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The Stig

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The Stig
The Stig at the 2006 British International Motor Show.
BornUnknown
Occupation(s)Test driver and trainer for celebrity guests

The Stig is the name given to the anonymous racing driver on the BBC show Top Gear. In the show he is cast as a mysterious "tame racing driver"[1] whose identity is unknown, and who never speaks or removes his helmet on camera. Nonetheless he is fully credited as a presenter, albeit as "The Stig", alongside Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May.

The Stig's primary functions on the show are to post lap times in various cars around the Top Gear Test Track in Dunsfold Park, and to train each week's guest in setting a lap time in the Star in a Reasonably-Priced Car feature on the show. In addition the Stig carries out other driving duties when the need arises.

The Stig has also appeared on some of Jeremy Clarkson's motoring specials, such as Heaven and Hell and Thriller.

Origins

The Stig's name derives from presenter Jeremy Clarkson's days at Repton School; where, according to Clarkson, new students were always called "Stig".[2] A proposed name for the Stig was originally "The Gimp" until protests from Perry McCarthy put a stop to the idea.[3] There have been two official Stigs on the show, while various other Stigs have made cameo appearances for particular episodes.

Black Stig

The Stig (Series 1 & 2)

The first Stig wore black overalls and helmet. It was introduced in the first episode of the current format by Jeremy Clarkson as the resident test driver, as the presenters could not consistently post fast times themselves. Clarkson noted that "we don't know its name, we really don't know its name, nobody knows its name, and we don't wanna know, cause it's a racing driver." Clarkson then described The Stig as having a very small brain, who had worthless opinions, and a disorder described by Clarkson as "Mansell Syndrome". Its job description was to "just go out there and drive fast".[4]

Black Stig posted a lap time of 1:46 for the Star in a Reasonably-Priced Car segment. This Stig was used for the first two series of the show. It was then "killed off" at the start of the third series when he was shown driving a modified Jaguar XJ-S off the flight deck of HMS Invincible during a stunt and landing in the sea.[5][6]

White Stig

After the Black Stig was "killed off", a new "White Stig" was introduced, wearing white overalls and helmet.[7] White Stig has been featured in the show beyond just the Power Lap segment. His work has included driving cars in other segments of the show,[8] and racing against the hosts [9] and recruited to undertake tests.[10] White Stig has also appeared outside Top Gear in some of Clarkson's motoring specials, such as 2005's Heaven and Hell, 2006's The Good, The Bad, The Ugly, 2007's Supercar Showdown, and 2008's Thriller.

The Stig also collected Top Gear's third award for Best factual programme at the 2008 British National Television Awards. The Stig did not speak, but supplied an acceptance letter from the rest of the crew, read out by Griff Rhys Jones.[11]

White Stig posted the fastest lap time of 1:44.4 around the Top Gear test track for the Star in a Reasonably-Priced Car segment.

Other Stigs

There have been various cameo appearances by other Stigs on Top Gear.

Series 9 Episode 3 was set in the United States, with the presenters purchasing American cars and driving them across four states whilst on holiday. One of the challenges set for the presenters was for the cars to set a lap time around a racetrack, for which "the Stig's American cousin" was introduced. This Stig was nicknamed "Big Stig" by the presenters due to his obese appearance[12] and was noted by Clarkson to have a "very relaxed driving style".[13]

Series 10 Episode 4 featured the presenters driving across Botswana. To test the performance of the three cars used by the presenters around a dirt rally track, Clarkson introduced "The Stig's African cousin". This incarnation of The Stig was black, wore only Puma shoes, a loincloth and the iconic white helmet. He set lap times for two of the cars, but walked away from the track when Clarkson's Lancia Beta failed to start. The others joked that African Stig was "in a hurry", and decided "not to take your [Jeremy's] car".[14]

