James May brands Top Gear Cenotaph stunt 'unwise'

Former Top Gear presenter James May has said the show’s latest episode filmed at the Cenotaph war memorial was “probably a bit ill-judged”.

The revamped BBC Two show came under fire recently for a stunt that involved new presenter Matt LeBlanc and rally driver Ken Block doing “doughnuts” near the memorial in London’s Whitehall.

The stunt sparked outrage after photos showed large tyre circles left on the streets surrounding the war memorial after filming had completed.

“I have driven up and down that road, yes, but no, I don’t do doughnuts – it’s inappropriate wherever you do it in my view,” he told the Guardian.

Commenting on the stunt he added: “It was possibly a little unwise, ill-advised.”

The show’s new host, Chris Evans, apologised on his BBC Radio 2 show saying he “completely understood the furore” surrounding the photographs and that “respectively it was unwise to be anywhere near the Cenotaph”.