Francis Bourgeois is joining The Grand Tour as one of three new hosts, with Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May backing the handover before the show returns on 4 September. The move shifts a long-running motoring format toward a trio built around Bourgeois, Thomas Holland and James Engelsman, rather than the familiar old lineup.
“They’ve been very supportive, very warm, very open in just saying, ‘Go ahead – make it your own,’ even though we have been sensitive in honouring what the show is all about, and keeping car enthusiasm central,” Bourgeois said ahead of the new season’s premiere. That approval gives the switch a cleaner handover than most presenter changes: the outgoing names are not just leaving, they are actively clearing space for the new one.
James May’s advice to Thomas Holland
Thomas Holland said the first reaction was not swagger but anxiety. He described “there was a lot of trepidation and fear” when he was first approached about the role, then added that James May told him, “Don’t ask me – just do your thing,” a line that undercuts the drama while also showing how directly the old guard handed over control. He said he would have considered what kind of mushrooms were on his al funghi pizza if someone had told him five years ago that he would replace Clarkson and co as host of the motoring show.
That reaction matters because the new hosts are not stepping into an empty slot; they are stepping into a built-in comparison. A 3-host format under the same title has to prove it can keep car enthusiasm central without sounding like an imitation of the previous era, and Holland’s own unease is the most honest signal that everyone involved understands the scale of the job.
James Engelsman sees a car guy
James Engelsman said it was “a huge green flag early on” that Bourgeois had car knowledge, even if the first instinct around the casting was, “but he’s the train guy.” He added: “But he’s also the car guy.” That distinction is the whole bet here: Bourgeois arrives with a public identity built on trainspotting videos that went viral on TikTok and Instagram, but the show is asking viewers to accept him as a presenter on a motoring series rather than as a novelty booking.
Bourgeois is 24 years old and also spent six months as a mechanical engineer at Rolls-Royce, which gives the casting more than online reach. The older trio’s approval, the mechanical background and the existing Throttle House audience all point in the same direction: this is being sold as a credible transition, not a one-off stunt. Read the trailer breakdown in James Englesman, Thomas Holland and Francis Bourgeois lead Grand Tour trailer.
Prime Video on 4 September
The new season of The Grand Tour was due to premiere on Prime Video on Friday 4 September, turning this handover into a deadline rather than a vague rebrand. Throttle House itself dates back to 2015, when Holland founded it out of boredom before Engelsman joined in 2018, and that timeline explains why the production is leaning on creators who already know how to speak to car audiences in short-form and long-form formats.
For viewers, the immediate question is not whether the old chemistry can be duplicated — it cannot — but whether this trio can make the show feel deliberate from the first episode. Bourgeois said the departing hosts told them to make it their own, and that is the only sustainable route if The Grand Tour wants its next run to feel like a new chapter rather than a replacement act. More on the return is here: Francis Bourgeois leads The Grand Tour return on 4 September.