Series 12 Episode 1 featured Stig's lorry driving cousin ("Rig Stig," as identified via Jeremy's narration), who was set as a stereotypical lorry driver, with the right hand sleeve of his jump suit tanned brown and an obese appearance. He demonstrated to Clarkson, May and Hammond that it was possible to powerslide a lorry cab.[15]

Other versions

Top Gear Australia's version of The Stig is similarly attired to the UK White Stig, and his identity is likewise kept a secret. Co-host Steve Pizzati has suggested that The Stig have an "Australian" name, such as "Stiggo", but the other presenters refused.[16] Marketing in the lead up to the series had suggested him to possibly be The Stig's "Australian cousin"[17] but in the first episode he was introduced as The Stig.

Records

The Stig's fastest official lap time around the Top Gear test track was 1 minute 17.1 seconds in a Gumpert Apollo.[18] Faster times had previously been posted in a Renault F1 car (0.59.0),[19] an Aston Martin DBR9 (1.08.6)[20] and a Caparo T1 (1:10.6),[21] but the times of these cars were not included on the Lap Board because they were either not deemed street-practical due to their inability to navigate UK regulation speed bumps, or because they could not be purchased by the public.

Identity

The Stig's true identity is never revealed on the show, and in order to maintain the secrecy, all shots show him wearing full racing overalls and matching Simpson Diamondback helmet.[22][23] All that can be seen from the gap between his helmet and jumpsuit is that he is a white male with dark hair. It is also known that he wears Size 10 racing boots as discovered by the Sunday Times[24] and a well-timed camera flash managed to show The Stig's eyes by Auto Trader.[25] Although The Stig does talk with celebrities while preparing them for their "Star in a Reasonably Priced Car" lap times, he is almost never shown talking on screen, and in both the programme and Top Gear magazine articles he is portrayed as unable or unwilling to talk.[26][27] Clarkson has written that The Stig is not permitted to talk on screen because "any opinion he might voice on cars would be rubbish",[4][28] though he has been caught speaking on camera.[29]

The identity of Black Stig was revealed to be Perry McCarthy when his book Flat Out, Flat Broke was published in 2002. McCarthy is a former Formula 1 driver and test driver for the Benetton, Arrows and Williams teams, and also tested for BMW F1.[22][3]

The identity of White Stig has not been officially revealed and is regarded as a carefully guarded secret by the BBC.[30][31] Racing drivers ranging from Julian Bailey,[30][32] Ben Collins,[30][33][34][35][36] Chris Goodwin,[30] Damon Hill,[37][38] Heikki Kovalainen,[30] Tim Schrick,[39][40][41] and Russ Swift,[30][34][37] have been speculated as being The Stig at one point or another by the press, other racing drivers, and fans of the show.

Perry McCarthy,[3] Russ Swift,[37] and an unnamed former Stig[30] have claimed that there is more than one driver who plays the role of The Stig. James May claims that there is a clause in the Stig's contract that should his identity be exposed either through his own willingness or via a member of the Top Gear staff (including the hosts of Top Gear), he has to be fired. Black Stig was let go via this clause; the same clause would apply also to White Stig under the same circumstances.[42]

Specialist drivers and stuntmen have also been hinted at playing the role of The Stig; Stuntmen Terry Grant and Russ Swift have been hinted as donning The Stigs trademark racing suit.[30] The Winter Olympics special episode of Top Gear showed The Stig doing a ski jump using a snowmobile; the driver performing the ski jump stunt was claimed to be Dan Lang, a Swedish snowmobile cross driver.[30][43] "Rig Stig" seen in Series 12 Episode 1 drove British Truck racing champion Stuart Oliver's truck on the show, indicating a truck racing driver was used in the segment .[44]

Some people have criticized the apparent fascination of trying to identify who is really The Stig, comparing it to claiming there is no Father Christmas.[30] The Times criticized the outing of Ben Collins by the Daily Telegraph in an article that the "identity of the white-suited Stig ... has been an open secret within the motoring world for some years, with newspapers refraining from publishing his name, to uphold the spirit of the programme." which concluded that "a newspaper broke with the convention to out Mr Collins, 33, after following up a story in a Bristol newspaper".[36]

