How did you get a start in TV presenting?
I worked in radio for years and then branched into daytime TV, working on a kind of 'in your face' This Morning. It was such fun and, as nobody ever watched us, we just had a laugh. I once had an eight minute chat with a bloke about a throw rug. After that, I was never lost for words!

Is working on Top Gear really as much fun as it looks?
Well, we actually do sit around and talk about cars - endlessly. We're just a big bunch of kids, we really, really love cars. Everyone around us at the BBC can be so serious, and we're just noisy, enthusiastic and car-mad.

Sounds like a boy's dream come true!
Some boys want to be fighter pilots or brain surgeons, but I always wanted to be on Top Gear. It's the ultimate show if you're a little boy at heart. Driving all those fabulous cars - you can't top that.

What's been your favourite moment on the show?
Driving a Bowler Wildcat, which is a custom built off-road car. It drives like a Lamborghini and looks like a Land Rover. It's got a five litre V8 engine and was customised by two brothers. It's the most incredible vehicle I've ever driven. It does 0-60 in less than five seconds, and driving it makes you feel like a god.

What cars do you drive in real life?
I've got an elderly Porsche 911 that Jeremy Clarkson laughs at, a beautiful customised V8 Land Rover with a soft top and the world's most knackered Range Rover that doesn't work. It's home to some mice now. I also have a motorbike.

If money was no object, what would be your dream car?
The 575 Marinello Ferrari springs to mind because of its sheer presence. But, if I had the £375,000 needed to buy a car like that, I'd rather spend it on lots of cars like old, original Opal Mantras, Jags and Land Rovers. I want a million cars - I could never have enough!

You once almost swapped a car for a Harrier Jet. How come?
In one show we featured some Harriers and the pilots were well up for letting me have a spin in one of the jets. I'd love to arrive on the set in one. I can see it now - Jeremy drives up in his shoddy old car and I show up in a Harrier. Unlike him, I wouldn't throw up in one!