''Campbeltown'' was used as a ram-ship loaded with explosives, and it and the commandos succeeded in destroying the gates and machinery of the Joubert drydock, prevented its further use by Nazi Germany during the war. The Joubert dry dock was not brought back into operation until 1948.

After Operation Chariot

The damaged aircraft included the seventh B-17 mission of Staff Sergeant Alan Magee, from which Luftwaffe fighters shot off a section of the right wing causing the aircraft to enter a deadly spin. Wounded ball turret gunner Magee leapt from the plane without a parachute, rapidly losing consciousness due to the altitude. Magee fell over four miles before crashing through the glass roof of the St. Nazaire railway station, which mitigated Magee's impact. Found alive on the floor of the station, Magee was taken prisoner of war and given medical treatment by his captors. He had 28 shrapnel wounds, several broken bones, severe damage to his nose and eye, and lung and kidney damage; and his right arm was nearly severed. Magee was liberated in May 1945 and received the Air Medal for meritorious conduct and the Purple Heart. He was later featured in the ''Smithsonian Magazine'' as one of the ten most remarkable survivals of World War II.

As a result of the raid, on 14 January 1943 under directive (S.46239/?? A.C.A.S. Ops), the Allies implemented incendiary bomb tactics against U-Boat pens, under the Area bombing directive. To minimize civilian casualties during air attacks, the Allies devised a plan to force evacuation of the town. For three days in 1943, British Royal Air Force and American aircraft dropped scores of leaflets warning the population of a planned fire-bombing raid. At the end of the third day, the raid came and burned the entire city to the ground. Casualties were light as most of the civilians had heeded the warning and fled to the safety of the countryside, but after that point except for the self-contained U-boat base, Saint-Nazaire remained abandoned until the end of the war.

After D-day and the liberation of most of France in 1944, German troops in Saint-Nazaire's submarine base refused to surrender, and they holed up (as did their counterparts in the La Rochelle and Lorient bases). Since the Germans could no longer conduct major submarine operations from the bases without a supply line, the SHAEF commander, U.S. General Dwight D. Eisenhower decided to simply bypass these ports, and the Allied armies focused their resources on the invasion of Germany. Saint-Nazaire and the other two German "pockets" remained under Nazi control until the last day of the war in Europe, 8 May 1945.

Post World War II

After the construction of the in 1961, the last Compagnie Générale Transatlantique liner and the subsequent closure of the Suez Canal, Chantiers de l'Atlantique began building large oil tankers, including Batillus, Bellamya, Pierre Guillaumat and Prairial. A new dry dock (Basin C) was planned for the construction of tankers over 1,000,000 tonnes but this fell through with the re-opening of the Suez Canal. The was constructed at Chantiers de l'Atlantique in 2003.

Education

Schools

The Junior schools have nearly 7,000 pupils divided in 12 colleges: public colleges Albert Vinçon; Pierre Norange; Manon Roland; Jean de Neyman; Jean Moulin, accommodate around 1350 pupils each. Private colleges include:

The high-schools educate 6,000 pupils divided into 11 colleges, with the technical Aristide Briand having some 3 500 pupils, one of the largest colleges of France [ref. necessary]; the experimental college, public lycée managed jointly by the teachers and the pupils; the private college of Saint-Louis mainstream education; the hotel private college Holy-Anne; the private of mainstream education and technological college Our-Lady-in Espérance. The Cité Scolaire of Saint-Nazaire is one of largest of France, with nearly 4 000 high-school pupils.

University

Transport

A project to review a second crossing of the Loire between Nantes and Saint Nazaire is being considered to be constructed and operational by 2025.

Railway

Air travel

International travel is accessed via Nantes Atlantique Airport, the biggest airport in western France, linking with several French and European cities, as well as Montreal in Canada and some northern Africa cities. It is currently planned that this airport will be supplemented by a new Aéroport du Grand Ouest, that will be situated 30 km to the north-west of Nantes in the ''commune'' of Notre-Dame-des-Landes. The €580 million project was approved in February 2008, with construction expected to start in 2012 and a opening date in 2015.

