Grand Tour homophobia claims are ‘bloody annoying’

Richard Hammond finds it “bloody annoying” when people accuse The Grand Tour of being homophobic, and claims “people are always looking” to be offended.

The Amazon Prime show has repeatedly come under fire for making jokes at LGBT+ people’s expense, including a bizarre claim by Hammond that straight men don’t eat ice cream.

Earlier this year host Jeremy Clarkson ridiculed the LGBT acronym, asking co-presenter James May: “What is it, lesbian, bacon, transgender?” In the same episode Hammond used offensive stereotypes to repeatedly allude to the idea that Clarkson driving a Jeep means he’s gay.

Hammond has hit back at the accusations of homophobia, telling Metro: “The criticism is just bloody annoying. We are not remotely homophobic!

“If someone takes something as homophobic… I don’t want to cause offence. To say, ‘Oh we need to be really careful not to be homophobic’ would say that we are, so we’re not going to try and set out to avoid that sort of thing because we’re not.”

While the criticism may frustrate Hammond, many gay people find it ‘bloody annoying’ to hear their sexuality spoken of in a pejorative sense or used as the butt of a joke, as Hammond and his co-presenters have done frequently.

Among them is the gay pop singer and PinkNews Award winner Will Young, who slammed the presenters in a series of tweets in January.

Referring to the trio’s jokes that gay men wear pink shirts and ‘arseless chaps’ while driving Wrangler Jeeps, he said: “It’s f***ing pathetic and actually homophobic. And screw them and the show and Amazon (who by the way is a wonderful organisation I hope to forge a relationship with through LGBT content) for putting this shaming archaic tripe out.”

Gay men . I DON’T drive a Wrangler Jeep. I DON’T wear pink shirts . I DON’T wear arseless chaps. You can be honest and funny without this ridiculous ‘lad’ ooh being gay and let’s laugh about it mentality . It’s repulsive and how DARE you do it and put it out @PrimeVideo

— Will Young (@willyoung) January 28, 2019

Tagging Amazon, he continued: “It’s insulting and they can’t rest on laurels of ‘oh we are just politically incorrect.’ It’s sad and shaming, bigoted and for f**k’s sake grow up. How dare they stereotype gay men.”

In an interview to promote The Grand Tour‘s upcoming episode, Hammond defiantly rejected the criticism. “To be honest, people are always looking for it,” he said.

“I think sometimes other people are ready to be offended on other people’s behalf and I don’t think you should be allowed to be if something’s not directed at you; you can’t be offended by proxy. People are looking for it.”

Unfortunately for Hammond, they don’t have to look hard.

Jeremy Clarkson, who was nominated for Stonewall’s 2007 Bigot of the Year award for refusing to apologise for homophobic slurs, has previously responded to the ‘anti-gay’ criticism in his column in The Sun.

“I know I’m not homophobic as I very much enjoy watching lesbians on the internet,” he wrote. Yes, really.