W. Chump & Sons Ltd

W. Chump & Sons Ltd is a British independent television production company associated primarily with The Grand Tour, the motoring series created for Amazon Prime Video by Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, James May and producer Andy Wilman. The company was formed after Clarkson's departure from the BBC's Top Gear in 2015. Hammond, May and Wilman followed Clarkson away from the programme, and the four established a new production vehicle through which they could develop a successor series for a global streaming platform. The company's principal production is The Grand Tour. Amazon announced the programme in 2015 after signing Clarkson, Hammond, May and Wilman, with an initial commitment covering 36 episodes across three series. The production arrangement gave the creative team greater control than a conventional advertiser-funded television commission and supported a substantially international format. The programme premiered on Amazon Prime Video on 18 November 2016. The first three series used a studio-based structure influenced by the presenters' earlier motoring work while presenting a distinct identity. Episodes combined vehicle reviews, road-trip films, automotive challenges, races, studio discussions and, for part of the run, celebrity features. A large tent served as the programme's studio, initially travelling between countries before production moved to a fixed site in the Cotswolds. Vehicle testing and timed laps were conducted at the Eboladrome, a purpose-built track at the former RAF Wroughton airfield, while a separate course was used for the Celebrity Face Off feature in the second series. From the fourth series onward, the production moved away from the studio-and-audience format. W. Chump & Sons instead produced feature-length motoring specials, allowing the presenters to travel through particular regions while completing vehicle-based challenges. These films were shot in locations including Southeast Asia, the Indian Ocean, Scotland, Scandinavia, central Europe, northwest Africa and southern Africa. The format was adapted in part because of the programme's established road-trip identity and in part because international production and pandemic-related restrictions made the earlier studio structure less practical. The final episode featuring Clarkson, Hammond and May was released on 13 September 2024. It marked the conclusion of their 22-year working partnership, which had begun with the BBC's early-2000s relaunch of Top Gear and continued through The Grand Tour. The available reference material does not establish whether W. Chump & Sons remains active after that episode, whether it has other productions, or whether its ownership and corporate status have changed. The company is therefore best understood as a specialist production entity whose public identity is closely tied to The Grand Tour rather than as a broad consumer-facing entertainment brand.

W. Chump & Sons Ltd emerged from the break-up of the production and presenting team behind the BBC's modern Top Gear. Jeremy Clarkson's BBC contract was not renewed in 2015 following an incident during production. Richard Hammond and James May declined to continue without Clarkson, while long-serving producer Andy Wilman also left the BBC. The four subsequently pursued a new motoring programme with prospective broadcasters and streaming services. In July 2015, Amazon announced that Clarkson, Hammond and May would develop a new car show with Wilman producing. The initial agreement covered 36 episodes across three series. W. Chump & Sons was created as the UK production company responsible for the programme. The arrangement placed a creator-led independent company at the centre of a major streaming commission and gave the team considerable creative and production latitude. The resulting programme, The Grand Tour, premiered on Amazon Prime Video in November 2016. Its first three series combined pre-recorded automotive films with studio segments filmed before a live audience in a large tent. The production distinguished itself from Top Gear through its travelling-tent concept, international locations and renamed or redesigned programme features. Its automotive testing facility, known as the Eboladrome, was located at the former RAF Wroughton airfield. A second track at Enstone Airfield supported the Celebrity Face Off segment used in the second series. The travelling studio concept was modified after production difficulties, including Richard Hammond's serious crash during filming in Switzerland and Jeremy Clarkson's illness before the second series. The tent subsequently operated from a fixed location near Chipping Norton rather than moving between countries. The programme also changed its use of celebrity segments: the deliberately absurd Celebrity Brain Crash feature in the first series was replaced by Celebrity Face Off in the second, before celebrity material was removed to make more room for automotive films. Amazon renewed the programme for a fourth series in December 2018. The renewal introduced a major format decision: the studio and audience elements were retired in favour of longer road-trip and adventure films. The first special under the new approach, Seamen, was released in December 2019 after filming in Cambodia and Vietnam. Further specials travelled through Réunion and Madagascar, Scotland, Scandinavia, central Europe, Mauritania and Senegal, and southern Africa. Production was repeatedly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and associated travel restrictions, requiring some projects to be filmed within the United Kingdom or postponed until international travel was possible. The final special featuring Clarkson, Hammond and May, One for the Road, was released in September 2024 after filming in Zimbabwe and Botswana. It ended the trio's 22-year professional partnership. Public reference material identifies W. Chump & Sons chiefly through this production and does not provide a sufficiently documented account of additional programmes, continuing operations, corporate filings or post-2024 management. Its current status therefore remains uncertain.

• 2024

  Original presenting partnership concludes

  [1]The Grand Touren.wikipedia.org

  One for the Road is released, ending the Clarkson, Hammond and May era of The Grand Tour.

• 2019

  Road-trip format begins

  [1]The Grand Touren.wikipedia.org

  Seamen becomes the first released special in the new format, replacing the regular studio structure.

• 2018

  Amazon renews the programme for a fourth series

  [1]The Grand Touren.wikipedia.org

  Amazon confirms renewal, with the production later moving to a specials-based format.

• 2016

  The Grand Tour premieres

  [1]The Grand Touren.wikipedia.org

  The company's principal production launches on Amazon Prime Video on 18 November.

• 2015

  Company established after the Top Gear team leaves the BBC

  [1]The Grand Touren.wikipedia.org

  Andy Wilman, Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May establish W. Chump & Sons in connection with a new motoring programme for Amazon.

Independent, creator-led television production focused on internationally filmed automotive entertainment for streaming audiences.

• Motoring television and streaming series · 2016

  The Grand Tour

  The company's defining production is an internationally oriented motoring programme made for Amazon Prime Video. Its early series combined car reviews, timed laps, automotive challenges, races, road trips, studio conversations and occasional celebrity segments. From the fourth series, the format concentrated on feature-length specials in which the presenters travelled through a region while completing vehicle-based tasks. The programme concluded its original presenter line-up in 2024.

• Video game based on a television property · 2019

  The Grand Tour Game

  A video game based on The Grand Tour was released on 15 January 2019. It extended the programme's automotive entertainment concept into an interactive format, using the show's presenters, vehicles and challenge-oriented identity.

• 2019

  Move from studio episodes to road-trip specialsStrategy

  Background

  After three series using a travelling or fixed studio tent, the production team and Amazon opted for a format centred on longer automotive adventure films.

  Action taken

  The regular studio, live audience and recurring studio features were retired, and subsequent episodes were produced as individually released specials.

  Aftermath

  The new format produced specials in locations including Southeast Asia, Europe, Africa and the United Kingdom, and continued through the final original-line-up episode in 2024.

  Source

1. 1The Grand Touren.wikipedia.org