The BBC has varied their responses to The Stig's true identity. One official BBC response to such speculation is "We never comment on speculation as to whom or what the Stig is."[30] In "response" to the outing of Ben Collins as The Stig, the BBC revealed The Stig's true identity as deceased racing driver Graham Hill,[45] then as troubled Royal Bank of Scotland boss Sir Tom McKillop,[46] and Barack Obama.[47] In the revamp of the Top Gear website, one staffer alluded to the identity of Stig as himself, while The Stig walked behind him debunking the theory.[48]

File:TGIAMTHESTIG.jpg
Mark Webber with an "I AM THE STIG" T-shirt presented to him by Jeremy.

The show has alluded to The Stig with Formula 1 drivers that visit the show. Damon Hill appeared as the "Star in a Reasonably Priced Car" and when asked directly by Clarkson if he was The Stig, Hill played on the fact that he may be The Stig, but then denied it.[38] Mark Webber's appearance on the show was marked at the conclusion of his lap with Clarkson presenting him with an "I AM THE STIG" T-shirt.[49]

When former F1 driver Nigel Mansell appeared on the show, Jeremy Clarkson noted that The Stig theorised that the Suzuki Liana (the show's "reasonably priced car" at the time) could achieve a 1:44 time on the track.[50] Mansell proved the Stig's theory by lapping in a time of 1:44.6; The Stig subsequently posted a lap-time of 1:44.4 in the Liana. During the review of Jenson Button's lap, Clarkson commented that he, as did most of the other F1 drivers, took very different racing lines from The Stig's. Button commented that "...obviously, The Stig isn't a Formula One Driver, then", to which Clarkson replied, "might be."[51]

Listening habits

Another source of entertainment for the presenters is the music The Stig listens to whilst doing Power Laps around the Top Gear track. Often a specific genre will be chosen for one or more series. These have included power ballads, one-hit wonders, easy listening, country and western, progressive rock, baroque, advertising jingles, foreign language tapes, romantic novels, salesman techniques, the hits of Elton John, the speeches of Margaret Thatcher, self-help tapes, and Morse Code.

Introductions

Wikiquote has quotations related to The Stig.

Starting in the sixth season, the hosts of the show will often introduce footage of The Stig by offering humorous speculations as to his identity, such as "Some say that the outline of his left nipple is exactly the same shape as the Nürburgring. And if you give him a really important job, he'll skive off and play croquet. All we know is...he's called The Stig.".[52] The introductions often include references to topical news stories. Prior to this change, The Stig's name would be used in formal introductions, such as "His Holiness, The Stig!".[53]

