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India requests apology over Top Gear 'India special'
Jeremy Clarkson, the Top Gear presenter, may have been described by the chairman of the BBC Trust as a “leading cultural export”, but his latest foray abroad risks causing a diplomatic incident.
Image 1 of 4
Jeremy Clarkson with his modified Jaguar XJS Photo: BBC
By Christopher Hope, Senior Political Correspondent
10:00PM GMT 11 Jan 2012
A Top Gear "India Special", which was broadcast twice over the Christmas break, has caused upset in the world’s second most populous country.
During the 90 minute programme, Mr Clarkson, one of the BBC’s highest paid stars, was filmed speaking to locals while operating a trouser press in his boxer shorts and with a Jaguar with a lavatory fixed to the boot.
The programme makers also put banners on trains reading: “British IT is good for your company”. Another said: “Eat English muffins”. The messages became obscene when the carriages parted, ripping the signs.
Now the Indian High Commission in London has formally complained to the BBC, accusing its producers of deceiving them over the nature of the programme, which was jokingly billed as a “trade mission”.
The complaint follows a string of controversies involving Mr Clarkson.
more on
India demands apology over Top Gear 'India special' - Telegraph
Follow up story....
Defiant BBC refuses to apologise for Top Gear India special.
UPDATED: 14:57 GMT, 18 January 2012
The BBC refuses to apologize for the 'tasteless' Top Gear Christmas Special which sparked fury at the Indian High Commission.
Jeremy Clarkson's antics were deemed so offensive that the High Commission wrote to the BBC demanding they apologise for the show.
The controversial star caused outrage with an episode set in India in which he strips to his boxer shorts in front of his hosts and hangs offensive banners on trains.
Toilet humour: The BBC admitted that 23 people complained after the Christmas special, in which the presenters attach a lavatory to their car before driving around India
'Crass': Clarkson strips to his underwear in front of his Indian hosts
Staff at the High Commission complained that the programme was 'replete with cheap jibes, tasteless humour and lacked cultural sensitivity.'
They fired off emails and letters to the show's producer, Chris Hale - copying in BBC director general Mark Thompson - expressing 'deep disappointment' at the content of Top Gear: India Special.
A spokesman for the High Commission said it had received hundreds of complaints after the special was repeated twice over Christmas.
The BBC insists the jokes were at the expense of Clarkson and his fellow presenters, James May and Richard Hammond, rather than India or its people.
It said in a statement: 'Our film showed the charm, the beauty, the wealth, the poverty and the idiosyncrasies of India, but there's a vast difference between showing a country, warts and all, and insulting it.
'It's simply not the case that we displayed a hostile or superior attitude to our hosts.'
Embarrassing: An insulting banner attached to a train in India by the BBC team
Offensive: When the carriages split the banner's double meaning became clear
Indian diplomats had consented to the programme being shot in the country after receiving a letter from producer Mr Hale describing it as a 'light-hearted road trip'.
In its letter, the consulate complained that the content of the show was 'in breach of this agreement' and said the BBC would need to 'assuage the hurt sentiments of a huge number of people'.
The incident is the latest in a string of gaffes by the badly behaved Clarkson.
Just last week he compared the residents of Kent to refugees, calling them 'the sort of people who arrive in the back of a refrigerated truck'.
Earlier in January, he used his newspaper column to compare the Morecambe Bay tragedy in which 23 Chinese migrant workers died with synchronised swimming.
Bad steer: Clarkson and his fellow Top Gear presenters James May (left) and Richard Hammond in Downing Street after filming there. David Cameron features in the special episode
Back in November, the motormouth presenter horrified public sector workers by saying strikers should be shot.
Embarrassingly for Britain, David Cameron features at the start of the Top Gear special, waving to Clarkson and telling him to 'stay away from India'.
Clarkson, 51, is one of the BBC's highest paid stars, having earned £2.14 million from his involvement in Top Gear last year.
