James May
James May | |
---|---|
![]() James May in 2006 | |
Born | James Daniel May 16 January 1963[1] Bristol, England |
Other names | Captain Slow |
Education | Caerleon Endowed Junior School Oakwood Comprehensive School |
Alma mater | Pendle College, Lancaster University |
Occupation(s) | Broadcaster, journalist, author |
Years active | 1998 | –present
Employer(s) | BBC, The Daily Telegraph, (prev. Channel 4 & ITV) |
Known for | Presenting: |
Website | http://www.topgear.com/uk/james-may |
James Daniel May (born 16 January 1963) is an English television presenter and journalist. He is best known for his role as co-presenter of the motoring programme Top Gear, alongside Jeremy Clarkson and Richard Hammond.
On Top Gear, May has the nickname "Captain Slow" for his careful driving style. May has presented other programmes on themes including science and technology, toys, wine culture, and the plight of manliness in modern times. He wrote a weekly column for The Daily Telegraph's motoring section.
Early life
James May was born in Bristol, one of four children; he has two sisters and a brother.[2] May attended Caerleon Endowed Junior School in Newport. He spent his teenage years in South Yorkshire where he attended Oakwood Comprehensive School in Rotherham and was a choirboy at Whiston Parish Church.[3] He was also at school with Life On Mars and Ashes to Ashes star Dean Andrews.[4]
A keen flautist and pianist, he studied music at Pendle College, Lancaster University. After graduating, May briefly worked at a hospital in Chelsea as a records officer, and had a short stint in the civil service.[5]
Journalism
During the early 1980s, May worked as a sub-editor for The Engineer and later Autocar magazine, from which he was dismissed for performing a prank.[6] He has since written for several publications, including the regular column England Made Me in Car Magazine, articles for Top Gear magazine, and a weekly column in The Daily Telegraph.
He has written the book May On Motors (2006), which is a collection of his published articles, and co-authored Oz and James's Big Wine Adventure (2006), based on the TV series of the same name. He wrote the afterword to Long Lane with Turnings, published in September 2006, the final book by motoring writer L. J. K. Setright. In the same month he co-presented a tribute to Raymond Baxter. Notes From The Hard Shoulder and James May's 20th Century, a book to accompany the television series of the same name, were published in 2007.
Dismissal from Autocar
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/6/6b/JamesMayAutocar.jpg/220px-JamesMayAutocar.jpg)
In an interview with Richard Allinson on BBC Radio 2,[7] May confessed that in 1992 he was dismissed from Autocar magazine after putting together a hidden message or acrostic in one issue. At the end of the year, the magazine's "Road Test Year Book" supplement was published. Each spread featured four reviews and each review started with a large red letter (known in typography as an initial). May's role was to put the entire supplement together, which "was extremely boring and took several months".
May's original message, punctuated appropriately, reads: "So you think it's really good, yeah? You should try making the bloody thing up; it's a real pain in the arse."[8]
Radio and television
His past television credits include presenting Driven on Channel 4 in 1998-99, narrating an eight-part BBC One series called Road Rage School,[9] and co-hosting the ITV1 coverage of the 2006 London Boat Show.[10] He also wrote and presented a Christmas special called James May's Top Toys (for BBC One) exploring the toys of his childhood.[11] James May: My Sister's Top Toys attempted to investigate the gender divide of toy appeal.[12] In series 3, episode 3[13] of Gordon Ramsay's The F Word, May managed to beat Ramsay in eating animal penises and rotten shark (which Ramsay himself couldn't keep down)[14] and with his fish pie recipe.[15][16]
Top Gear
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cc/Top_Gear_team_Richard_Hammond%2C_James_May_and_Jeremy_Clarkson_31_October_2008.jpg/220px-Top_Gear_team_Richard_Hammond%2C_James_May_and_Jeremy_Clarkson_31_October_2008.jpg)
May first co-presented Top Gear in 1999, before it was axed by the BBC because of poor viewing figures. He rejoined the show in the second series of the present Top Gear format in 2003, where he earned the nickname "Captain Slow" owing to his careful driving style. Despite this sobriquet, he has done some especially high-speed driving, including in Top Gear Series 9, taking a Bugatti Veyron to its top speed of 253 mph (407 km/h) which is nearly one-third of the speed of sound at sea level and later on taking a Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Super Sport edition to 260 mph (417 km/h).[17] In an earlier episode he also tested the original version of the Bugatti Veyron against the new Pagani Zonda F.
