Has Top Gear returned to its former glory?
Matt LeBlanc and Chris Harris head to Oman in what critics call 'one of the season's best' road trips
Following an array of controversies over the years, which ultimately lead to Jeremy Clarkson being fired, Top Gear appears to en route to its former glory, say critics.
[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"theweek_content_narrow","fid":"110202","attributes":{"class":"media-image"}}]]
"A welcome calm has descended upon Planet Petrolhead," says the Daily Telegraph.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Claiming "it feels like an age" since viewers of the BBC motoring show were being "distracted by off-screen punch-ups", the paper says the relationship between the show's new presenters - Matt Le Blanc, Chris Harris and Rory Reid - is "finally gelling" and that they're developing a "cackling chemistry".
The Daily Mail agrees. Top Gear is "back to its best" after "endless poor reviews" last year, when Chris Evans was its main presenter, it declares.
Even the fans are impressed, with the Mail reporting that one viewer hailed Sunday night's show as "possibly the best episode in years".
Episode 4 saw Harris race from Dubai to Oman in the new Bugatti Chiron - a £2m hypercar with a limited top speed of 261mph.
Former Friends star Le Blanc, meanwhile, used a selection of vehicles, including a private jet and a luxurious speed boat, to gain the upper hand over his co-host and arrive first.
Harris's sheer enthusiasm for the Chiron proved "infectious", says the Telegraph, a complete departure from the "crass bragging" of former host Evans.
The paper adds that it was "one of the season's best" road trips - "gorgeously filmed" and harking back to the era of Clarkson and his fellow presenters Richard Hammond and James May.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
'Republicans want to silence Israel's opponents'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Poland, Germany nab alleged anti-Ukraine spies
Speed Read A man was arrested over a supposed Russian plot to kill Ukrainian President Zelenskyy
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Today's political cartoons - April 19, 2024
Cartoons Friday's cartoons - priority delivery, USPS on fire, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Aitch or haitch: the linguisitic debate that 'matters a lot'
Talking Point 'University Challenge' host Amol Rajan has promised to change the way he pronounces the letter 'H'
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
The Secret Army: the IRA propaganda film forgotten for almost 50 years
Why Everyone's Talking About 'Chilling' BBC documentary reveals how US TV crew documented the inner workings of paramilitary group in 1970s
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Inseparable Sisters: uplifting BBC documentary about conjoined twins
The Week Recommends A 'refreshingly human and optimistic' portrayal that balances reality with positivity
By The Week UK Published
-
Annie Nightingale obituary: the trailblazing DJ who was Radio 1's longest-serving presenter
Obituary The first female DJ on BBC Radio 1, Nightingale paved the way for Annie Mac, Jo Whiley, Zoe Ball, Sara Cox and many more
By The Week Staff Published
-
'True Detective: Night Country' and the rise of Arctic Noir
The Week Recommends Why we love police procedurals set in the bleak and remote polar extremes
By David Faris Published
-
Doctor Who: 60 years of time-travelling tomfoolery
Why Everyone's Talking About Special episodes celebrate show's past as Whovians look forward to new seasons ahead
By Julia O'Driscoll, The Week UK Published
-
Jimmy Savile: is The Reckoning a dramatisation too far?
Talking Point Steve Coogan's BBC series deemed a 'lurid story told mainly for ratings'
By The Week Staff Published
-
Henpocalypse! review: ‘bawdy’ BBC Two comedy set in remote Wales
The Week Recommends It may be ‘a bit coarse’ but the characters become more likeable as the series goes on
By The Week Staff Published