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AIBU?

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Original poster

to loathe Top Gear with all my heart?

140 replies

singsinthebath · 11/07/2010 20:50

I can hear DH watching it in the next room..... Clarkson with his hideous drawling voice and his sartorial inelegance of jacket with jeans, a load of cars screeching and a bunch of men acting like 5 year olds.
Hate it, hate it, hate it.

OP posts:
5DollarShake · 12/07/2010 14:23

I don't have strong feelings on it either way, but have been known to snort laugh involuntarily at it when DH has had it on.

One of his best friends got tickets to the filming, and we are both going along with him on Weds - we are taking any chance we can get to go out, the two of us, before DC2 arrives in 3 weeks.

I am not looking forward to all that standing around at 37 weeks, and DH is taunting me that Jez will probably pick on me in my heavily-with-child state, but it's all good fun.

fridayschild · 12/07/2010 14:31

DS1 and DS2 adore it. Mind you they are 7 and 5. I think that says it all about the target intelligence level of the audience.

LindenAvery · 12/07/2010 14:37

We like it in this house - conversation with DS aged 10 - Do you like Top Gear? 'Yes it's a funny show' What do you think of JC? 'He's MAD' Would you like to be like him? 'No - he behaves like a 6 year old. RH? - He whiten's his teeth? JM? - Hair's too long. Stig? - Wouldn't want to sleep like a bat.

What about encouraging you to drive fast? That's just stupid - you might hurt people or yourself. What's the best thing about the programme? Seeing the cool cars - I love the Apollo!

LuluF · 12/07/2010 14:38

YANBU - it's vile and sexist.

Birdly · 12/07/2010 14:40

We love it! Go Jezza! Go Hamster! Go, er, James!

God, I'd love to be a presenter on that show...

Doodleydoo · 12/07/2010 14:51

I love James, he is my crumpet too and I know I am not a Pleb thanks all the same.

However wanted to point out that without TG all your other soppy programmes on the bbc wouldn't get made as it is the BBC's most profitable programme and sold all around the globe. Also lighten up its not meant to be the bloody news (cos those reporters did so well in the last 7 days following a mad gun man around )it is LIGHT ENTERTAINMENT! And it is very funny, and Rupert Grint's line about Pubes on Jezza's head was truly worth turning the telly on for!

I would be more worried about those who watch Larkrise to Candleford and the costume drama likes, or the national lottery, casualty, eastenders.............they are the real Plebs

Original poster
singsinthebath · 12/07/2010 14:54

Doodley
I don't like Larkrise, the lottery, casualty or eastenders either.

OP posts:
Doodleydoo · 12/07/2010 14:56

Oh ok! None of the above being vaguely more intelligent than TG, which for Sunday night tosh is brilliant viewing.

Doodleydoo · 12/07/2010 14:59

Have been having a think about these tv programmes that are all over the beeb and frankly can't think of anything other than TG that I find vaguely amusing. It used to be My Family but don't think that is very funny any more.....I think I am going to be subjected to rubbish soaps and reality tv for eternity........................

Do we think Come Dine with me is tosh?

lorelilee · 12/07/2010 15:00

YABVVVU - it's blimmin hilarious! I love that it is COMPLETELY non-pc - doesn't make me a moron (or a pleb - get over yourself woman) just makes me someone who likes jovial banter. Oh, and I'm Scottish, so a lot of the jokes are at the expense of my countrymen and I STILL find it funny!

Alibabaandthe40nappies · 12/07/2010 15:01

Doodley - I watch Larkrise and a whole pile of other costume dramas as well as TG! Nothing plebby about me thank you very much

BouncingTurtle · 12/07/2010 15:07

YANBU - everyone's tastes are different.

However I love it!
The episode where Jezza is driving that Reliant Robin was hilarious, I was in severe pain from laughing so much after watching that!

Doodleydoo · 12/07/2010 15:31

Ali - will admit to not watching them as I always come in half way through..............

OhYouBadBadKitten · 12/07/2010 15:43

yabu - it is light relief in what is quite a depressing time.

Gleeb · 12/07/2010 15:49

I HATE it. Especially the whole 'rebellious' anti-environment stance .

HowAnnoying · 12/07/2010 19:12

Like marmite innit.

bandgeek · 12/07/2010 19:29

I thought I was the only one with a crush on James May!

LunaticFringe · 12/07/2010 19:43

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

TinaSparkles · 12/07/2010 19:56

I used to watch it with DH a couple of years ago and have to admit I did find it amusing.

But now, when ever I find myself in the same room when its on I mutter away: everything is so staged and the 'banter' and 'guffawing' is tedious.

JC - will be right wing and ant-establishment, anti-environment, anti-justforthesake of it everything

RH - will be gay because, because he one or two degrees more metrosexual than JC

JM - will be laughed at because he is a bit dopey

Agree that the audience do come across as plebs as well. Why the offence though? It's just a bit of banter. I expect the same people like Chris Moyles.

Sidge · 12/07/2010 21:35

LuluF - why do you think TG is sexist?

Serious question, not being funny, it's just I have never seen an episode that has had any sexist content.

Lonicera · 12/07/2010 21:42

we are watching it for the second night running as ds1 was in bed last night when dh watched it

LuluF · 12/07/2010 22:21

Sidge you made me doubt myself - then I googled and I'm not alone - there are loads of complaints.

I hate the way they talk about the cars - as if they are women/objects. I'm pretty sure they speak of them in more complimentary terms than they do their own wives and partners (this is, of course an assumption - I couldn't know that). Of course, this could be for effect for the show.

There was a quote I found in the guardian:

"Comment after comment about blokeishness, wives and women were finally crowned in one recent edition with a misogynistic explanation 'in plain English' which saw three bikini-clad woman used to demonstrate the differences between Porsche models."

I can't bear that blokeishness, the ridiculous banter - women are OK as long as they like cars, if they're like them. Oh it's awful.

Sidge · 12/07/2010 22:30

Gosh I've never seen an episode like that Lulu - I can't recall ever hearing them compare cars to women and don't recall any negative comments about wives/partners.

I must have missed the bikini models!!

LuluF · 12/07/2010 22:34

I think it's mainly Jeremy Clarkson I don't like. I think the others are fine on other things.

I'm going to have to endure another episode to check, aren't I?!

The thing is, my very un-blokey DH who has no real interest in cars (and can't drive!) watches it. I mean, what's that about?

edam · 12/07/2010 22:47

I'm not sure which programme the Guardian was watching - maybe the quote is 20 years old?

They do NOT talk about cars as if they were women (see my earlier post - Clarkson is one of the vanishingly small number of men who actually listened donkey's years ago when he was told he was sexist and sorted out his act. Nor do they mention their wives and partners much. Can only remember one challenge where Clarkson realised the event was one his wife competes in (some kind of time trial rallying). But that's all he said, oh, my wife does this.

Can't remember any bikini clad girls but if they did feature, it would not have been in an old fashioned car showroom way, it would have been poking fun at anyone daft enough to think driving X car would get you the girl.

They did do one segment where they had to try to impress a bunch of female teenagers with their driving (doing a doughnut or handbrake turns or something) but the point was the girls weren't impressed at all and it's a daft way to try to attract women.