
New home: Jeremy Clarkson was granted permission to demolish his property near Chipping Norton in Oxfordshire

Jeremy Clarkson has made way for his new six-bedroom 'gentrified' home in the Cotswolds by blowing up his old £4million farmhouse.

The former Top Gear host was granted permission to demolish his five-bedroom home near Chipping Norton in Oxfordshire and build a new property in July.

But instead of calling in the bulldozers, 56-year-old Clarkson hired a demolition firm and razed the property to the ground in a massive explosion - which a neighbour claimed happened while a funeral was taking place in the local village.

All that remained this morning of the house, which is believed to have been rented out by Clarkson to tenants, was an enormous pile of rubble and wood.

Neighbours, who claimed to have received a letter warning them of the works only the night before Wednesday’s blast, said they heard a series of explosions during the afternoon.

A grey dusty cloud still hung over the blitzed remains of the house yesterday, where building work will now begin to create a new 12,173 sq ft home on the site.

Local residents said Clarkson and his team were in the area this week filming for his new Amazon TV show The Grand Tour, which is set to be released this autumn.

Approved plans for the home claim it will be ‘a modest country house/gentrified farmhouse which gives the appearance of having grown over time’.

It will have a walled garden, orangery, basement cinema and five bathrooms, as well as space for five cars and a quad bike store.

Country pile: Jeremy Clarkson bought this £4million five-bed farmhouse near Chipping Norton in 2012

Pile of rubbish: Clarkson hired a demolition firm and razed the property to the ground in a massive explosion

His grand design: Clarkson's plans for a 'modest' 12,000sq ft country house includes a cinema and quad bike store

A 44-year-old neighbour said the demolition was ‘typical Clarkson’, adding: ‘Before there was a big old farmhouse but there is little to be seen of that now.

‘Apparently they sent some of the villagers who were around half a mile from it letters telling them something was going to happen. It’s just typical Clarkson isn’t it?

'Any normal person would get in people to take it apart conventionally, but he blows it up. He blew up the entire house. All that’s left is a huge pile of Costwold stone.’

Another neighbour who saw the explosion said: ‘All you could see was grey smoke each time they blew part of it up, but it was very loud in my house.

‘I got a letter through the door the night before saying it would be between 1pm and 4pm. They started blowing it up about 3.15pm and finished around 4.10pm.

Remains: The TV presenter decided to go ahead with the demolition near Chipping Norton instead of calling in the bulldozers

Project: A grey dusty cloud still hung over the blitzed remains of the house yesterday, where building work will now begin

Wreckage: All that remained of the house in Oxfordshire this morning was an enormous pile of rubble and wood

‘There was a funeral being held at the village at 2.30pm, which was still on when the explosions started.’

Clarkson bought the farmhouse in 2012 after it was put on the market for £4,250,000.

In 2013 he was granted planning permission by the council for a six-bedroom house with a swimming pool, orchard, croquet lawn and tennis court.

But it is understood he did not progress with any of the plans and submitted new plans in May to the same council for a 12,173 sq ft home.

The new country pad is set to be made of rubblestone laid in lime mortar with ashlar stone dressings.

On site: Residents said Clarkson and his team were in the area this week filming for his new Amazon TV show The Grand Tour

Next steps: Building work will now begin on the site near Chipping Norton to create a new 12,173 sq ft home there

Out with the old: Approved plans for Clarkson's new home claim it will be ‘a modest country house/gentrified farmhouse'

It will be 12 times the size of the average UK new build - but won’t have the pool or tennis court of the original plan.

But it will have a basement cinema, an attic games room, a walled garden, orangery, room for five cars, a yard for horses, six bedrooms and five bathrooms.

Clarkson infamously punched Top Gear producer Oisin Tymon at a hotel in North Yorkshire after allegedly being told he could not order steak after a day of filming.

The BBC sacked Clarkson, from Top Gear following the bust-up in March 2015, prompting co-presenters James May and Richard Hammond to quit the show.

Clarkson, May and Hammond signed up to work with Amazon - while Top Gear was handed to Radio 2 presenter Chris Evans, who has also now left the show.

Fresh start: The new country pad is set to be made of rubblestone laid in lime mortar with ashlar stone dressings

New idea: It will be 12 times the size of the average UK new build - but won’t have the pool or tennis court of the original plan