Jeremy Clarkson reveals the unusual items he plans to leave James May and Richard Hammond

Jeremy Clarkson has shared the unusual gifts he plans to leave to his long-time co-stars James May and Richard Hammond when he dies, offering a characteristically dry glimpse into how he sees their decades-long friendship.

The broadcaster, who worked alongside May and Hammond on both the BBC’s Top Gear and later Prime Video’s The Grand Tour, has spent more than 20 years as part of one of television’s most recognisable presenting trios. Their partnership became famous not only for motoring adventures and large-scale stunts, but also for the constant teasing and sarcasm that shaped their on-screen chemistry.

In recent years, Clarkson has become just as closely associated with life in the countryside as with cars. Living in Oxfordshire since around 2008, he now runs Diddly Squat Farm in Chadlington as well as The Farmer’s Dog pub in Asthall, near Burford. He has also reached a new audience through Clarkson’s Farm on Amazon Prime Video, the documentary-style series that follows the challenges of managing his 1,000-acre farm.

Through that series and his newspaper columns, Clarkson has become an outspoken supporter of British farming, often drawing attention to the financial and political pressures faced by farmers. In late 2024, he joined a protest in London against the introduction of a new 20 per cent inheritance tax on farms worth more than £1 million, a policy that has now come into force this month.

With that issue on his mind, Clarkson said he has also been thinking more seriously about his own future. In his latest column for The Sunday Times, the 65-year-old reflected on his funeral, burial wishes and the contents of his will, mixing practical planning with the same dark humour that has long defined his public persona.

Among the more striking details was what he said he intends to leave behind for May and Hammond. Speaking about James May, Clarkson said he would leave him a cow, joking that whatever he gives his former co-host needs to be something May would find irritating. The remark appeared to reflect the familiar dynamic between the two men, whose friendship has often been built around affectionate annoyance and sharp-witted exchanges.

For Richard Hammond, Clarkson said he plans to leave all of his trousers. It was another typically odd and amusing detail, in keeping with the playful tone that has often marked their relationship both on and off screen. While the comment was clearly made in jest, it added to the sense that Clarkson is approaching even serious subjects in his own unmistakable way.

He also revealed that some of his friends will be left just 20 pence in his will, explaining that this is so they will not be able to say they were forgotten. That line, like much of the column, blended humour with a more serious awareness that he is now at a stage of life where such matters can no longer be ignored.

Although Clarkson’s remarks were light in tone, they come at a time when questions around his health, his legacy and the future of his farming business have all become more prominent. His latest comments suggest that while he is making real plans for the future, he has no intention of abandoning the irreverent style that made him famous.

Even in discussing death, Jeremy Clarkson appears determined to leave people with a final joke.