References

  1. ^ "Power Laps". BBC Television, Top Gear (current format). Retrieved 2008-08-08. Every performance road car that comes to the Top Gear test track eventually ends up in the hands of our tame racing driver.
  2. ^ Rufford, Nicholas (2005-11-06). "The backroom boy who put Top Gear on top of the world". The Sunday Times. News International. Retrieved 2006-09-26. ... and then we started to think about reviving Top Gear in a new format, with a track, special guests and the Stig — new boys at Repton were always called Stig... {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ a b c Collantine, Keith (2006-11-01). "The original Stig speaks". Auto Trader. Trader Media Group. Retrieved 2006-11-01. McCarthy originally attended a screen-test to be a Top Gear presenter. But then the producers conjured up the idea of having an anonymous racing driver – which they wanted to call The Gimp. "I just said 'no'," he laughs. "I didn't want to be known as The Gimp. Finally we settled on The Stig"
  4. ^ a b Top Gear Series 1, Episode 1 (2002-10-20)
  5. ^ Top Gear Series 3, Episode 1 (2003-10-26)
  6. ^ BBCWorldwide, YouTube. Top Gear - The Stig - HMS Invincible - BBC Accessed (2008-11-26)
  7. ^ Top Gear Series 3, Episode 2 (2003-11-02)
  8. ^ See for example Top Gear Series 7, Episode 1 Isle of Man Test
  9. ^ See for example Top Gear Series 8, Episode 7 (2006-07-23) The Hosts building a Caterham Kitcar vs. The Stig driving one from Caterham HQ
  10. ^ See for example Top Gear Series 10, Episode 5 (2007-11-11) Crossing London/Public Transport Challenge
  11. ^ "In pictures: National TV Awards". BBC News. 2008-10-29. Retrieved 2008-11-03. Comedian Griff Rhys Jones presented Top Gear's racing driver The Stig with the award for best factual programme.
  12. ^ Top Gear Series 9, Episode 3 (2007-02-11)
  13. ^ BBC Channel, YouTube. Top Gear Series 9, Episode 3 (2007-02-11) - Immediately after 6:25, Clarkson: The Cadillac certainly seemed to suit Big Stig's relaxed driving style.
  14. ^ Top Gear Series 10 Episode 4 (4 November 2007])
  15. ^ Top Gear Series 12 Episode 1 (2 November 2008)
  16. ^ Top Gear Australia Series 1, Episode 1 (2008-07-29)
  17. ^ "Australian Top Gear presenters revealed". BBC Worldwide Press Releases. 2008-05-28. Retrieved 2008-09-01.
  18. ^ Top Gear Series 10, Episode 9 (2007-12-09)
  19. ^ Top Gear Series 5, Episode 8 (2004-12-19)
  20. ^ Top Gear Series 6, Episode 6 (2005-07-03)
  21. ^ Top Gear Series 10, Episode 5 (2007-11-11)
  22. ^ a b McCarthy, Perry (2002). Flat Out, Flat Broke: Formula 1 the Hard Way!. Haynes Publishing Group. ISBN 1-85960-886-8. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  23. ^ "Karting gear - helmets and visors". Thrashed Racing. 2007-11-26. Retrieved 2008-04-06.
  24. ^ "Bad boys are back in town". The Sunday Times. News International. 2006-06-16. Retrieved 2006-09-26.
  25. ^ Milne, Stuart (2008-02-22). "Top Gear's The Stig - unmasked at last?". Auto Trader. Trader Media Group. Retrieved 2008-02-22. This is the first glimpse of the man behind The Stig's trademark white crash helmet... This sensational photograph was taken in London yesterday and gives a clear view of his eyes through his crash helmet's black visor, but has left experts mystified as to his true identity.
  26. ^ Porter, Richard Some say...if The Stig didn't exist, it would be necessary to invent him, just one of the many paradoxes involving the mystery man. Top Gear Magazine October 2008 pg. 137
  27. ^ "Brain Stig - TopGear.com viral - BBC Top Gear". Top Gear. January 12, 2009. Retrieved 27 Jan 2009.
  28. ^ "Volvo XC70 SE Sport". Sunday Times. News International. 2007-09-23. Retrieved 2007-12-26.
  29. ^ The Stig Speaks? finalgear.com Posted 2007-03-12 at 13:17 GMT
