S4E5
Hammond Gets Struck by Lightning
⚠ Spoiler alert This recap gives away what happens in this episode.
Episode Summary & Review
Summary
Richard road tests 3 new family hatchbacks: the Vauxhall Astra, Mazda 3 and VW Golf. Jeremy gets into an MG ZT and smokes a pipe. Top Gear puts Richard in a Golf and attempts to fry him with lightning. The presenters race a Porsche, Jaguar and the BMW6 on a beach in Wales. And TV presenters Johnny Vaughan and Denise Van Outen blow up our Reasonably Priced Car.
Our Take
This is Top Gear at its most gloriously stupid, with the lightning stunt being the clear highlight even if the science is mostly an excuse to watch Hammond sweat. The three-way hatchback test is genuinely useful, and the beach race looks fantastic. A fun, fast-moving hour, though the MG pipe bit runs out of steam quickly.