Adrian Hearn looks at the worldwide phenomenon caused by three blokes arguing.

Homophobic, xenophobic, bigoted – just some of the allegations made against Top Gear. 

And each time the bar of controversy is raised, more people tune in.

Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May, with a little help from The Stig, have made Top Gear one of the BBC’s most successful shows.

When Hammond had his 300mph jet car crash, the new series was postponed with calls for it to be scrapped. Four months later it returned to its 8pm Sunday slot and - watched by 7.9 million - trounced the finale of the diplomatic disaster, Celebrity Big Brother.

And the figures weren’t a one off. More than eight million tuned in for the final episode of the series.

And that’s just the UK. Worldwide, Top Gear is watched by up to a billion people.

From Australia to Albania, Kazakhstan to Vietnam. Travel abroad and you’re never far from the show.

It’s licensed to 117 countries via BBC World and BBC Prime.

The Americans get a watered-down, half-hour episode, with Clarkson and co’s Uncle Sam-bashing filtered out. For this, the team spent five days recording new studio links in a ‘more American-friendly way’, with ‘Jeremy not calling them fat and stupid.’

Residents in the Middle East got their own Top Gear in September 2003 - a show featuring sand dune racing and rallies going out to over 130 million Arabic speaking viewers.

And it’s not just TV channels which get the show.

More than 1.3 million hotel rooms have access to the show, 37 airlines use it and you can watch it on 29 mobile phone platforms. Hate over-tanned Elvis impersonators singing on boats? Watch Top Gear instead. It’s licensed to 48 cruise ships.

And the Merchant Navy signed a deal so staff could watch power sliding instead of power boating.

Before it was wiped off, one Clarkson clip had received almost a million views on You Tube. Type Top Gear now and there are over 2,000 videos with more than 300,000 people watching Jeremy Clarkson’s Ariel Atom feature in one month alone.

And illegal download favourites Lost and Desperate Housewives have nothing on the show. Top Gear magazine’s Michael Harvey claims the show is the planet’s most pirated programme.

Since its re-launch in 2002, the show has been a worldwide phenomenon. The tall one, the small one and the other one have brought motoring to the masses.

Auto Trader Links:

Auto Talk: Jeremy Clarkson
Auto Talk: Richard Hammond
Auto Talk: James May
Auto Talk: Perry McCarthy - the original Stig
Trackside - Who is the Stig?

The Return of Top Gear
Top Gear - Essential Facts
The Weird World of Wheels: Top Gear Special
Top Gear backlash over Clarkson joke

Slide Show: Top Gear