Former Top Gear star Jeremy Clarkson has said he does not think James May will visit his new pub, “but Richard (Hammond) will”.
Hundreds of people queued up on Friday as the TV star opened his pub, The Farmer’s Dog, in Asthall, near Burford in Oxfordshire, to the public for the first time.
His new venture is an expansion of his Diddly Squat farm project, which is explored in his hit Prime Video series Clarkson’s Farm which began in 2021.
Before buying his farm, Clarkson was known for co-hosting BBC motoring programme Top Gear, alongside May and Hammond, until 2015.
From 2016, the trio began their Prime Video series, The Grand Tour, which recently finished filming.
Reflecting on the final Grand Tour, Clarkson said: “I think it was emotional, but the weird thing is… who am I saying goodbye to because we use exactly the same crews and producers on the farm show as we do on the cars show?
“So I basically said, ‘well, that’s it everyone, see you Monday on the farm’.”
Considering whether they might make a trip to his pub, he said: “James probably won’t, but Richard will.
“I talked to Richard only yesterday. We’re mates and we’ll still see them.
“We couldn’t possibly have imagined we’d be together 22 years when we started out.
“And so it’s a wrench, thinking, ‘God, we’re never going to do that again’.
“But by the same token, I don’t have to go through Terminal 5 (of Heathrow airport) quite so often.”
The TV star has faced pushback over the years from locals in the West Oxfordshire area when he has tried to expand his Diddly Squat farm project.
Some residents have expressed concerns about traffic problems because the pub is located next to the busy A40 road.
Clarkson will appear on Cathy Newman with Times Radio Drive during her 4pm to 7pm Friday slot.
