To many of us, Jeremy, Richard and James have the best jobs………….. in the world. Being Top Gear presenters mean they get to drive all the latest exotic cars (along with a lot of cheap and cheerful cars as well) in locations around the world, all while being paid millions of dollars in the process.

As with all jobs though, it does come with risks. Check out our list below of all the occasions a Top Gear presenter has been injured during an episode!



Jeremy hits his head driving the MG SV



One of Jeremy Clarkson’s first drifting related accidents. He was drifting the MG SV around the Top Gear test track, when it suddenly regained grip, throwing his head sideways into the top of the door. Series 3, Episode 7.

Jeremy breaks his thumb crashing his £100 Volvo



In Top Gear’s first Cheap Car Challenge, Jeremy broke his thumb when he crashed his Volvo 760 GLE into a block wall… on purpose. To add insult to injury (literally) he lost 5 points in the challenge because of it. Series 4, Episode 3.

Jeremy slips two discs in his back



Jeremy’s third injury involved a “Repetitive Oversteer Injury” which caused him to slip two discs in his back. He blamed it on all the power sliding he recently did in a TVR Sagaris. Series 6, Episode 7.

Richard rolls his Suzuki Super Carry



Richard reportedly hurt his neck badly when he rolled his Suzuki Super Carry van as part of the £1000 Cheap Van Challenge. Series 8, Episode 8.

Richard Hammond’s Vampire dragster crash



Undoubtedly the most serious incident of them all. Richard Hammond was almost killed when the Vampire Dragster he was driving blew a tyre, causing it to spear off the road and roll upsidedown. Series 9, Episode 1.

Jeremy hurts his neck at Fuji Speedway



Due to the insane cornering forces generated by Nissan’s GT-R, Jeremy’s neck gave out mid-test – forcing him to pull over and be rescued by Fuji Speedway’s emergency response team. This included a man on a lawn mower. Series 11, Episode 5.

Jeremy injured in Renault Magnum lorry



Jeremy received an injury to his torso after driving his Renault Magnum truck around a skidpan. A combination of excessive speed and failing to wear a seat belt caused him to slide across the cab and slam into the gear shifter. Series 12, Episode 1.

Jeremy injured in Renault Magnum lorry (again)



The Renault Magnum strikes again, with Jeremy driving it through a solid brick wall as part of the final challenge. In Jeremy’s words, “My ankle burst where the clutch pedal went through it and my head was dislodged from my spine”. Series 12, Episode 1.

Jeremy falls off his Vespa in Vietnam



Another serious incident for Jeremy – this time sees him falling sideways off his lime-green Vespa in Vietnam, after he hit a pot hole at speed. Luckily, he came away from it relatively unscathed. Series 12, Episode 8.

James hits his head multiple times on in-car camera



James hit his head multiple times on the in-car camera in a Porsche Panamera, during the race between it and the Royal Mail from the Isles of Scilly (England) to Birsay on Mainland, Orkney (Scotland). Series 13, Episode 4.

James hits Jeremy in the gentleman’s area



Pretty self explanatory, yet still painful, this one. Series 13, Episode 5.

Jeremy cops a paintball to the gentleman’s area



Jeremy’s gentleman’s area is again injured after being hit by a paint ball fired from the exhaust of an F1 car, as part of the automotive art gallery challenge. Series 14, Episode 5.

Jeremy gets a bee lodged up his nostril



Whilst driving the Porsche 911 Turbo cabriolet at high speeds of the track, Jeremy was unfortunate enough to have a bee lodge itself in his nostril. Series 15, Episode 4.

James gets slammed to the ground by a recovery strap



James paid the price for making an error in judgement, by holding onto a recovery strap whilst Richard tried to pull Jeremy’s MX5 up a slope. James was thrown to the ground and suffered concussion after hitting his head on a rock. Series 16, Episode 2.

Richard Hammond falls off a horse



The Top Gear trio were forced to man horses and ride to the next town after their trucks ran out of fuel in Burma. Richard promptly fell off and had to be taken to hospital. Series 21, Episode 6.

James May falls off a horse



Another horse related incident – this time James cracked 3 ribs whilst trying to get on his horse. Patagonia Special, Part 2.

Quite a big list then! What was your favourite Top Gear incident?