Economy

Saint-Nazaire suffered heavily from the downsizing of shipbuilding activity in western Europe in the 1960s and '70s, during which again she completed the new national passenger liner SS ''France''. For a long time in the 1980s, Saint-Nazaire remained an economically depressed area with unemployment rates above 20%. Today, the local economy is more diversified and its situation is more in line with that of France as a whole. The major industries are:

Saint-Nazaire is one of the two seats of the Chamber of commerce and industry of Nantes and Saint-Nazaire which is that of Loire-Atlantique.

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

It has also cooperation agreements with: Cienfuegos, Cuba - since 1996

Cultural references

People from Saint-Nazaire

Demographics

Breton language

See also

References

External links

Category:Communes of Loire-Atlantique Category:Subprefectures in France Category:Airbus Category:Submarine bases

From a career as a local journalist in Northern England, Clarkson rose to public prominence as a presenter of the original format of ''Top Gear'' in 1988. Since the mid-1990s Clarkson has become a recognised public personality, regularly appearing on British television presenting his own shows and appearing as a guest on other shows. As well as motoring, Clarkson has produced programmes and books on subjects such as history and engineering. From 1998 to 2000 he also hosted his own chat show, ''Clarkson''.

His opinionated but humorous tongue-in-cheek writing and presenting style has often generated much public reaction to his viewpoints. His actions both privately and as a ''Top Gear'' presenter have also sometimes resulted in criticism from the media, politicians, pressure groups and the public.

Despite the criticism levelled against him, Clarkson has also generated a significant following from the public at large, being credited as a major factor in the resurgence of ''Top Gear'' as one of the most popular shows on the BBC.

Personal life

Clarkson played the role of a public schoolboy, Taplin, in a BBC radio Children's Hour serial adaptation of Anthony Buckeridge's ''Jennings'' novels until his voice broke.

Clarkson suffered from testicular torsion as a teenager and has since become a patron of several charities raising awareness of this condition.

Clarkson is twice-married. His first marriage was in September 1989 to Alexandra James (now Hall). This marriage was short-lived, and in May 1993 he married his manager, Frances Cain (daughter of VC recipient Robert Henry Cain) in Fulham. The couple currently live in the town of Chipping Norton, situated in the Cotswolds, with their three children. Known for buying him car-related gifts, for Christmas 2007 Clarkson's wife bought him a Mercedes-Benz 600.

Clarkson's fondness for wearing jeans has been blamed by some for the decline in sales of denim in the mid 1990s, particularly Levi's, because of their being associated with middle aged men, the so-called 'Jeremy Clarkson effect'. After fashion gurus Trinny and Susannah labelled Clarkson's dress sense as that of a market trader, he was persuaded to appear on their fashion makeover show ''What Not to Wear'' in order to avoid being considered for their all-time worst dressed winner award. Their attempts at restyling Clarkson were however all rebuffed, and Clarkson stated he would rather eat his own hair than appear on the show again.

For an episode of the first series of the BBC's ''Who Do You Think You Are?'' broadcast in November 2004, Clarkson was invited to investigate his family history. It included the story of his great-great-great grandfather John Kilner (1792–1857), who invented the Kilner jar: a container for preserved fruit.

Clarkson is reportedly a big fan of the rock band Genesis and attended the band‘s reunion concert at Twickenham Stadium in 2007. He also provided sleeve notes for the reissue of the album ''Selling England by the Pound'' as part of the ''Genesis 1970–1975'' box set.

Clarkson has been involved in a protracted legal dispute about access to a "permissive path" across the grounds of his second home on the Isle of Man since 2005, after reports that dogs had attacked and killed sheep on the property. He eventually lost the dispute after the Isle of Man government started a public enquiry and was told to re-open the footpath in May 2010. The case is currently being brought before the High Court.

Clarkson is also an avid birdwatcher. His favorite bird noted as being the Peregrine Falcon.

Career

Writing career

In 1984 Clarkson formed the Motoring Press Agency (MPA), in which, with fellow motoring journalist Jonathan Gill, he would conduct road tests for local newspapers and automotive magazines. This developed into pieces for publications such as ''Performance Car''. He has regularly written for ''Top Gear'' magazine since its launch in 1993.

