Enthusiasts of programmes such as Top Gear and The Grand Tour had been looking forward to an exciting series showcasing some of the most memorable driving sequences ever filmed.
The nostalgic journey features Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond revisiting their favourite highlights from The Grand Tour.
The flagship programme officially concluded with its final instalment, One for the Road, in September 2024, bringing to a close the partnership between presenters Clarkson, Hammond and May after more than two decades of collaboration.
They have now returned with a three-part miniseries called The Grand-ish Tour, with the first episode released on 1st May. However, audiences were disappointed, having expected considerably more from the retrospective series, and turned to IMDb reviews to voice their opinions.
The synopsis states: “Gathering in the care home where they now live, Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May host three special shows looking back at their favourite Grand Tour moments.
“Or at least the ones they can remember. Their fading memories stretch from California to Mongolia to Italy and everywhere in between, and include classic moments of misery featuring mud, water, and at least two actual injuries.”
One viewer described it as a “shameless cash grab”, stating: “This brings nothing new, it’s three old men talking about how fun they had where they were young. It’s quite depressing.
“Yeah they are legends but this here, I’m sorry, it’s insulting. If it was unreleased footage maybe, but no. It’s like a professional YouTube Shorts video.”
Another described it as the “worst car show ever”, elaborating: “Never thought I’d be here… yet here we are and it is awful.
“The trio made something really bad. What little of original material is here, is just lazy dialogue sitting in a chair.
“There is nothing on offer here besides very simple banter for a few minutes between the clips. But for those few moments, they get some stars. Should’ve been more.”
A third viewer raged: “What’s the point? When the show ended in a best way, why bother producing this kinda stuff. Please take this show down, it is embarrassing.
“I am too embarrassed to watch it. Same people sitting there forced to remember the old good days. I don’t see the point of it.”
Nevertheless, certain viewers appreciated the “nostalgic, light-hearted compilation” which “still managed to land some genuine laugh-out-loud hits”.
One enthusiastic viewer wrote: “If you’re expecting brand-new material, you’ll likely be disappointed-but that feels like missing the point. This was never meant to break new ground.
“What you do get is a comfortable revisit to some of the funniest, most memorable bits, packaged in a way that’s easy to enjoy. It’s familiar, yes-but also reliably entertaining. Overall, we had a great time with it.”
Two additional episodes, entitled A Bit Further Down Memory Lane and Completely Lost Down Memory Lane, are scheduled to broadcast on May 8 and May 15 respectively.
