Sign up to FREE email alerts from Mirror - celebs Subscribe Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice Invalid Email

Zoe Ball is being lined up as a host on the new series of Top Gear.

She is said to be a shoo-in to join Chris Evans as a presenter on the car show after producers were impressed by the chemistry between them during test filming.

A source said: “Zoe looks like a certainty after the screen tests.

(Image: Splash)

“She was brilliant down on the race track and she’s enthusiastic about cars.

“She’s a complete professional and of course has a long history of working with the BBC on radio and television so she has known Chris a long time. Things immediately clicked into place and there was a lightbulb moment among producers.

“The chemistry between Zoe and Chris is perfect.”

Video Loading Video Unavailable Click to play Tap to play The video will start in 8 Cancel Play now

(Image: PA)

Zoe, 44, and Chris, 49, have known each since the ­1990s when they appeared, ­separately, on Channel 4’s Big Breakfast. They have both presented Radio 1 and 2 breakfast shows.

BBC chiefs hunting for replacements for Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May – who left after Clarkson hit a producer in a row over steak – are keen to find a female host.

Motorbike racer Guy Martin, actor Philip Glenister and presenter Dermot O’Leary have all been tipped as a third presenter.

But earlier this year the BBC launched a “search for a Top Gear star”, inviting the public to submit 30-second video auditions of themselves. The closing date was July 20 but no announcement has been made.

Meanwhile Clarkson, Hammond and May have been signed up by Amazon Prime to create a rival show with a reported £160million budget. It is due on screens next autumn.

Top Gear was originally expected to return to screens next March but a BBC spokesman said: “We are not working to a timeframe.”