Clarkson went on to writing articles for a diverse spectrum of readers through regular columns in both the mass-market tabloid newspaper ''The Sun'', and for the more 'up market' broadsheet newspaper ''The Sunday Times''. The ''Times'' columns are republished in The Weekend Australian newspaper. He also writes for the Toronto Star-Wheels Section.

In addition to newsprint, Clarkson has written books about cars and several other, humorous, titles. Many of his books are aggregated collections of articles that he has written for ''The Sunday Times''.

Television

Clarkson's views are often showcased on television shows. In 1997 Clarkson appeared on the light hearted comedy show ''Room 101'', in which a guest nominates things they hate in life to be consigned to nothingness. Clarkson despatched caravans, houseflies, the sitcom ''Last Of The Summer Wine'', the mentality within golf clubs, and vegetarians. His public persona has seen him make several appearances on the prime time talk shows ''Parkinson'' and ''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross'' since 2002. By 2003 his persona was deemed to fit the mould for the series ''Grumpy Old Men'', in which middle-aged men talk about any aspects of modern life which irritate them. Since the topical news panel show ''Have I Got News for You'' dismissed regular host Angus Deayton in October 2002, Clarkson has become one of the most regularly used guest hosts on the show in a role which attracts a sideways look at current affairs. On a more serious platform, Clarkson has appeared as a panellist on the political current affairs television show ''Question Time'' twice since 2003.

In 2007 Clarkson won the National Television Awards' Special Recognition Award. Also in 2007, it was reported that Clarkson earned £1 million a year for his role as a ''Top Gear'' presenter, and a further £1.7 million from books, DVDs and newspaper columns.

In 2007, Clarkson and co-presenter James May were the first people to reach the magnetic North Pole in a car, chronicled in a ''Top Gear'' polar special. Clarkson more recently sustained minor injuries to his legs, back and hand in an intentional high-speed head-on collision with a brick wall while making the 12th series of ''Top Gear''.

Persona

Clarkson is often politically incorrect. He often comments on the media-perceived social issues of the day such as the fear of challenging adolescent youths, known as 'hoodies'. In 2007 Clarkson was cleared of allegations of assaulting a hoodie while visiting Central Milton Keynes, after Thames Valley Police said that if anything, he had been the victim. In the five-part series ''Jeremy Clarkson Meets the Neighbours'' he travelled around Europe in a Jaguar E-Type, examining (and in some cases reinforcing) his stereotypes of other countries.

As a motoring journalist, he is frequently critical of government initiatives such as the London congestion charge or proposals on road charging. He is also frequently scornful of caravanners and cyclists. He has often singled out John Prescott the former Transport Minister, and Stephen Joseph the head of the public transport pressure group Transport 2000 for ridicule.

Clarkson is unsympathetic to the green movement and has little respect for groups such as Greenpeace—he believes that the "eco-mentalists" are a by-product of the "old trade unionists and CND lesbians" who had found a more relevant cause— but "loves the destination" of environmentalism and believes that people should quietly strive to be more eco-friendly. Clarkson has unorthodox views regarding global warming: although he believes that higher temperatures are not necessarily negative and that anthropogenic carbon dioxide production has a negligible effect on the global climate, but is aware of the negative potential consequences of global warming, saying "let's just stop and think for a moment what the consequences might be. Switzerland loses its skiing resorts? The beach in Miami is washed away? North Carolina gets knocked over by a hurricane? Anything bothering you yet?"

In an attempt to prove the press and public furore over the 2007 UK child benefit data scandal was a fuss about nothing, he published his own bank account number and sort code, together with instructions on how to find out his address, in ''The Sun'' newspaper, expecting nobody to be able to remove money from his account. He later discovered that someone had been able to set up a monthly direct debit for £500 to Diabetes UK, and this person's identity was protected from the bank under the Data Protection Act 1998.

Clarkson has been highly critical of the United States and more recently President Barack Obama. In an article after Obama was sworn into office, Clarkson wrote (in reference to over 308,000,000 Americans) "they have got it into their heads that Barack Obama is actually a blend of Jesus, Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King." Clarkson has also been very critical of the Special Relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom. He referred to America as the United States of Total Paranoia, commenting that one needs a permit to do everything except for purchasing firearms.

