How do you select which cars are featured on the show?
We've built close relations with different car companies and they send us regular press releases on their newest products. We then sift through the contenders and think up possible gimmicks or angles for discussing them on Top Gear. We tend to avoid ones which have just been launched - we prefer cars which are actually available to buy.

Has anything gone wrong whilst making the show?
There haven't been any accidents so far - touch wood! But I remember in the first series, when both Richard Hammond and I were new to the show, we arrived in Ealing to film a feature on a new Saab. We met at the hotel, got the crew together and then Richard glanced around, and said: "Um, you did bring the Saab, didn't you?" It turned out that we'd both thought the other one would bring it - we'd turned up with everything except the car!

Is any rivalry between the presenters?
With egos of this magnitude - yes! There's a real rivalry over who will come up with the wittiest and most inventive reviews. And what I love about the show is that it's all for real - our guys don't fake reviews, they don't get told what to say. I've never seen Jeremy give a glowing review to a car he detested.

Do car manufacturers ever complain about scathing reviews?
Oh yes, they take it very personally. Even if we've given positive reviews to a company's previous three cars, all it takes is one bad word to make them feel really bitter, and they act as if we're on a vendetta against them. It can strain relations with their PR departments and make it tricky to obtain cars in the future, but that's what you get for being honest.

Is the Star in a Reasonably Priced Car segment difficult to film?
I'm happy to say that all the celebs have been absolutely brilliant and get into the spirit of the thing. We were most nervous about Lionel Ritchie, because he's such a big star and, when he was doing his segment, the wheel fell off his car and almost caused a crash. Luckily he was very laid back about it, despite the near-catastrophe.