Written by the script editor for the series - the good bits are its an easy read, is geuinely funny in places, and it is genuinely interesting reading how much went into the shows. The book started off very amusing but (like my experience with the tv series really) it got childish and a bit boorish in places; delighting in the infantile. My impression was that the show was often set up when they were making out stuff happened unexpectedly. Sometimes this was actually the case and other times not. Either way, the tv series lost appeal for me when they focused more on their "specials" - featuring a race against time or each other, or some other fake jeopardy. Apparently though the races were often just that - races. And any fill in shots from different angles and so on were recorded after the event, not during (which really would have made them fake). So he says, anyway.

The chapter on getting Schumacher to dress as The Stig prompted me to go and find it on YouTube. He describes MS behind the scenes as being expressionless while being briefed on what they'd like him to do and they wondered if he was ok with it all...but then came to the conclusion he was really just very focused and taking it all in, analysing exactly what was expected and the best way to do it.

In reality he probably thought he was "above all this childish crap and let's get it done and I can go".

The last chapter, giving his impressions of what went on when Clarkson got sacked and the show ended is odd, in a way - the book details what a great time everyone had, although they worked hard, and what good blokes the 3 presenters are...but the last chapter he sounds relieved it was all over and peeved at Clarkson for his half arsed apology to the staff after the event without going into why it was a relief the show was finishing. I guess when you might be after a job in the future you're not going to be too critical.

So a mildly diverting read - probably more so if you're a die hard fan, which I wasn't really - and genuinely funny in places. No real dirt dished, a few stories he has probably told at parties many times over, and (and this turned me off the book a bit) the delighting in the stupid, destructive and thoughtless. The only things that he isn't pleased about are the odd episodes where the ideas just didn't work as well as they hoped. ( )

And on that Bombshell is a look back at the golden years of Top Gear from 2002 to the disastrous events of 2015 by the series script editor Richard Porter. As a big fan of the show I enjoyed the book immensely. As you might expect from a show writer, the book is just as witty and silly as the series was as it dives into the history of the show and how it became a global phenomenon. I loved hearing about the origin of the Stig and how the show managed to put stars in their reasonably priced car. It also answers the one question I always had about the series - yes the three presenters are basically the same in real life as you see them on tv. Overall it was a wonderful, nostalgic look back at Top Gear that made me want to go watch some reruns. This is definitely a must read for fans of the show.

I listened to the audio book narrated by Ben Elliot. ( )

For a big Top Gear fan, this book was fantastic. Each short chapter focuses on one aspect of the show: cars, presenters, a special show. The author was the script editor for thirteen years on the show and had a close relationship with the presenters and crew. The insider's view of how the show was made and how the people worked together was great. ( )

A witty and interesting account of the Top Gear years from long-serving script editor Richard Porter. He was an integral part of the production of the show from its revamp in 2002 to its unfortunately abrupt and engineered ending in early 2015. Consequently, he is well-placed to comment on everything that happened during that time and he is opinionated enough to have strong views on stuff but amiable enough not to come across as grumpy or biased. His chapters are topical rather than chronological which means there's no room for chaff or padding, which significantly enhances the flow of the book. His writing style is rather funny and reminiscent of Jeremy Clarkson's style (for example, Ben Collins' outing as the Stig "couldn't have been more newsworthy if we'd glued it to Cheryl Cole's sideboob" (pg. 123)) but this shouldn't come as a surprise as Porter wrote a lot of the words that Clarkson and co. said on television.

All this made And on That Bombshell a delight to read, and makes you remember just how good the post-2002 Top Gear was. It made some truly spectacular, hilarious and thoughtful television that appealed to a remarkably varied amount of the population. It was one of the few TV shows that embodied everything the BBC should be – popular, imaginative, genuine – which makes it even more depressing that the suits were so keen to destroy it, like a host attacking a virus. With the 'new' Top Gear being released soon (although, let's face it, Top Gear is dead and only the 'brand' name (ugh) remains), it's bittersweet to remember all that the show was. The new one is created by a bunch of faceless BBC commissars who have finally fulfilled their eternal quest to have the show presented by a woman and an ethnic minority, and hosted by the professionally-zany Chris Evans to bring 'wackiness' and 'irreverence' and other buzzwords used in focus group agendas. What a damn shame. (Interestingly, the insufferably right-on chief exec who pursued his vendetta against Clarkson has now left for a higher-paid job in America, strangely still in demand despite sabotaging his employer's most lucrative and beneficial programme. What a champ.)

Porter is far more diplomatic on this subject than I am. Not only does he come down surprisingly hard on Clarkson's role in the death of Top Gear, but he also makes some respectable points about both the benefits and the niggly hindrances the BBC brought to the table. In a useful analogy, he dubs the BBC "the piece of grit in the Top Gear oyster that enabled pearls to be made" (pg. 232) and, to be sure, the love-hate dynamic with the corporation did make a telling contribution to the spirit of the show. It will be interesting to see how the dynamic with Amazon influences the new Clarkson, Hammond and May show, announced a few days ago as being titled The Grand Tour. What can be certain is that it will be a damn sight better than the zombie camel now trying to pass itself off as 'Top Gear'. And I hope Porter will be a part of it.

All in all, Porter has crafted a fine farewell to perhaps the most unique television program of our time (a better send-off than the BBC allowed Clarkson, who was banned from the studio and not allowed to film a final episode to the show he had a leading role in, garnering 350 million viewers for the BBC worldwide). Porter is funny and likeable, and in this memoir he manages to keep the obligatory gushing about what wonderful people he worked with down to a respectable minimum. He provides consistently interesting insights into the production, and I finished the book with just one unanswered question: Am I the only one who quite liked the India special? ( )

Boeiend en informatief

Interessant boek over wat er achter de schermen bij Top Gear gebeurt. De schrijver is duidelijk bedreven in het maken van lekker lopende teksten. Het is denk ik alleen interessant als je Top Gear ooit hebt gekeken. ( )