Whilst Clarkson states such views in his columns and in public appearances, his public persona does not necessarily represent his personal views, as he acknowledged whilst interviewing Alastair Campbell saying "I don't believe what I write, any more than you (Alastair Campbell) believe what you say"

Clarkson has been described as a "skilful propagandist for the motoring lobby" by ''The Economist'' and a "dazzling hero of political incorrectness" by the ''Daily Mirror''. With a forthright and sometimes deadpan delivery, Clarkson is said to thrive on the notoriety his public comments bring, and has risen to the level of the bête noire of the various groups who disagree with his views. On the Channel 4 organised viewer poll, for the ''100 Worst Britons We Love to Hate'' programme, Clarkson polled in 66th place. By 2005, Clarkson was perceived by the press to have upset so many people and groups, ''The Independent'' put him on trial for various 'crimes', declaring him guilty on most counts.

Responses to Clarkson's comments are often directed personally, with derogatory comments about residents of Norfolk leading to some residents organising a "We hate Jeremy Clarkson" club. In ''The Guardian's'' 2007 'Media 100' list, which lists the top 100 most "powerful people in the [media] industry", based on cultural, economic and political influence in the UK, Clarkson was listed as a new entrant at 74th. Some critics even attribute Clarkson's actions and views as being influential enough to be responsible for the closure of Rover and the Luton manufacturing plant of Vauxhall. Clarkson's comments about Rover prompted workers to hang an "Anti-Clarkson Campaign" banner outside the defunct Longbridge plant in its last days.

The BBC often plays down his comments as ultimately not having the weight they are ascribed. In 2007 they described Clarkson as "Not a man given to considered opinion", and in response to an official complaint another BBC spokeswoman once said: "Jeremy's colourful comments are always entertaining, but they are his own comments and not those of the BBC. More often than not they are said with a twinkle in his eye." Some of his opponents state they take the view he is a man that should be ignored. Kevin Clinton, head of Road Safety at the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) has stated "We don't take what he says too seriously and hopefully other people don't either."

On his chat show, ''Clarkson'', he caused upset to the Welsh by placing a 3D plastic map of Wales into a microwave oven and switching it on. He later defended this by saying, "I put Wales in there because Scotland wouldn't fit."

His views on the environment once precipitated a small demonstration at the 2005 award ceremony for his honorary degree from Oxford Brookes University, when Clarkson was pied by road protester Rebecca Lush. Clarkson took this incident in good humour, responding 'good shot' and subsequently referring to Lush as "Banana girl". Clarkson has spoken in support of hydrogen cars as a solution.

In 2008 an internet petition was posted on the Prime Minister's Number 10 website to "Make Jeremy Clarkson Prime Minister". By the time it closed, it had attracted 49,446 signatures. An opposing petition posted on the same site set to "Never, Ever Make Jeremy Clarkson Prime Minister" attracted 87 signatures. Clarkson later commented he would be a rubbish Prime Minister as he is always contradicting himself in his columns. In their official response to the petition, Number 10 agreed with Clarkson's comments.

In a 2008 poll of 5,000 female members of an online dating website, Clarkson came third in a poll of MISAs—Men I Secretly Adore—behind Jonathan Ross and Phillip Schofield. Characteristically, Clarkson was upset not to have come top.

In response to the reactions he gets, Clarkson has stated "I enjoy this back and forth, it makes the world go round but it is just opinion" and "I don't have any influence over what people do, I really don't. It makes no difference what I say. ''Top Gear'' is just fluff. It's just entertainment – people don't listen to me." On the opinion that his views are influential enough to topple car companies, he has argued that he has proof that he has had no influence. "When I said that the Ford Orion was the worst car ever it went on to become a best-selling car."

Clarkson was ranked 50th on Motor Trend Magazine's Power List for 2011, its list of the fifty most influential figures in the automotive industry.

Military interests

Clarkson presented a programme looking at recipients of the Victoria Cross, in particular focusing on his father-in-law, Robert Henry Cain, who received a VC for actions during the Battle of Arnhem in World War II.