A minister from the Indian High Commission said: 'We conveyed our disappointment. The show was crass and misunderstanding of Indian culture.
'Lots of people have complained to us, both Indian and British. They are deeply offended and expect us to do something.
'We don't think this is the Government's view, but we want the BBC to stop repeating this programme and take action.'
Rude: The Top Gear team attached this 'Eat English muffins' banner to the side of an Indian train
Shocking: Again the carriages divided to display an obscene slogan
The outline of the Top Gear special said the show would involve 'spontaneous interaction between the presenters and their environment'.
It claimed that the key aspects would be 'beautiful scenery, busy city scenes, local charm and colour', emphasising India's 'local car culture'.
Instead, Clarkson and his co-presenters drove around in a Jaguar with a toilet fixed to the boot.
Showing off the car's unusual modification as he drove around the slums, Clarkson boasted: 'This is perfect for India because everyone who comes here gets the trots.'
They also hung up banners that read 'British IT is good for your company' and 'Eat English muffins', which turned into offensive messages when the carriages pulled them apart.
It is not the first time the show has run into trouble after venturing abroad. The BBC was forced to apologise to the Mexican ambassador last year after derogatory remarks about 'Mexican characteristics' made by Clarkson and his co-hosts.
Asked whether Mr Cameron regretted his involvement in the programme, the Prime Minister's official spokesman said: 'As you know, the BBC are able to film in Downing Street as are other broadcast companies. They were in the street and he was leaving for an event.
'The Government is not responsible for editorial decisions made by the BBC or any media organisation. This is a matter for the BBC - I don't speak for the BBC.'
Asked why Mr Cameron had written a letter to the programme which was read out at its opening, the spokesman said: 'When people write to the Prime Minister, or indeed any other Government minister, it is customary to reply. He got a letter. He replied.'
Read more: BBC refuses to apologise for 'tasteless' Top Gear India special | Mail Online
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
LOL These Indians.
@Talon
@Always Neutral
@Evren
@Capt P.H Young
I think Americans should learn from British.
Indians r trying to be too Clever again......
Jeremy Clarkson, the Top Gear presenter, may have been described by the chairman of the BBC Trust as a “leading cultural export”, but his latest foray abroad risks causing a diplomatic incident.
Image 1 of 4
Jeremy Clarkson with his modified Jaguar XJS Photo: BBC
By Christopher Hope, Senior Political Correspondent
10:00PM GMT 11 Jan 2012
A Top Gear "India Special", which was broadcast twice over the Christmas break, has caused upset in the world’s second most populous country.
During the 90 minute programme, Mr Clarkson, one of the BBC’s highest paid stars, was filmed speaking to locals while operating a trouser press in his boxer shorts and with a Jaguar with a lavatory fixed to the boot.
The programme makers also put banners on trains reading: “British IT is good for your company”. Another said: “Eat English muffins”. The messages became obscene when the carriages parted, ripping the signs.
Now the Indian High Commission in London has formally complained to the BBC, accusing its producers of deceiving them over the nature of the programme, which was jokingly billed as a “trade mission”.
The complaint follows a string of controversies involving Mr Clarkson.
more on
India demands apology over Top Gear 'India special' - Telegraph
Follow up story....
Defiant BBC refuses to apologise for Top Gear India special.
UPDATED: 14:57 GMT, 18 January 2012
The BBC refuses to apologize for the 'tasteless' Top Gear Christmas Special which sparked fury at the Indian High Commission.
Jeremy Clarkson's antics were deemed so offensive that the High Commission wrote to the BBC demanding they apologise for the show.
The controversial star caused outrage with an episode set in India in which he strips to his boxer shorts in front of his hosts and hangs offensive banners on trains.
Toilet humour: The BBC admitted that 23 people complained after the Christmas special, in which the presenters attach a lavatory to their car before driving around India
'Crass': Clarkson strips to his underwear in front of his Indian hosts
Staff at the High Commission complained that the programme was 'replete with cheap jibes, tasteless humour and lacked cultural sensitivity.'
