James May is usually seen as the mildest member of the original Top Gear trio, and his temper is certainly nothing compared to that of Jeremy Clarkson.

However, he has penned a diatribe on the website Drivetribe calling for bike thieves to be killed, and he seems quite serious.

He wrote that although he is opposed to capital punishment, he can see a case for an exception when it comes to motorbike thieves.

Mr May said: "But the landscape of crime is never as simple as it seems. It’s all too easy to believe that a zero tolerance crackdown in the community with greater powers and funding for law enforcement agencies (blah blah whatever it is people say on radio phone-ins) is the right thing to say here.