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Friends actor Matt LeBlanc with Chris Evans and The Stig, as LeBlanc is announced as the new presenters of Top Gear.
Friends actor Matt LeBlanc with Chris Evans and The Stig, as LeBlanc is announced as the new presenters of Top Gear. Photograph: PA
Friends actor Matt LeBlanc with Chris Evans and The Stig, as LeBlanc is announced as the new presenters of Top Gear. Photograph: PA

Matt LeBlanc on Top Gear a welcome boost at a key time for show and BBC

This article is more than 8 years old

Amid speculation about who the other presenters will be, Chris Evans and LeBlanc can now begin a PR offensive ahead of show’s May relaunch

Chris Evans introduced one of his new “Friends” to Top Gear fans on Thursday, announcing that Matt LeBlanc, star of the US sitcom, would join him as co-presenter of the car show when it relaunches in May.

After a string of setbacks for Top Gear – from the loss of its executive producer after only a few months, to the emergence of pictures purporting to show Evans suffering from car sickness – the move should provide a boost for the show.

LeBlanc, who has previously worked on the BBC show Episodes, will join the show immediately, the BBC said. Not quickly enough, however, to make Thursday’s production team meeting in a pub, where colleagues raised pints to their new co-presenter, in photographs posted by Evans. His appointment is likely to provide a welcome lift at a key time for both the revamped show and the BBC, as the corporation’s commercial arm, BBC Worldwide, prepared to reveal the new Top Gear for the first time in a crucial pitch to more than 700 international TV buyers.

Evans, and now perhaps LeBlanc, is due to front the official unveiling of the show later this month in a PR offensive that aims to secure sales of Top Gear, and maintain its status as an international franchise worth £50m annually to the BBC.

A BBC source said: “This takes Top Gear in a new direction. LeBlanc’s presence on the show will also be a boost when selling it internationally, particularly in the US where it is due to air on BBC America.”

Evans’ announcement that LeBlanc was just one of “My new Top Gear Friends. More to come,” prompted a flurry of speculation about other presenters yet to be revealed.

Most discussion focused on German racing driver Sabine Schmitz and motoring journalist Chris Harris. The news prompted Stephen Mangan – who appears alongside LeBlanc in Episodes – to joke that he had been signed up as the new Stig. LeBlanc, in turn, invited him on to the show as a guest.

The programme is attempting to recover from the fallout of Jeremy Clarkson’s removal from Top Gear after subjecting a producer to what an inquiry said was “unprovoked physical and verbal attack”.

It has been a bumpy road, with the BBC yet to announce the show’s new lineup in full, and the departure of key backroom staff.

While the picture of Evans appearing to vomit after a test drive omitted to mention that his apparent fate was one that has befallen many other drivers over the years, the damage, to an extent, was done.

“Does new Top Gear presenter Chris Evans suffer from car sickness? Amid claims he won’t live up to predecessor Jeremy Clarkson, the new Top Gear presenter was forced to get out of the car to be sick during filming,” the Daily Telegraph reported.

Nevertheless, BBC bosses will be hoping that the capture of a Hollywood star will set it off on an upward trajectory. “Matt’s a lifelong fellow petrolhead and I’m thrilled he’s joining Top Gear. Acting out our craziest car notions on screen is a dream job and I know we’ll both be debating some epic road trip ideas. We can’t wait to share what we’ve been up to on screen later this year,” Evans said.

LeBlanc said: “As a car nut and a massive fan of Top Gear, I’m honoured and excited to be a part of this iconic show’s new chapter. What a thrill.” He later tweeted: “I love the show. Should be fun.”

The Golden Globe-winning actor is already the fastest celebrity to-date around the Top Gear track in its reasonably priced car feature. In February 2012, he made it round the track in a Kia C’eed in one minute, 42.1 seconds. A year later, he reappeared to test the new model against the old one.

He will be the first non-British presenter of the show in its 39-year history when it returns on BBC2 in May, the BBC said.

LeBlanc also presented the recent standalone spin-off Top Gear: The Races, where he led fans through some of the most memorable racing moments from the previous 22 series.

In a statement, the BBC said that additional Top Gear cast members would be confirmed shortly. It is understood that the broadcaster is set to announce Schmitz and Harris. A BBC spokesman did not respond to a request to confirm or deny those reports.

In a previous appearance on the show, Schmitz tried to make it round the Nürburgring in Germany in a Ford Transit van faster than Clarkson could in a Jaguar S-Type.

Alan Tyler, the BBC’s acting controller for entertainment commissioning, said: “Matt is a class act and a brilliant signing for Top Gear. He is a self-confessed car fanatic with a passion for the programme. I’m really looking forward to watching Chris and Matt bring the all new show to our audiences.”

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