In 2007 Clarkson wrote and presented ''Jeremy Clarkson: Greatest Raid of All Time'', a documentary about the World War II Operation Chariot, a 1942 Commando raid on the docks of Saint-Nazaire in occupied France. At the end of 2007 Clarkson became a patron of Help for Heroes, a charity aiming to raise money to provide better facilities to wounded British servicemen. His effort led to the 2007 Christmas appeal in ''The Sunday Times'' supporting Help for Heroes.

Clarkson borrowed a Lightning (serial XM172), an RAF supersonic jet fighter of the Cold War era, which was temporarily placed in his garden and documented on his TV show Speed.

Engineering interests

In his book, ''I Know You Got Soul'' he describes many machines that he believes possess a soul. He cited the Concorde crash as his inspiration, feeling a sadness for the demise of the machine as well as the passengers. Clarkson was a passenger on the last BA Concorde flight on 24 October 2003. Paraphrasing Neil Armstrong he described the retirement of the fleet as "This is one small step for a man, but one huge leap backwards for mankind", and that the challenge of building Concorde had been a greater human feat than landing a man on the Moon.

His known passion for single- or two-passenger high-velocity transport led to his brief acquisition of an English Electric Lightning F1A jet fighter XM172, which was installed in the front garden of his country home. The Lightning was subsequently removed on the orders of the local council, which "wouldn't believe my claim that it was a leaf blower", according to Clarkson on a Tiscali Motoring webchat. In fact, the whole affair was set up for his programme ''Speed'', and the Lightning is now back serving as gate guardian at Wycombe Air Park (formerly RAF Booker).

In a ''Top Gear'' episode, Clarkson drove the Bugatti Veyron in a race across Europe against a Cessna private aeroplane. The Veyron was an £850,000 technology demonstrator project built by Volkswagen to become the fastest production car, but a practical road car at the same time. In building such an ambitious machine, Clarkson described the project as "a triumph for lunacy over common sense, a triumph for man over nature and a triumph for Volkswagen over absolutely every other car maker in the world." After winning the race, Clarkson announced that "It's quite a hollow victory really, because I've got to go for the rest of my life knowing that I'll never own that car. I'll never experience that power again."

Cars

Ownership

In addition to the many cars he has owned, as a motoring journalist Clarkson regularly has car companies deliver a choice of cars to his driveway for testing.

Clarkson wanted to purchase the Ford GT after admiring its inspiration, the Ford GT40 race cars of the 1960s. Clarkson was able to secure a place on the shortlist for the few cars that would be imported to Britain to official customers, only through knowing Ford's head of PR through a previous job. After waiting years and facing an increased price, he found many technical problems with the car. After "the most miserable month's motoring possible," he returned it to Ford for a full refund. After a short period, including asking ''Top Gear'' fans for advice over the Internet, he bought back his GT. He called it "the most unreliable car ever made", owing to never being able to complete a return journey with it. In 2006 Clarkson ordered a Gallardo Spyder and sold the Ford GT to make way for it. In August 2008 he sold the Gallardo because "idiots in Peugeots kept trying to race [him] in it" [Jeremy Clarkson - "The Italian Job" DVD]. In October, he also announced he sold his Volvo XC90. But in January 2009, in a review of the car printed in The Times, he said, "I’ve just bought my third Volvo XC90 in a row and the simple fact is this: it takes six children to school in the morning."

Likes

Despite not liking Rover or Vauxhall, Clarkson does have an affection for the 'British' marques of Jaguar and Aston Martin, but has previously described this success as being down to the combination of British ingenuity with foreign funding, management and marketing. Clarkson often applies national stereotypes to cars, i.e. German cars are well built but too serious, Italian cars are stylish but temperamental, Japanese cars are hi-tech but soulless, and the present intermixing of nationalities in the global car industry becomes a source of comment.

Clarkson has a particular fondness for Alfa Romeos, and has owned several. He contends that "you cannot be a true petrolhead until you've owned one... it's like having really great sex that leaves you with an embarrassing itch." In his book ''I Know You Got Soul'' the Alfa Romeo 166 was one of only three cars classified as having that "special something". Clarkson quotably called the Brera, Alfa's latest sports car, "Cameron Diaz on wheels". Despite his love for Alfa Romeos, he was very critical of the company's supercar, the 8C Competizione. In both ''Top Gear'' and his 2009 video special ''Thriller'', Clarkson had no doubts about the car's beauty, but panned the poorly-designed suspension, comparing it to a Ford Mustang.

