Top Gear production moving to Bristol
August 5, 2021
By Nik Roseveare
Top Gear, the long-running BBC One motoring entertainment show, is transferring its production from London to the South West from spring 2022.
BBC Studios Bristol is the production hub for many factual entertainment programmes including Countryfile, DIY SOS, Antiques Roadshow, Fake or Fortune and Gardeners’ World. It’s also home to the Natural History Unit which produces landmark titles such as Blue Planet II and the live ‘Watches’ series including Springwatch and Winterwatch.
Top Gear’s track at Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey will continue to be utilised for filming recordings whilst the series itself films across the UK and around the world.
Production for the show’s 31st series has been taking place all over the UK during the summer and the team recently completed its first international shoot since prior to the pandemic when the presenters and crew visited Iceland. The 33rd series, due on screens in 2022, will be the first to be produced from the new base in Bristol.
Hannah Wyatt, BBC Studios’ MDr for Factual Entertainment and Events Productions commented: “Our Bristol hub is an already incredibly successful and vibrant production base that makes many of our highly popular returning factual entertainment series and blue-chip natural history titles – so the Top Gear team will be in very good creative company. It’s an exciting move for the show.”
Top Gear is made by BBC Studios Factual Entertainment Productions for BBC One.