He became one of the first people – with co-presenter Jeremy Clarkson and an Icelandic support crew – to travel by car to the magnetic North Pole, using a modified Toyota Hilux. In the words of Clarkson, he was the first person to go there "who didn't want to be there". He has driven a 1.3 litre Suzuki SJ413 through the Bolivian jungle and along Death Road and over the Andes to the Pacific Ocean in Chile. He also drove a modified Toyota Hilux (also used as a crew car during the North Pole expedition) up the side of the erupting volcano Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland.
Science
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/63/James_May_%28cropped%29.jpg/170px-James_May_%28cropped%29.jpg)
May presented Inside Killer Sharks, a documentary for Sky and James May's 20th Century, investigating inventions.[18] He flew in a Royal Air Force Eurofighter Typhoon at a speed of around 1320 mph for his television programme, James May's 20th Century. In late 2008, the BBC broadcast James May's Big Ideas, a three-part series in which May travelled around the globe in search of implementations for concepts widely considered science fiction.[19] He has also presented a series called James May's Man Lab.
James May on the Moon
James May on the Moon (BBC 2, 2009) commemorated 40 years since man first landed on the moon.[20] This was followed by another documentary on BBC Four called James May at the Edge of Space, where May was flown to the edge of space (70,000 ft) in a U.S. Air Force Lockheed U-2 spy plane. Highlights of the footage from the training for the flight, and the flight itself was used in James May on the Moon, but was shown fully in this programme.[21] This made him one of the highest flying persons, along with the pilot, at that time, after the crew of the International Space Station.[21]
James May's Toy Stories
Beginning in October 2009, May presented a 6-part TV series showing favourite toys of the past era and whether they can be applied in the modern day. The toys featured were Airfix, Plasticine, Meccano, Scalextric, Lego and Hornby. In each show, May attempts to take each toy to its limits, also fulfilling several of his boyhood dreams in the process. In August 2009, May built a full-sized house out of Lego at Denbies Wine Estate in Surrey.[22] Plans for Legoland to move it to their theme park fell through in September 2009 because costs to deconstruct, move and then rebuild were too high[23] and despite a final Facebook appeal for someone to take it, it was demolished on 22 September, with the plastic bricks planned to be donated to charity.[24]
Also for the series, he recreated the banked track at Brooklands using Scalextric track,[25] and an attempt at the world's longest working model railway along the Tarka Trail between Barnstaple and Bideford in North Devon, although the attempt was foiled due to stolen batteries and vandals placing coins on the track, causing a short circuit.[26]
In December 2012 aired a special Christmas Episode called Flight Club, where James and his Team built a huge toy glider that flew 22 miles from Devon to the island of Lundy.[27]
Oz and James
In late 2006, the BBC broadcast Oz and James's Big Wine Adventure, a series in which May, a committed bitter drinker, travelled around France with wine expert Oz Clarke.[28] A second series was broadcast in late 2007, this time with May and Clarke in the Californian wine country,[29] and was followed by a third series in 2009 called Oz and James Drink to Britain.
Personal life
May lives in Hammersmith, West London with dance critic Sarah Frater, whom he has dated since 2000.[30][31] May received an honorary Doctor of Letters degree from Lancaster University on 15 July 2010.[32]
Vehicles
This section needs additional citations for verification. (November 2012) |
May has owned many cars: Bentley T2, Rolls-Royce Phantom, Triumph 2000, Rover P6, Alfa Romeo 164, 1971 Rolls-Royce Corniche, Jaguar XJS, Range Rover, Fiat Panda, Datsun 120Y, 2009 Porsche 911 Carrera S facelift, Vauxhall Cavalier Mk1, Ferrari F430,[33] Ferrari 458,[33] 1984 Porsche 911,[34] 2005 Porsche Boxster S (which he claims is the first car he has ever purchased new),[35] Mini Cooper, Citroën Ami, Mazda MX-5, and several motorcycles including a Yamaha XJR1300, Moto Guzzi V11 Sport, a Triumph Daytona 675R and a 1978 Guzzi California. He has a penchant for prestige cars like Rolls-Royces and Bentleys, simple and basic cars such as the Fiat Panda, and motorcycles. He often uses a Brompton folding bicycle for commuting.[36] He passed his driving test on his second attempt and justified this by saying "All the best people pass the second time".[37]
May obtained a light aircraft pilot's licence in October 2006 having trained at White Waltham Airfield. He has owned a Luscombe 8A 'Silvaire' and an American Champion 8KCAB Super Decathlon with registration G-OCOK.[38] May also flew a Cessna 182 against Jeremy Clarkson in a Bugatti Veyron to London for a Top Gear race. Hammond considered the 182 as an aircraft that costs £182.