Clarkson has had mixed views on the Porsche 911 sports cars, feeling them to have uninspiring styling. He is also not a fan of the rear-engined flat six layout, feeling it a fundamentally flawed design. He has, however, often complimented the technical aspects and practicalities of many Porsches, over say the equivalent Ferrari of the time. In reviewing a 2003 Porsche 911 GT3 though, Clarkson conceded that Porsche had finally overcome the natural tendency of a Porsche mechanical layout to lose the grip in the rear tyres in a bend, and stated it was the first Porsche he had ever seriously considered buying. Clarkson also praised Porsche's supercar, the Carrera GT, in an October 2004 episode of ''Top Gear'', and even commented that it's one of the most beautiful cars he has ever driven. Clarkson has also expressed fondness for late-model V8 Holdens, available in the UK rebadged as Vauxhalls. Of the Monaro VXR he said, "It's like they had a picture of me on their desk and said [Australian accent] 'Let's build that bloke a car!'" and "I can't believe it... I've fallen in love... with a Vauxhall!" Clarkson suffered two slipped discs that he attributed to driving this car he described as being "back-breakingly marvellous".

Dislikes

One of Clarkson's most infamous dislikes was of the British car brand Rover, the last major British owned and built car manufacturer. This view stretched back to the company's time as part of British Leyland. Describing the history of the company up to its last flagship model, the Rover 75, he stated "Never in the field of human endeavour has so much been done, so badly, by so many." In the latter years of the company Clarkson blamed the "uncool" brand image as being more of a hindrance to sales than any faults with the cars. On its demise, Clarkson stated "I cannot even get teary and emotional about the demise of the company itself – though I do feel sorry for the workforce."

Clarkson is also well known for his criticism of Vauxhalls and has described Vauxhall's parent company, General Motors, as a "pensions and healthcare" company which sees the "car making side of the business as an expensive loss-making nuisance". In spite of this, he has expressed approval of several recent Vauxhall models including the VXR models, the Monaro and Maloo, (both originally Australian Holdens) and the Zafira people carrier. Clarkson has expressed particular disdain of the Vauxhall Vectra, describing it as "One of my least favourite cars in the world. I've always hated it because I've always felt it was designed in a coffee break by people who couldn't care less about cars" and "one of the worst chassis I've ever come across". After a Top Gear piece by Clarkson for its launch in 1995, described by ''The Independent'' as "not doing [GM] any favours", Vauxhall complained to the BBC and announced, "We can take criticism but this piece was totally unbalanced."

Clarkson is known for destroying his most hated cars in various ways, including crushing a Yugo with a tank, catapulting a Nissan Sunny with a trebuchet, dropping a Porsche 911 onto a caravan (after plunging a piano onto the bonnet and dousing it in hydrochloric acid, amongst other things), getting a Land Rover and a box labelled "CND" to destroy a Citroën 2CV, allowing his American friend "Billy Bob" to destroy a Toyota Prius by shooting it with an arsenal of weaponry, shooting a Chevrolet Corvette with a helicopter gunship, dismantling a Buick Park Avenue with a bulldozer, or tearing a Lada Riva in half. In an episode of ''Top Gear'', Clarkson bought a Maserati Biturbo just to drop a skip on it to show how much the model ruined Maserati's reputation. In ''Jeremy Clarkson: Heaven and Hell'' (2005), he bought a brand-new Perodua Kelisa, proceeded to attack it with a sledgehammer, tore it apart with a heavy weight while being suspended in mid-air and finally blew it up.

Controversy

Offensive remarks

In April 2007 he was criticised in the Malaysian parliament for having described one of their cars, the Perodua Kelisa, as the worst in the world, built "in jungles by people who wear leaves for shoes". A Malaysian government minister countered, pointing out that no complaints had been received from UK customers who had bought the car.

While in Australia, Clarkson made disparaging remarks aimed at Gordon Brown, in February 2009, calling him a "one-eyed Scottish idiot" and accused him of lying. These comments were widely condemned by the Royal National Institute of Blind People and also Scottish politicians who requested that he should be taken off air. Furthermore, the comments were condemned as racist. He subsequently provided a qualified apology for remarks regarding Brown's "personal appearance".

