Simon Cowell recently confirmed that the highly successful XFactor was no longer going to be coming back to UK TV after 17 years on the air. This news comes as he reveals he intends to release his own auto show to rival Top Gear.
Simon Cowell, best known for being the main star behind British TV’s the XFactor, is reportedly focused on a new series that will rival Top Gear. The 61-year-old television personality and record executive recently announced that XFactor wouldn’t be returning to UK screens after the final episode back in 2018. Cowell is reportedly interested in two new TV formats, including an auto show that aims to match the success of Top Gear.
Top Gear started all the way back in 2002, making it one of the longest-running television series based around cars. While the show was meant to be informative, it also mixed comedy, celebrities and drama to create a highly successful series. The three longest-running presenters, Jeremey Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May, were also a big reason behind the success of Top Gear. Just like bonus.net.nz, the show was informative while also being great fun.
Although those three presenters have since moved onto the Grand Tour, Top Gear is still running today, although not as popular as it once was. During the height of its popularity, Top Gear set multiple records, attracting 350 million viewers and being shown in more than 200 countries around the world. Cowell and other figures in the industry recognise that there is a big demand for such a show, and as such, there’s interest in setting up a rival series.
What Happened To Top Gear?
Top Gear may have lost Hammond, Clarkson and May to the Grand Tour, but it’s still on the air. McGuinness, Andrew “Freddie” Flintoff, and Chris Harris, the show’s new presenting three, have been a commercial and critical success. “Top Gear is such a British institution,” McGuinness said of the show in a recent interview. “The beauty of it is that it’s an entertainment show which the whole family can watch – we’re not just doing straight car reviews every week.”
After the original presenters left, the ratings dwindled, but a second change in the lineup brought back the viewers. McGuinness, Flintoff, and Harris increased the previous average audience of 2.2 million each episode to 3.8 million in their first season together. Because of their early success, the show was finally able to leave its years of struggle behind them. There was immediate chemistry between the new presenters, and the show became a lot less scripted and formulaic than before.
Can Cowell Launch His Own Car Show?
Cowell claims that he has been approached several times in recent years by various parties to set up such a project, and that he has several automobile experts and drivers on his team who are interested in taking part. Simon Cowell is a huge car fan himself and has appeared on Top Gear in the past. He had one of the fastest ever laps in the “Star in a Reasonably Priced Car” segment and obviously has a lot of enthusiasm for creating a similar show.
It’s unclear at the moment whether Cowell would be a presenter of the show or would simply be one of the producers, and so far, not many details are known. What is clear is that any show that could even bring in half the viewers that Top Gear had would be a major success. Cowell has also worked on several successful TV shows in the past, including XFactor, Britain’s Got Talent and more. He knows how TV works and is clearly capable of achieving high ratings.
