'New' Top Gear fails to hit full throttle with audience

Chris Evans had a light-hearted dig at Jeremy Clarkson minutes after the revamped Top Gear was unveiled on BBC2 television on Sunday night.

The much-loved motoring series, which is also being broadcast on Sundays on RTÉ2, returned to screens with Evans and former Friends actor Matt LeBlanc at the helm.

Previous frontman Clarkson was sacked for an “unprovoked physical and verbal attack” on producer Oisín Tymon, apparently over catering, and Evans could not resist bringing it up during his opening segment.