We need to give it time and embrace the cars as stars

The hype over this show has become ridiculous, after Jeremy Clarkson’s sacking and his two mates jumping ship with him.

Of course the BBC was going to keep the show. It’s theirs after all! And of course we were going to get new hosts. The only questions would be who and would they gel?

I remember the first series of the ‘new’ Top Gear back in 2002. The new format was dreamt up by Clarkson and his old school buddy Andy Wilman, the show’s director.

The first series featured former BBC local radio presenter and unknown Richard Hammond and motoring journalist Jason Dawe. He championed bargain cars over the supercar in that first series, but was dropped and replaced by another journalist, James May.

The BBC has never repeated this series. Let’s just say it wasn’t that great. In fact, the first series featuring James May wasn’t that great either.

But, like Alex Ferguson at Manchester United, it was given time to grow and look what happened.

I couldn’t think of a better presenter than Chris Evans to host Top Gear. Love him or hate him, his passion for cars and his energetic presenting style is what the show needs.

I wasn’t too sure about Matt Le Blanc though, but after watching the first episode, for me he got the laughs and not Evans.

Overall, it’s a show about cars once again and, I have to say, I enjoyed it. Evans didn’t irritate me too much and Le Blanc’s irreverent style amused me.

But like football clubs and modern-day managers, will we give it time?

I’d like us all to forget about the old presenters and how they did things. Otherwise the audience may feel like they are just covering for Clarkson, Hammond and May until they return from their ‘holiday’.

They need to make the show their own and over time I’m sure they will. Fundamentally it’s a great car show. Now it’s time to embrace the cars themselves.

WHERE WERE SHADDAP YOU FACE AND THE CHICKEN SONG?

It’s always a bit of a pain to work on a bank holiday, but I work in an industry that never stops. Something has to be coming out of the radio!

Then again, we always do something a bit special on one of these days.

So on Monday every song we played on Wave 105 was a No 1 single.

I was a little disappointed with some of the songs missing though.

Did we play the song which kept Vienna by Ultravox off the top spot?

No. Shaddap You Face was No 1 for three weeks.

And there was no Renee & Renato or The Goombay Dance Band either.

Brotherhood of Man and The Chicken Song by Spitting Image didn’t even get a spin either.

It ruined my bank holiday!

OUR GARDEN FULL OF SCREAMING KIDS IS WHAT LIFE’S ALL ABOUT

Our son Freddie turned two on Monday and in Sunday’s beautiful sunshine we held a birthday party.

It was a sign of things to come. A bouncy castle at the back of the garden, swings and a slide and soon it was full of screaming kids, many still in nappies!

Sounds like hell for some, but for us, looking from the kitchen into a garden filled with laughter and happiness, it was what life is all about.

Four generations of my family were there and enjoying the weather.

Thankfully, with many phones, cameras and camcorders, these memories will be enjoyed forever and in HD quality.

By the time the kids were in bed and the dishwasher had finished for the third time, we relaxed!