Top Gear's James May tells BBC Trust to 'sod off' show is rapped for 'glamorising drink-driving'

Top Gear presenter James May hit back at BBC bosses today after he and co-host Jeremy Clarkson were rapped for drinking while driving during the hit show's 'Polar Special'.

May, 45, said the BBC Trust could "sod off" after its editorial standards committee criticised the pair for sipping gin and tonics during their drive to the Magnetic North Pole.

The report follows a complaint from a viewer who criticised the 'blatant use of alcohol while driving' during an episode of the hit BBC1 show.

The programme – which saw presenters James May and Jeremy Clarkson drinking gin and tonic in the cab of a truck – was described as 'grossly irresponsible'.

At one point, May asked Clarkson to "slow down while I cut the lemon".

But speaking today from his London home, May defended the footage, saying the pair were "hundreds of miles" from the nearest road -  and that they deserved their treat.

He said: 'When I saw the ruling in the paper, I thought 'you can sod off'.

'We were in the middle of nowhere - literally in the middle of the sea - and we were neither in any danger, nor posed any danger to anyone or anything for hundreds of miles.

'It's bloody hard work driving to the Pole, and having a nice gin and tonic was something we totally deserved.

Top Gear has been rapped by the BBC Trust's editorial standards committee for showing presenters Jeremy Clarkson (pictured) and James May drinking while driving during the show's hit Polar Special.

'We weren't drunk - we were merely having a drink. It wasn't like we set out to deliberately cause controversy.'

The hour-long episode was a hit with BBC2 audiences, winning 4.5 million viewers.

It showed May and Clarkson's successful attempt to become the first people to drive a car to the Magnetic North Pole in a heavily modified Toyota pick-up truck.