It's the end of an era with Top Gear's Star in a Reasonably Priced Car slot set to be replaced by Star in a Rallycross Car for the new series - Batman v Superman's Jesse Eisenberg and chef Gordon Ramsay will be the first behind the wheel.
British entertainment website RadioTimes has revealed that Eisenberg and Ramsay will be in a 'souped up' red Mini Cooper when the series returns to BBC Two on Sunday May 29.
They will be competing on a new circuit featuring a rallycross zone, a jump and a water splash.
One of the show's new hosts, actor Matt LeBlanc, did his job application no harm by becoming champion of Star in a Reasonably Priced Car with a time of 1'42" in a Kia Cee'd.
Gardaí and Kerry County Council facilitated the filming of an episode of Top Gear in The Kingdom last month but, it seems, at very little cost to the taxpayer.
Former Friends star LeBlanc and co-host Chris Evans spent a weekend in mid-April shooting scenes for the upcoming series, visiting Killarney, Kenmare and Dingle. They also attended a Gaelic football match at Gallarus GAA pitch.
The wheel deal: Matt LeBlanc and Chris Evans take to the Wild Atlantic Way for new series of #TopGearhttps://t.co/6meOf0ebba
— RTÉ News (@rtenews) April 16, 2016
Documents released to RTÉ News under Freedom of Information show that the Gardaí facilitated traffic management, crowd control and public safety. The force had to pay out for ten hours of overtime and €64 in subsistence allowances.
Kerry County Council, meanwhile, received only one request from the producers of Top Gear. It was asked by telephone to remove a boulder from the side of the road at Ladies' View on the N71 to facilitate filming. The council says this was a minor operation and the production company was not charged.
Filming TopGear in Ireland. Great place. Great people. Thanks for everything. pic.twitter.com/JC26E4HJKU
— Matt LeBlanc (@Matt_LeBlanc) April 20, 2016
Dubliner Eddie Jordan, who is a former motorsport team boss, female motor racing driver Sabine Schmitz and YouTube car reviewer Rory Reid are also set to star alongside Evans and LeBlanc when the series returns.
The new Top Gear line-up