Career
Television
Year | Title | Role |
---|---|---|
1999 | Top Gear (original format) | Presenter |
2003–present | Top Gear (current format) | Presenter |
2005 | James May's Top Toys | Presenter |
2006-2007 | Oz and James's Big Wine Adventure | Presenter |
2007 | Top Gear of the Pops | Presenter |
2007 | James May's 20th Century | Presenter |
2007 | James May: My Sisters' Top Toys | Presenter |
2008 | Top Ground Gear Force | Presenter |
2008 | James May's Big Ideas | Presenter |
2009 | Oz and James Drink to Britain | Presenter |
2009 | James May on the Moon | Presenter |
2009 | James May at the Edge of Space | Presenter |
2009, 2011-2013 | James May's Toy Stories | Presenter |
2010–present | James May's Man Lab | Presenter |
2011–present | James May's Things You Need To Know | Presenter |
DVD
Title | Label | Year |
---|---|---|
Oz & James' Big Wine Adventure: Series One | Acorn Media | 2006 |
James May's Motormania Car Quiz | DMD | 2006 |
James May's 20th Century: The Complete Series | ITV | 2007 |
Oz & James' Big Wine Adventure: Series Two | Acorn Media | 2008 |
James May's Big Ideas: The Complete Series | DMD | 2009 |
James May On The Moon | BBC DVD | 2009 |
James May's Amazing Brain Trainer | DMD | 2009 |
James May's Toy Stories: The Complete Series | Channel 4 | 2009 |
Oz and James Drink to Britain | Acorn Media | 2009 |
Top Gear: Apocalypse | BBC DVD | 2010 |
James May's Man Lab: Series One | Acorn Media | 2011 |
Top Gear: At The Movies | BBC DVD | 2011 |
James May's Man Lab: Series Two | Acorn Media | 2012 |
Top Gear: Worst Car in the History of the World | BBC DVD | 2012 |
Books
Title | Publisher | Year | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
May on Motors: On the Road with James May | Virgin Books | 2006 | Reprinted 2007 |
Oz and James's Big Wine Adventure | BBC Books | 2006 | |
Notes from the Hard Shoulder | Virgin Books | 2007 | |
James May's 20th Century | Hodder & Stoughton | 2007 (H/B) | Reprinted 2007 (P/B) |
James May's Magnificent Machines | Hodder & Stoughton | 2008 | |
Oz and James Drink to Britain | Pavilion (Anova) | 2009 | |
James May's Car Fever | Hodder & Stoughton | 2009 (H/B) | Reprinted 2010 (P/B) |
James May's Toy Stories | Conway (Anova) | 2009 | |
James May's Toy Stories: Lego House | Conway (Anova) | 2010 | |
James May's Toy Stories: Airfix Handbook | Conway (Anova) | 2010 | |
James May's Toy Stories: Scalextric Handbook | Conway (Anova) | 2010 | |
How to Land an A330 Airbus | Hodder & Stoughton | 2010 (H/B) | Reprinted 2011 (P/B) |
James May's Man Lab: The Book of Usefulness | Hodder & Stoughton | 2011 (H/B) | Reprinted 2012 (P/B) |
James May: On Board | Hodder & Stoughton | 2012 |
Internet
Utilising YouTube James May and his self described crack team of scientists, mathematicians, comedians have created Head Squeeze,[39] a channel that provides left-field insights, sideways interpretations, bizarre facts and Terry Gilliam / Monty Python inspired animation, the channel is a mix of science, technology, history and current affairs. The first video was published on in December 2012. Videos are produced by 360 Production[40] for BBC Worldwide.
References
- ^ Philby, Charlotte (27 September 2008). "My Secret Life: James May,TV presenter, age 45 - Profiles, People - The Independent". London: www.independent.co.uk. Retrieved 20 January 2010.
- ^ "I never liked dolls much, and neither did my brother" – "James May: My Sisters' Top Toys". 23 December 2007. BBC.
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suggested) (help) - ^ James May (10 November 2007). "James May column: "Frocks make a boy a man"". London: Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 31 December 2007.
- ^ "Q&A with Dean Andrews feature - 2008". Top Gear. 7 May 2008. Retrieved 5 November 2009.
- ^ Duerden, Nick (15 August 2009). "The mild one: How James May became the most in-demand presenter on British television". London: The Independent. Retrieved 18 August 2009.
- ^ Michael Deacon (19 June 2009). "Interview: James May". The Telegraph. Retrieved 12 September 2012.
