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BBC hypocrites bullied me, says Top Gear's Stig
Emma Rowley10 Sep 2010
Top Gear's racing driver the Stig has accused the BBC of hypocrisy in trying to “bully” him out of telling his story.
Ben Collins was this month unmasked as the crash-helmeted mystery man after the corporation lost a High Court bid to block a book in which he revealed his identity.
It had been widely reported last year that the Stig was Mr Collins, after Top Gear was listed in his company's financial reports. The Bristol-based former US speedway driver, 35, said today of the legal action: “They wanted to bully me out of contention.”
He claimed the BBC had already undermined the secrecy surrounding his identity by speculating that he was the Stig in a Radio Times feature. “It was hypocritical to suggest I'd done more to reveal myself than they had.”
He said he told his executive producer in July that he had written his memoirs, after seven years on the show. “It got hostile,” he said. “They said they didn't want it to happen. I wanted freedom of speech and to continue my career without being hounded.”
A BBC spokesman said today: "The Radio Times - which is published independently of the BBC - used a list of possible names supplied by bookmaker William Hill on which Ben Collins's name appeared. These were already in the public domain so to say the BBC confirmed all of this is nonsense."
The BBC claimed the book would breach confidentiality obligations. After the judgment, a spokesman said: “The BBC brought this action as we believe it is vital to protect the character of the Stig, which ultimately belongs to the licence fee-payer.”
The BBC may axe the Stig in the next series, which starts in December.
Reader views (19)
Hey, I thought Michael Schumacher was The Stig! That is what they said on an episode a while back. I want my money back - whatever it was that I paid for that episode anyway - all 11 cents or something.
- JLFuller, USA, 12/09/2010 20:25
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He can't be the Stig, the Stig was forged from a solid block of Granite, some say he had all emotions removed at birth - not someone who could be bullied!
- Tony, Watford, Herts, 11/09/2010 15:06
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Nikk, if you're not aware that Top Gear is syndicated (very successfully) all around the world perhaps its best not to comment?
- scotty, london, 10/09/2010 16:32
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350 million! where did Paul H pluck that figure from......there are approx 62 million in UK.......? So who are the other millions?
- Nikk, Hammersmith, 10/09/2010 16:22
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Ben Collins is using this to raise the profile of his book, make some money and I wouldn't be surprised to see him in some kind of TV show in the near future. Come on Ben, if it weren't for the money would you really be having all this "publicity"?
Pathetic. Get a real job.
- Comeron, London, 10/09/2010 14:29
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Have I missed something with the importance of all this? I just don't get what all the fuss is about
- Mike Cooper, London, 10/09/2010 13:43
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He's 35!?! He's had tough life somewhere down the line!
Anyway...I am the Stig!
- Claudio, London, 10/09/2010 13:30
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Come on BBC. Scrap this progamme about overgrown schoolkids pratting around and give us one about cars. In fact, give us lots about cars and bikes and trucks and vans and classic cars and campervans and caravans. OK, maybe not caravans then.
- dougwatt, london EUSSR14, 10/09/2010 13:11
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Would anyone really have known who Ben Collins was before this story broke? - he would only have been able to sell his autobiography to his nearest and dearest (probably still true!).
HarperCollins (aka News International) are just on the publicity treadmill which is how come Mr Collins happens to end up onthe front page of the Sun today. He'll probably earn more out of the non stories in the tabloids than he ever would from his memoirs ("memoirs" that made me laugh!)
- Carl, London, 10/09/2010 13:06
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Ruth, Hampton - 350 Million people world wide disagree with you. If you don't like it then don't watch it. Its not difficult !
- Paul H, London, 10/09/2010 12:39
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Hang on, didn't the previous Stig get kicked off the show for revealing his identity in his autobiography?
Surely, Mr. Collins would have known about this. Why didn't he just leave the show quietly in the first place? Or does he possibly have some problems with his motorsport companies?
Apparently, he was earning around £70k a year but this was not enough for him.
- mike stern, london, 10/09/2010 12:30
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As Jeremy Clarkson pointed out, this guy Collins is too greedy and deserved the sack. Simples!
- Mike, London, 10/09/2010 12:08
Same could be said for Clarkson
- Dc, London, 10/09/2010 12:29
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Does the poor diddums need some more publicity for his book? Perhaps a loony American pastor can be persuaded to burn a pile of them next week? Come on HarperCollins - surely you can arrange?
- James, London, 10/09/2010 12:20
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Yawn - the media will use any opportunity (at all) to attack the BBC.
As Jeremy Clarkson pointed out, this guy Collins is too greedy and deserved the sack. Simples!
- Mike, London, 10/09/2010 12:08
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As said before the sooner the BBC has to stand on its own feet without taxpayer funding the better.
- Tojo, Hythe Kent, 10/09/2010 11:41
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Who cares? Tired show, tired format, smug and deeply irritating presenters who should be in the BBC retirement home.
- Ruth, Hampton, 10/09/2010 11:37
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"The BBC brought this action as we believe it is vital to protect the character of the Stig,which ultimately belongs to the licence fee-payer".
Don't make me larf !!
This would be the first time the management of the BBC considered their profligate abuse of licence payers' money !
They wasted even more of it by taking the matter to court, -again with OUR money !
- Huggy, Cumbernauld Scotland, 10/09/2010 11:09
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You can't prevent an actor from discussing his previous roles. What is the BBC trying to protect? Would they like us to believe that somebody they can't afford might be the Stig? Would they like us to believe it just might be Ayrton Senna? They are insulting their former employee and they are insulting their public.
- Bloke, Lambeth, 10/09/2010 11:01
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Odd - I thought it was him that was setting out to break his contract.
- Rogan, Irving, 10/09/2010 09:47
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