In July 2009 though, Clarkson made another indignant remark about the British Prime Minister during a warm-up while recording a ''Top Gear'' show, apparently describing Brown as "a silly cunt". Although several newspapers reported that he had subsequently argued with BBC 2 controller Janice Hadlow, who was present at the recording, the BBC denied that he had been given a "dressing down". John Whittingdale, Conservative chair of the Culture Select Committee remarked: "Many people will find that offensive, many people will find that word in particular very offensive [...] I am surprised he felt it appropriate to use it."

On 6 July 2010 Clarkson reportedly angered gay rights campaigners after he made a remark on Top Gear that did not get aired on the 4 July's episode. But guest Alastair Campbell wrote about it on twitter. Clarkson apparently said he "Demanded the right not to get bummed". The BBC later said that they cut this remark out as they had to "Cut Down" the interview as it was too long to fit into the show.

Road safety

Piers Morgan feud

On the final Concorde flight, Clarkson threw a glass of water over Morgan during an argument. In March 2004 at the British Press Awards, he swore at Morgan and punched him before being restrained by security; Morgan says it has left him with a scar above his left eyebrow. In 2006 Morgan revealed that the feud was over, saying "There should always be a moment when you finally down cudgels, kiss and make up." Clarkson also mentioned that despite not getting on with Morgan, he can at least be in the same room as him at the same time.

Activities on ''Top Gear''

In November 2008 Clarkson attracted over 500 complaints to the BBC when he joked about lorry drivers murdering prostitutes. The BBC stated the comment was a comic rebuttal of a common misconception about lorry drivers and was within the viewer's expectation of Clarkson's ''Top Gear'' persona. Chris Mole, the Member of Parliament for Ipswich, where five prostitutes were murdered in 2006, wrote a "strongly worded" letter to BBC Director-General Mark Thompson, demanding that Clarkson be sacked. Clarkson dismissed Mole's comments in his ''Sunday Times'' column the following weekend, writing, "There are more important things to worry about than what some balding and irrelevant middle-aged man might have said on a crappy BBC2 motoring show." On the next ''Top Gear'' programme, Clarkson appeared sincerely apologetic and stated "It has been all over the news and the internet and after many complaints I feel I must apologise." However, instead of apologising for his comments, he went on to say "I'm sorry I didn't put the [Porsche] 911's time on the board last week" (after he set it on fire in the previous week's show), much to the studio audience's amusement. Andrew Tinkler, chief executive of the Eddie Stobart Group, a major trucking company, stated that "They were just having a laugh. It’s the 21st century, let’s get our sense of humour in line."

In an episode aired after the watershed on 1 August 2010, Clarkson described a ''Ferrari F430 Speciale'' as "speciale needs". He said the car owned by co-presenter James May looked "like a simpleton". Media regulator Ofcom investigated after receiving two complaints, and found that the comments "were capable of causing offence" but did not censure the BBC.

Filmography

Presenter

! Year !! Title |- | 1988–2000 || ''Top Gear'' (1977) |- | 1995–96 || ''Jeremy Clarkson's Motorworld'' |- | 1996 || ''Clarkson: Unleashed On Cars'' |- | 1997 || ''Apocalypse Clarkson'' |- | 1997 || ''Jeremy Clarkson's: Extreme Machines'' |- | 1998 || ''The Most Outrageous Jeremy Clarkson Video In The World...Ever!'' |- | 1998 || ''Robot Wars'' |- | 1999 || ''Jeremy Clarkson: Head To Head'' |- | 1998–2000 || ''Clarkson (chat show)'' |- | 2000 || ''Jeremy Clarkson: At Full Throttle'' |- | 2000 || ''Clarkson's Car Years'' |- | 2001 || ''Clarkson's Top 100 Cars'' |- | 2001 || ''Speed'' |- | 2001 || ''You Don't Want To Do That'' |- | 2002 || ''Clarkson: No Limits'' |- | 2002 – present|| ''Top Gear (2002)'' |- | 2002 || ''Jeremy Clarkson Meets The Neighbours'' |- | 2003 || ''Clarkson: Shootout'' |- | 2003 || ''The Victoria Cross: For Valour'' |- | 2004 || ''Clarkson: Hot Metal'' |- | 2004 || ''Inventions That Changed the World'' |- | 2005 || ''Clarkson: Heaven And Hell'' |- | 2006 || ''Clarkson: The Good, The Bad And The Ugly'' |- | 2007 || ''Clarkson: Supercar Showdown'' |- | 2007 || ''Jeremy Clarkson: The Greatest Raid of All Time'' |- | 2008 || ''Clarkson: Thriller'' |- | 2009 || ''Clarkson: Duel'' |- | 2010 || ''Clarkson: The Italian Job'' |}

