Top Gear presenters Richard Hammond and James May have agreed to stay with the show after getting a pay rise of £10,000 per episode.

Hammond will now receive £25,000 a show and May £20,000.

Their contracts ran out this week while they were negotiating to bring their salaries closer to that of Jeremy Clarkson. The star of the BBC2 show is thought to have signed a £2million-a-year contract in June.

Staying on: Richard Hammond, left, and James May, right, have driven up their wages by £10,000 per show

Hammond and May are understood to have demanded £30,000 an episode to appear in the 12th series of Top Gear. The deal they agreed falls short of this, but will still significantly bolster their previous £350,000-a-year contracts.

Sources said Hammond has received his new contract but not signed it, and that May will sign his at the end of August.

Top Gear attracts eight million viewers in the UK and is also a success abroad, with an audience of 235million worldwide.

May denied last month that there was any wrangling over contracts. He told Radio Five Live: 'I have never stormed off over money or contracts. I have never seen Richard storm off either.'