Top Gear: Botswana Special
| Top Gear: Botswana Special | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Presented by |
Jeremy Clarkson Richard Hammond James May |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Andy Wilman |
| Running time | 60 minutes (66 minutes director's cut edition) |
| Release | |
| Original network | BBC Two |
| Picture format | 720x576, anamorphic 16:9 |
| Original release | 4 November 2007 |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows | Top Gear |
| External links | |
| Website | www |
Top Gear: Botswana Special is a full-length, special edition episode for BBC motoring programme Top Gear, and was first broadcast on BBC Two on 4 November 2007, as part of the fourth episode of Series 10. The special sees hosts, Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May, travelling across to Botswana with a car that each had bought in Africa for less than £1500, to prove that they can be better than SUVs for driving up "leafy country lanes". The Botswana Special was released as part of a 2-disc DVD boxset alongside the Top Gear: Vietnam Special on 23 March 2009.
To see if people in Surrey can get up "leafy lanes" with something other than a 4x4 SUV, the producers challenge Clarkson, Hammond and May to drive across Botswana in the used cars bought within Africa. Each given £1,500, the presenters are told that their choice of car had to be two-wheel drive and not have been designed in any way for off-road use - May decides to sensibly purchase a 1985 Mercedes-Benz 230E due to it being a car that Africa favoured and loved, Clarkson chose to buy a 1981 automatic Lancia Beta Coupé because of Lancia's history with rally racing, while Hammond oddly chose to go for a 1963 Opel Kadett. Arriving at the starting point near to Botswana's border with Zimbabwe (which at the time, banned the BBC from filming within its borders), the trio learn that their cars would be taken on a journey of 1,000 miles (1,600 kilometres), to Botswana's northern border with Namibia. Setting off on their first leg, the trio revealed that each of their cars had some faults to them - Clarkson revealed that the dials and several components were broken, May had a minor number of parts that weren't working, while Hammond had brakes that only worked on one wheel and a smell of petrol in his car, but felt his was good and decided to name it "Oliver" (which he immediately regretted). As they moved off tarmac and onto dirt roads, Hammond's car broke down, whereupon the trio learned that if their car could not be restarted if it broke down, they would have to complete the rest of the journey in their least favourite car of all time - a Volkswagen Beetle. With Hammond's car fixed, they continued, and soon reached the camp site on the edge of the Makgadikgadi Pan.
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