Jeremy Clarkson, 65, says ‘people will stop watching!’ as he rages at BBC ‘woke’ new drama
Jeremy Clarkson has criticised the BBC’s decision to produce another period drama instead of adapting Brian Klein’s novel “The Spider Covenant”.
The book originally tells the story of sinister businessmen using money the Nazis squirrelled away after World War Two to fund a next-generation AI project which will put Hitler sympathisers in power around the world.
Clarkson described Klein’s work as “a good read” and suggested it would make “an excellent mini series on TV”.
The farmer praised Klein, who directed every single one of the studio segments in both Top Gear and The Grand Tour, for creating compelling source material.
Clarkson went on to slam the BBC after it chose to make a drama about “a dreary Victorian woman from some god-awful Jane Austen book”.
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The former Top Gear presenter expressed frustration that the BBC had overlooked this modern thriller concept.
Instead, the corporation opted for what he characterised as yet another period piece featuring the familiar formula.
This contained one of a horse and carriage that arrives at a grand house where “nothing of any great importance happens for about 16 hours”.
Clarkson then launched a broader attack on period dramas within his The Sun column, describing them as typically boring productions.
He referenced producer Jane Tranter’s explanation that “as soon as you put an actor in clothes from the olden days, they start to walk slowly and talk posh”.
The presenter highlighted what he sees as BBC contradictions in historical productions.
He noted the corporation goes to “immense lengths to make sure the stitching on everyone’s bonnet is correct for the time and that the swords are made from period metal”.
However, he criticised their casting choices, pointing out they feature “people in wheelchairs and people with Mexican accents” in 17th-century stories, alongside discussions about global warming.
Clarkson praised Heath Ledger’s film “A Knight’s Tale” as the exception that “got round all of this”.
He held up the medieval adventure as an example of how period dramas could avoid the typical pitfalls he associates with BBC historical productions.
The presenter’s endorsement of the film appears to contrast his general dismissal of the genre.
While he criticised most period pieces for their slow pacing and pretentious dialogue, Clarkson suggested “A Knight’s Tale” managed to overcome these conventional problems that plague historical television and film productions.