Embattled “Top Gear” host Jeremy Clarkson has been dropped by BBC following a two-week suspension for getting into a physical altercation with a producer.
“It is with great regret that I have told Jeremy Clarkson today that the BBC will not be renewing his contract,” said BBC director general Tony Hall in a statement to media outlets on Wednesday. “It is not a decision I have taken lightly. I have done so only after a very careful consideration of the facts and after personally meeting both Jeremy and [producer] Oisin Tymon.”
Clarkson — who has repeatedly come under fire for controversial comments and behavior — had been suspended from the popular motor series on March 10 after the incident with Tymon. His contract was reportedly due to expire at the end of the month.
The UK broadcaster will now look to renew “Top Gear” without Clarkson, which Hall noted in the statement “will be a big challenge and there is no point in pretending otherwise.”
“Top Gear” airs in the US on BBC America, where its latest episode averaged 580,000 viewers. Since Clarkson’s suspension, the channel replaced it with a two-part “Top Gear” special on March 16 and 23.