Has Chris Evans confirmed a May 2016 premiere date for the all-new Top Gear?

DURING an appearance at the Radio Festival in London last week, the broadcaster told delegates that “Top Gear is not on until May, that’s seven months, three days and 18 hours [from now].”

When the BBC ended its relationship with Evans’s predecessor Jeremy Clarkson, the corporation immediately confirmed plans to bring Top Gear back to screens in 2016. However, the BBC has since told Digital Spy that it won’t be confirming exact transmission dates for the show at the moment.

Evans’s former Big Breakfast producer Lisa Clark has joined the all-new Top Gear crew, but the Radio 2 breakfast show host recently denied reports claiming Zoe Ball had a screen test for the show. Clarkson and his former Top Gear co-hosts Richard Hammond and James May are gearing up to launch a new, big-budget motoring show on Amazon Prime.  The trio are due to start filming in a matter of weeks as their show is also due to premiere in 2016, with rumours pointing at an autumn launch.

It’s been so long since the UK has been in the top half of the Eurovision scoreboard and nearly 20 years since Katrina and the Waves won it, but it looks like this could all change next year.

The BBC is reinstating the UK national final for the Eurovision entry, but with an X-Factor-style twist. Acts will be asked to submit an original track, before an industry panel whittles the entrants down. Then, the British public will vote for who they want to represent the UK.

Host Graham Norton thinks the new search for a song element is a great idea. When it comes to the Eurovision Song Contest, the UK’s been on the bad end of things in recent years. Jemini’s infamous 2003 ‘nul points’ result for ‘Cry Baby’ was the first time the country came last in the contest, though it was repeated in 2008 with former X Factor finalist Andy Abraham, then in 2010 with Josh Dubovie. In this year’s competition, Electro Velvet just managed to stay off the bottom of the scoreboard but only scored five points, the country’s worst since 2003.
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