- ^ BBC Radio 2, broadcast 6 January 2006
- ^ "Captain Slow takes the fast lane - TV & Radio - Entertainment". Melbourne: theage.com.au. 19 June 2008. Retrieved 5 November 2009.
- ^ James May IMDb.com
- ^ "James May, Top Gear presenter, after-dinner speaker and awards host". Speakers Corner. Retrieved 5 November 2009.
- ^ James May's Top Toys IMDb.com
- ^ "Two Programmes - James May: My Sister's Top Toys". BBC. Retrieved 5 November 2009.
- ^ "Season 3 Episode 3 - Gordon Ramsay's F Word - BBC America". www.bbcamerica.com. Retrieved 8 February 2010.
- ^ "GORD WON'T SCOFF THAT, WILLY? - The Daily Record". www.dailyrecord.co.uk. Retrieved 8 February 2010.
- ^ [1] "The worst ever would have to be James May, with his fish pie. Even though he won, which was extraordinary. He was drinking a bottle of red wine throughout the challenge, so I thought it was in the bag."
- ^ [2] "This recipe is Gordon's version of a posh fish pie originally made by James May."
- ^ "James in the Bugatti Veyron SuperSport - BBC Top Gear". Topgear.com. Retrieved 26 November 2011.
- ^ "BBC/OU Open2.net - James May's 20th Century". Open2.net. Retrieved 5 November 2009.
- ^ "BBC/OU Open2.net - James May's Big Ideas". Open2.net. Retrieved 5 November 2009.
- ^ James May on the Moon
- ^ a b James May at the Edge of Space
- ^ "UK | England | Surrey | May starts building Lego house". BBC News. 1 August 2009. Retrieved 5 November 2009.
- ^ Radio Times 24–30 October 2009
- ^ "Entertainment | James May's Lego house demolished". BBC News. 22 September 2009. Retrieved 5 November 2009.
- ^ May to attempt Scalextric record, BBC News, 7 August 2009. Retrieved 9 August 2009
- ^ "James May's model railway record bid derailed by vandal attack | Mail Online". London: Dailymail.co.uk. 26 August 2009. Retrieved 5 November 2009.
- ^ "BBC Two James May's Toy Stories: Flight Club". BBC. Retrieved 25 January 2013.
- ^ "Food - TV and radio - Episode guide". BBC. Retrieved 5 November 2009.
- ^ "Food - TV and Radio". BBC. Retrieved 5 November 2009.
- ^ "Transmission – BBC Top Gear Video: behind-the-scenes at the first of the new series «". Transmission.blogs.topgear.com. 23 January 2011. Retrieved 26 November 2011.
- ^ Lewis, Simon (13 June 2009). "Jeremy Clarkson? Politicians? Aston Martins? Don't get Top Gear's James May started..." London: The Daily Mail. Retrieved 15 June 2009.
- ^ "Honorary Degrees 2010". Lancaster University. March 2010. Retrieved 20 March 2010.
- ^ a b Tobin, Dominic (13 November 2012). "James May: Adieu, Captain Slow, I'm Colonel Canary now". driving.co.uk. Retrieved 24 February 2013.
- ^ "1984 Porsche 911 in "James May's Toy Stories, 2009"". IMCDb.org. Retrieved 26 November 2011.
- ^ May, James (22 October 2005). "As seen on TV: Porsche breaks the spell of perfection". London: Telegraph. Retrieved 5 November 2009.
- ^ "Mine's a pint: a preposterous excuse for a Porsche". London: Daily Telegraph. 3 February 2006. Retrieved 21 March 2009.
James May with his Brompton bike
- ^ "Dave: What's on Dave: James May interview". Uktv.co.uk. 29 March 2007. Retrieved 5 November 2009.
- ^ http://www.airport-data.com/aircraft/G-OCOK.html
- ^ "James May fronts BBC Worldwide's latest original YouTube channel - Head Squeeze". bbc.co.uk. 31 January 2013. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
- ^ "Head Squeeze - YouTube". 360production.com. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
External links
- Telegraph Motoring - James May's weekly column
- James May at IMDb
- James May on Top Gear
- Daily Mail article on May
- Use dmy dates from November 2012
- 1963 births
- Living people
- British television presenters
- People from Bristol
- Top Gear presenters
- English writers
- Alumni of Lancaster University
- British motoring journalists
- BBC people
- British journalists
- People from Hammersmith and Fulham (London borough)
- Daily Telegraph journalists
- People from Hammersmith
- English musicians