They fired off emails and letters to the show's producer, Chris Hale - copying in BBC director general Mark Thompson - expressing 'deep disappointment' at the content of Top Gear: India Special.
A spokesman for the High Commission said it had received hundreds of complaints after the special was repeated twice over Christmas.
The BBC insists the jokes were at the expense of Clarkson and his fellow presenters, James May and Richard Hammond, rather than India or its people.
It said in a statement: 'Our film showed the charm, the beauty, the wealth, the poverty and the idiosyncrasies of India, but there's a vast difference between showing a country, warts and all, and insulting it.
'It's simply not the case that we displayed a hostile or superior attitude to our hosts.'
Embarrassing: An insulting banner attached to a train in India by the BBC team
Offensive: When the carriages split the banner's double meaning became clear
Indian diplomats had consented to the programme being shot in the country after receiving a letter from producer Mr Hale describing it as a 'light-hearted road trip'.
In its letter, the consulate complained that the content of the show was 'in breach of this agreement' and said the BBC would need to 'assuage the hurt sentiments of a huge number of people'.
The incident is the latest in a string of gaffes by the badly behaved Clarkson.
Just last week he compared the residents of Kent to refugees, calling them 'the sort of people who arrive in the back of a refrigerated truck'.
Earlier in January, he used his newspaper column to compare the Morecambe Bay tragedy in which 23 Chinese migrant workers died with synchronised swimming.
Bad steer: Clarkson and his fellow Top Gear presenters James May (left) and Richard Hammond in Downing Street after filming there. David Cameron features in the special episode
Back in November, the motormouth presenter horrified public sector workers by saying strikers should be shot.
Embarrassingly for Britain, David Cameron features at the start of the Top Gear special, waving to Clarkson and telling him to 'stay away from India'.
Clarkson, 51, is one of the BBC's highest paid stars, having earned £2.14 million from his involvement in Top Gear last year.
A minister from the Indian High Commission said: 'We conveyed our disappointment. The show was crass and misunderstanding of Indian culture.
'Lots of people have complained to us, both Indian and British. They are deeply offended and expect us to do something.
'We don't think this is the Government's view, but we want the BBC to stop repeating this programme and take action.'
Rude: The Top Gear team attached this 'Eat English muffins' banner to the side of an Indian train
Shocking: Again the carriages divided to display an obscene slogan
The outline of the Top Gear special said the show would involve 'spontaneous interaction between the presenters and their environment'.
It claimed that the key aspects would be 'beautiful scenery, busy city scenes, local charm and colour', emphasising India's 'local car culture'.
Instead, Clarkson and his co-presenters drove around in a Jaguar with a toilet fixed to the boot.
Showing off the car's unusual modification as he drove around the slums, Clarkson boasted: 'This is perfect for India because everyone who comes here gets the trots.'
They also hung up banners that read 'British IT is good for your company' and 'Eat English muffins', which turned into offensive messages when the carriages pulled them apart.
It is not the first time the show has run into trouble after venturing abroad. The BBC was forced to apologise to the Mexican ambassador last year after derogatory remarks about 'Mexican characteristics' made by Clarkson and his co-hosts.
Asked whether Mr Cameron regretted his involvement in the programme, the Prime Minister's official spokesman said: 'As you know, the BBC are able to film in Downing Street as are other broadcast companies. They were in the street and he was leaving for an event.
'The Government is not responsible for editorial decisions made by the BBC or any media organisation. This is a matter for the BBC - I don't speak for the BBC.'
Asked why Mr Cameron had written a letter to the programme which was read out at its opening, the spokesman said: 'When people write to the Prime Minister, or indeed any other Government minister, it is customary to reply. He got a letter. He replied.'
Read more: BBC refuses to apologise for 'tasteless' Top Gear India special | Mail Online
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
LOL These Indians.
@Talon
@Always Neutral
@Evren
@Capt P.H Young
I think Americans should learn from British.
Indians r trying to be too Clever again......
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