Jeremy Clarkson. I’ve loved the guy since the first time I ever watched Top Gear. It was 2003 and the woolly-haired reporter was reviewing the MG XPower SV.

His irreverence, zaniness and ability to professionally cane a vehicle had earned my instant affection as a car-crazy 10-year-old. In my book on all things wheeled, his verdicts were regarded as gospel. Life got even better for me when I discovered that, not only was Clarkson a television man, he also wrote prolifically – with a pretty serious background in the craft of automotive journalism...