Next week we will be returning to The Hospital Club, for the latest in our long-running series of TV Networking events. On Thursday 6th September we will be joined by Clare Pizey and Alex Renton, the executive producer and series producer from the nation’s favourite motoring TV series, Top Gear, who will discuss rebooting one the BBC’s biggest global brands. We’ll also be joined on the night by legendary producer Graham Stuart, discussing his work on one of the UK’s best loved prime-time chat shows, The Graham Norton Show.
Clare Pizey
Pizey joined Top Gear as the head of editorial content in 2016, heading up the reboot after the departure of the long running presenting trio of Hammond, Clarkson and May. At the time, she had been with the BBC for seven years working as the Head of Factual Entertainment. Her credits include Children in Need and Sport Relief.
Alex Renton
Alex Renton is best known for his work on Top Gear, Clarkson: Thriller and Clarkson: Duel. Renton has worked on the Top Gear brand for over a decade, joining on series 5, and filling various roles across the production.
Top Gear
The original Top Gear launched in 1977 and was only available on BBC1 Midlands. The 30 minute programme discussed common motoring issues such as holiday touring, insurance and fuel economy. The original Top Gear ran for 24 years, before being relaunched in 2002 with a new format featuring races, celebrities and the studio setting that we have come to know and love.
The Reboot
After the well publicised departure of the show’s presenters, the format was again relaunched in 2016, with a new group of presenters, and host of new segments and features. Although the reboot boasted original and exciting changes, as Renton stated in a 2017 BBC interview, the car is still the foundation. “The programme starts from the car – always, always. We build from that. We combine all the different ingredients and we have got great ambitions.”
And, of course in a trailer that can only be described as quintessentially British, one of those key ingredients is milk.
Give Your Networking Horse Power
So, what does it take to pull off a successful reboot of a globally recognised brand? For a chance to find out first-hand how the duo put the show firmly back into top gear join us on the 6th September at The Hospital Club. For more information and to book your free place, click here.