One of the most popular TV franchises has been rebooted and revved up for a return to Aussie screens this year. B&T attended Paramount’s launch event at Eastern Creek, enjoyed a hot lap and chatted with the hosts.
Lead image: Paramount’s entertainment presenter Angela Bishop interviews Blair Joscelyne, Beau Ryan, Jonathan LaPaglia and the Stig.
Australian motorheads have something to look forward to aside from Oscar Piastri’s meteoric rise in Formula One.
A reboot of Top Gear Australia is hitting Aussie screens on Paramount+ from 17 May, and it promises to be a ride as enjoyable as when the UK franchise hit its heights in the Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May era.
The new series is fronted by actor and Australian Survivor host Jonathan LaPaglia; former footy star and Amazing Race presenter Beau Ryan; and musician, film producer and star of the YouTube series Mighty Car Mods, Blair ‘Moogs’ Joscelyne.
The trio were flown in – via helicopter – to Sydney’s Eastern Creek racetrack yesterday in a gala launch event that did not disappoint.
B&T’s marketing boss Erin Green and journalist Arvind Hickman attended the event and were taken on hot laps of the famous circuit by professional racers, including Fastrack V8 owner and head instructor George ‘Hollywood’ Elliot, who muscled a Mustang to its limits.
Aside from the hot lap drivers, the real stars of the show were Blair, Beau, Jonathan and the first female Stig, who blew everyone out of the water with her hot lap pace and icy cool demeanour. There were also Airtime Freestyle Motocross Team legends (see image below), who put on tricks trackside and lit up the sky with fire and energy.
B&T has seen one of the episodes of the new Top Gear Australia season, a joy ride around Colombia in questionable cars, and will soon share more insights on that (hint: it was a really fun watch).
“One of the supercars wasn’t returned unfortunately and that’s how you get rid of half a million dollars very quickly, sorry about how that turned Paramount+, but thank you (for funding the series),” Joscelyne said as the rain started bucketing down.
Ryan added: “You realise that when we were in places where [English is not their first language], such as in the countryside in Colombia, they all knew what Top Gear was and they thought [LaPaglia] was obviously Jeremy Clarkson,” he said.
“We had a lot of fun and travelled to some amazing places…(including) Albion Park, where I grew up.”
The Stig added: “…”
Aside from the Illawarra, the new season of Top Gear Australia visits South America, Rome, the Swiss Alps and plenty of other exotic locations that are beautiful to drive around.
The chemistry between the hosts on camera is magnetic, but B&T cannot reveal what they really thought about each other – according to LaPaglia confidentially – after a gruelling four-month filming period.
The eight-part series is produced by BBC Studios Productions Australia, and led by Paramount executive producer and Arsenal fan Ciaran Flannery.
Top Gear Australia joins a host of the Paramount+ Australian originals, including Last King of The Cross, NCIS: Sydney and The Inspired Unemployed (Impractical) Joker.
The platform currently costs $9.99 per month, but the entry price will drop to $6.99 for an advertising-fuelled subscription in June.