  30. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "EXCLUSIVE: The eight drivers behind Top Gear stunt driver The Stig's famous racing whites". Richard Irvine. The Daily Mail. 12:57 PM on 27th January 2009. Retrieved 27 Jan 2009. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  31. ^ "Top Gear's The Stig revealed as married man 'who drives boring car'". Chris Irvine. Daily Telegraph. 6:11PM GMT 11 Jan 2009. Retrieved 11 Jan 2009. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  32. ^ Lorraine, Veronica (2006-01-16). "'The Stig' is unmasked". Daily Express. Northern and Shell Media. We can reveal he is none other than former Formula 1 and British touring car championship driver Julian Bailey.
  33. ^ Dave, Clensy (2008-03-01). "Life in the fast lane". Western Daily Press. p. 4. So, is he The Stig? "No," Ben laughs, as we order a coffee in the bar of the Avon Gorge Hotel, "those rumours are absolute nonsense". That said, YouTube is flooded with films showing an unbroadcast scene where The Stig speaks - sounding uncannily like Ben.
  34. ^ a b Collantine, Kieth (22 January 2007). "Trackside - Who is the Stig?". Auto Trader. Retrieved 2008-07-14.
  35. ^ "Who is the Stig? The answer". Daily Telegraph. 12:44PM GMT 19 Jan 2009. Retrieved 19 Jan 2009. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  36. ^ a b Foster, Patrick (2009-01-19). "Identity of Top Gear's The Stig revealed as Ben Collins". The Times. Retrieved 2009-01-19.
  37. ^ a b c Collantine, Keith (2007-01-17). "Stunt driver Russ Swift". Auto Trader. Retrieved 2007-07-18. 'Are you the Stig from Top Gear?' "(Pause) No comment. What we... (laughs) what Top Gear like about the Stig is the fact that nobody knows who it is. A lot of people think it's Damon Hill. It is not one person."
  38. ^ a b "Top Gear Videos, Celeb Laps: Damon Hill". Topgear.com. Retrieved 2006-10-08.
  39. ^ "TVL - Top Gear in Zolder". TV Limburg (in Dutch). 2009-05-22. Retrieved 2008-05-26.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
  40. ^ "UPDATE: The Stig NOT revealed... in Belgium?". Autoblog. 2008-05-22. Retrieved 2008-05-26.
  41. ^ "No, Tim Schrick Is Not One Of The Stigs". finalgear.com. 2008-05-23. Retrieved 2008-05-26.
  42. ^ "BBC Radio 5 Live: Simon Mayo". 2008-11-03. {{cite episode}}: Missing or empty |series= (help)(Start time: around the 2 Hour Mark)
  43. ^ "Han hoppar med skoter". Aftonbladet (in Swedish). Landsorganisationen i Sverige/Schibsted. 2006-03-07. Retrieved 2007-09-26. Dan Lang flög ut från OS-backen i 134 km/h. I 134 kilometer i timmen hoppade Dan Lang, 24, ut från 90-meterbacken i Lillehammer. På skoter.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
  44. ^ "BBC Top Gear The Rig Stig". Teamoliver.co.uk. Retrieved 2009-05-01.
  45. ^ "The Stig is Revealed". Top Gear. January 21, 2009. Retrieved 21 Jan 2009. {{cite web}}: Text "9:57 am" ignored (help)
  46. ^ "Stig unmasked again". Top Gear. January 21, 2009. Retrieved 21 Jan 2009.
  47. ^ "That's Mr President Stig to you, sir". Top Gear. January 21, 2009. Retrieved 21 Jan 2009.
  48. ^ "Never Seen - TopGear.com viral - BBC Top Gear video". Top Gear. January 14, 2009. Retrieved 27 Jan 2009.
  49. ^ Top Gear Series 6, Episode 10 (2005-7-31)
  50. ^ Top Gear Series 7, Episode 5 (2005-12-11) Clarkson: The Stig has always told us, that track would give us a 1:44 in that car, and I thought...
  51. ^ Top Gear Series 8, Episode 8 (2006-07-30) Clarkson: You do that line as well! Formula One drivers all do that and The Stig doesn't! Button: Oh really? Clarkson: No. Button: Well obviously, The Stig isn't a Formula One Driver, then. Clarkson: Might be.
  52. ^ Top Gear - Series 8, Episode 5 - 2006.06.04 (7:00 in, Clarkson introduces The Stig in review of the Prodrive P2) (BBCWorldwide YouTube link: Top Gear - Pro-Drive P2 Test Drive and Stig lap - BBC (February 20, 2008)).
  53. ^ Top Gear, Series 2, Episode 1, offset 43:12, Hammond introduces "His holiness, the Stig."
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