Jeremy Clarkson reveals why he quit The Grand Tour after 8 years
The presenter opened up on his decision to exit the series.
It's been eight years since the inception of The Grand Tour, and now Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May will be saying goodbye to the series with one final outing as they travel across Zimbabwe.
In what has been described as a "very emotional" finale, the trio set out in three cars they've always wanted to own, a Lancia Montecarlo, a Ford Capri 3-litre and a Triumph Stag, for "a stunning road trip across beautiful and sometimes challenging landscapes".
This final episode will mark the end of an era, with Clarkson admitting he is "too old" and that he feels it is the right time to end the series.
In the press notes for the new episode, Clarkson said: "It's a young man's game. The other thing is that if we were to sit down and ask, 'Where next?' – well, we've been everywhere. We've done everything you can realistically do with a car, and the world has shrunk - and that's the tragedy.
"Years ago, we drove from Iraq into eastern Turkey into Syria, Damascus and Israel. We did the Crimea to Ukraine. You couldn't do any of that now.
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"There's some rich ground in and around Indonesia, but you can't really go there either. North Africa, apart from Morocco, is completely out."
While they managed to go to Mauritania for The Sand Job earlier this year, Clarkson explained that they received a warning from the Foreign Office not to go.
After decades of working together, this episode is particularly poignant as it marks the end of their travels together, and fellow presenter Hammond has opened up on missing the boys.
"I'll be really honest, and they'll mock me for this," he said, "but I'll miss them terribly. We've worked together for 20 years. We've worked hard and we have to egg each other on, and it's never just loafing about."
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While this signals the end of Clarkson, Hammond and May taking to the road again, it won't be the last fans see of The Grand Tour.
Hammond recently told Metro.co.uk that the series will continue with a new creative team behind it, as well as new hosts.
"It will be carrying on," he said. "The Grand Tour continues. We're stepping away as the hosts, but Prime will be continuing it. So I can't wait to sit on my own chair and watch somebody else do it. That's amazing."
While it isn't clear who will be the new faces of the series, Hammond assured that the boys will "always be on hand to talk if they want to talk to us".
He concluded: "But it's not for us to shape anymore. We're stepping away."
The Grand Tour: One for the Road will launch globally on Friday 13th September on Prime Video. Try Amazon Prime Video for free for 30 days. Plus, read our guides to the best Amazon Prime series and the best movies on Amazon Prime.
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