Jeremy Clarkson now believes in climate change He once dismissed climate change as ‘science fiction’, but Jeremy Clarkon has had a change of heart after seeing its impact for himself

Former Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson has said that he is now convinced that climate change is real, after seeing its impact for himself.

The motoring enthusiast has long espoused sceptical beliefs about climate change and attempts to curb pollution from vehicles, previously dismissing fears as “science fiction”.

However, he has admitted having an abrupt change of heart after a “graphic demonstration of global warming” while boating across Cambodia for Amazon TV show The Grand Tour.

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Speaking to The Sunday Times, Clarkson explained that filming hit a major stumbling block because the usually-vast Mekong river system the crew were attempting to navigate had almost dried up.

He said: “The irony is not lost on me. A man who hosted a car programme for 30 years, limited to 7mph by global warming.”

Genuinely alarming

Clarkson added: “It’s the first time that we’ve ever admitted to there being global warming. We were completely screwed on that [trip].

“There was no water in the Tonle Sap lake. I mean, it was knee-deep. And you could paddle in it. So we had two days of absolute frustration — being towed and grounding.”

He added: “It was alarming, genuinely alarming. But we don’t blame mankind for it. We’ll let Greta [Thunberg] do that.”

Climate is changing

Writing for the same newspaper in August, Clarkson had acknowledged that “the climate is changing,” but maligned activists who had raised awareness of the issue.

He concluded: “It stands to reason… that we will not have solar-powered airliners and kids clamouring for some conkers until the wells and seams in the ground beneath our feet are empty.

“This means that to spur on the green revolution, we must use the coal and the gas and the oil as quickly as possible. And that’s why, as you read this, I shall be boarding a flight at Heathrow for a summer-long blizzard of conspicuous consumption.”

On Saturday it was announced that environmental activist Greta Thunberg, maligned by Clarkson, will serve as a guest editor for a Christmas special of BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

The BBC revealed that Ms Thunberg, 16, has commissioned reports from the Antarctic and Zambia and will speak to the world’s leading authorities on climate change during her guest stint on the esteemed programme.