Other roles

! Year !! Title !! Role |- | 1993 || ''Mr Blobby's Christmas (Music Video) || Guest |- | 1997 || ''Room 101'' || Guest |- | 1997 || ''The Mrs Merton Show'' || Guest |- | 2002 || ''100 Greatest Britons'' || Guest |- | 2002 || ''Have I Got News for You'' || Guest Host |- | 2002 || ''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross'' || Guest |- | 2003 || ''Patrick Kielty Almost Live'' || Guest |- | 2003 || ''Parkinson'' || Guest |- | 2003 || ''Question Time'' || Participant |- | 2003 || ''Grumpy Old Men'' || Participant |- | 2004 || ''Call My Bluff'' || Participant |- | 2004 || ''QI'' || Participant |- | 2004 || ''Who Do You Think You Are?'' || Participant |- | 2005 || ''Top of the Pops'' || Guest Host |- | 2006 || ''Cars'' || Voice Artist of Harv in UK Version. |- | 2006 || ''Never Mind the Buzzcocks'' || Guest Host |- | 2006 || ''The F Word || Participant |- | 2008 || ''The One Show'' || Guest |- | 2008 || ''Have I Got News for You'' || Guest Host |- | 2009 || ''The Chris Moyles Show'' || Guest |- | 2009 || ''Love the Beast'' || Guest |- | 2009 || ''8 out of 10 Cats'' || Guest |- | 2009 || ''Have I Got News For You'' || Guest |- | 2010 || ''Have I Got News For You'' || Guest Host |- | 2010 || ''QI'' || Participant |}

Videos/DVDs

Running Series

Voice-Over Compilations

Television Compilations

Bibliography

! Book !! Publisher !! Year |- | Jeremy Clarkson's Motorworld || BBC Books Penguin Books || 1996 Reprinted 2004 |- | Clarkson On Cars || Virgin Books Penguin Books || 1996 Reprinted 2004 |- | Clarkson's Hot 100 || Virgin Books Carlton Books || 1997 Reprinted 1998 |- | Planet Dagenham || Andre Deustch Carlton Books || 1998 Reprinted 2006 |- | Born To Be Riled || BBC Books Penguin Books || 1999 Reprinted 2007 |- | Jeremy Clarkson On Ferrari || Lancaster Books Salamander Books || 2000 Reprinted 2001 |- | The World According To Clarkson || Icon Books Penguin Books || 2004 Reprinted 2005 |- | I Know You Got Soul || Micheal Joseph Penguin Books || 2005 Reprinted 2006 |- | And Another Thing... || Micheal Joseph Penguin Books || 2006 Reprinted 2007 |- | Don't Stop Me Now!! || Micheal Joseph Penguin Books || 2007 Reprinted 2008 |- | For Crying Out Loud! || Micheal Joseph Penguin Books || 2008 Reprinted 2009 |- | Driven To Distraction || Micheal Joseph Penguin Books || 2009 Reprinted 2010 |- | How Hard Can It Be? || Micheal Joseph Penguin Books || 2010 Reprinted 2010 |}

Footnotes

References

External links

Category:Article Feedback Pilot Category:1960 births Category:Living people Category:Critics of the European Union Category:English writers Category:English journalists Category:English television presenters Category:Motoring journalists Category:Never Mind the Buzzcocks Category:Old Reptonians Category:People from Doncaster Category:The Sunday Times people Category:Top Gear Category:People educated at Hill House School, Doncaster