A helmet worn by well-known Top Gear character The Stig is going up for auction. The item is owned by a member of the production team who lost their job overnight after Jeremy Clarkson hit one of the BBC hit show’s producers. The highly publicised 2015 altercation involving Clarkson and Irish producer Oisín Tymon led to the original show format headed by Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond being abandoned.
The Stig's helmet is going to auction (Image: Eastbourne Auction) The trio, who went on to film The Grand Tour for Amazon Prime, were replaced by Matt Le Blanc, of Friends fame, and former BBC radio presenter Chris Evans. Read more: Pictures which captured history: 40 years after the IRA bombed Brighton Cricketer Freddie Flintoff, presenter Paddy McGuiness and journalist and racing driver Chris Harris then took over before a serious crash involving Flintoff saw the show shelved once again. The 46-year-old international sportsman was badly hurt in an accident while filming Top Gear at Dunsfold Aerodrome in December 2022, which led to the show being rested for the “foreseeable future” by the BBC.
The Stig’s helmet is one of several items to go under the hammer on Thursday at Eastbourne Auctions. It is believed to be the one signed for Oisín Tymon. Clarkson’s message on the helmet is blunt and unapologetic reading “F**k Off” while the enigmatic and elusive racing driver The Stig added a more cordial touch to his message: “To the Main Man Osh!! Stay Spee.
