Following host Jeremy Clarkson's dismissal from the BBC car show "Top Gear," the last three episodes of season 22 have been sitting in limbo, uncertain if they would be aired. According to The Guardian, BBC Two's controller Kim Shillinglaw confirmed that the episodes will air this year, perhaps even as early as summer. No official air date has been given.
According to the report, the final episodes have a lot of pre-recorded material to work with and will still feature the three original hosts, namely Clarkson, James May, and Richard Hammond. However, the live studio segments have not yet been addressed and it is likely that BBC will utilize different hosts to complete the episodes.
"There is no way I would not want the available material to be seen by viewers," Shillinglaw told The Guardian. "Top Gear is a show that I love, I genuinely watch it and I always have done."
Shillinglaw also confirmed that the long-running show would be renewing for season 23, but with a different format and different set of hosts.
Regarding Clarkson, Shillinglaw stated that while he was dismissed from the show with no contract renewal, he was not banned by BBC. This would allow the host to appear in different shows on the same network if he so chooses.
Clarkson was suspended from the show last March after reportedly punching one of the producers, Oisin Tymon. His contract, which expired at the end of March, was not renewed as originally planned. Fellow hosts James May and Richard Hammond also allowed their contracts to expire instead of renewing them for season 23.
Following the events, Clarkson has revealed that he wants to work on a new car show.
"I have lost my baby but I shall create another," Clarkson wrote on his column on The Sunday Times, as quoted by TopGearBox. "I don't know who the other parent will be or what the baby will be like, but I cannot sit around anymore organising my photograph albums."
With both May and Hammond free from "Top Gear," it may be possible that they will join Clarkson in his new series.
