Jeremy Clarkson has revealed he was both astonished and delighted by the outpouring of support following his prostate cancer announcement, prompting him to re-evaluate some recent behaviours.
The 66-year-old presenter disclosed that “boxes and boxes of letters and cards arrived from well-wishers all over the world,” with many hailing him a “national treasure” and even suggesting he deserved a knighthood. The touching response led to him to confess he should have acted differently following Chris Packham’s recent criticism.
Writing in The Sunday Times, the former Top Gear host admitted the positive reception caught him off guard after decades of cultivating a provocateur image.
“Here’s what I found strange – I liked it,” he wrote. “Being seen as a nice person rather than a troublemaker was just so relaxing.”
Jeremy Clarkson hit back after Mr Packham criticised Clarkson’s Farm on Celebrity Gogglebox | GETTY
The Clarkson’s Farm star added that he no longer had to wake each morning worrying about negative press coverage.
The experience has prompted Mr Clarkson to contemplate whether he should adopt a gentler approach to life at this stage.
“And that brings me on to Chris Packham,” he wrote.
The Springwatch presenter and environmental campaigner had previously criticised the opening sequence of Clarkson’s Farm, arguing it was “in no way representative of modern-day agricultural practices.”
Chris Packham is no stranger to clashing with Clarkson | PA
Mr Clarkson acknowledged that he reacted impulsively to Mr Packham’s comments at the time.
“I was very incensed by this and immediately wrote in The Sun that he was talking b******t” he admitted.
“But in the new age of tolerance and respect, I shouldn’t have done that. I should have kept schtum.”
Mr Clarkson went on to point to Gary Lineker as the embodiment of the considerate persona he might attempt to emulate.
Jeremy Clarkson recently shared his cancer diagnosis | PRIME VIDEO
He noted that the 65-year-old former England captain and Match of the Day presenter had recently referred to “the Falklands or the Malvinas” during a podcast discussion about the 1986 World Cup semi-final, later explaining he was simply being diplomatic.
“And as a man who now craves the quiet life I thought, ‘yes, that’s what I must do from now on,'” Mr Clarkson wrote.
He joked that adopting such an approach would require considerable effort: “So when I next go to Berlin I must say that I’m going to ‘Germany or Deutschland.'”
“Sounds like being Gary could well be very time consuming,” he added, noting he would need to weigh up everything from his footwear and holiday destinations to his political opinions and stance on Gaza.
Mr Cooper stars alongside Jeremy Clarkson on Clarkson’s Farm | PRIME
Ultimately, Mr Clarkson concluded that matching Mr Lineker’s demeanour would prove far too “exhausting” for someone of his temperament.
“Offering up your left cheek to be slapped after someone has hit the other one is something Jesus and Gary Lineker would have us do to de-escalate conflict,” he wrote.
“But if you’re someone like me, who’s spent his life throwing rocks in ponds to watch the ripples it creates, it’s b****y difficult.”
The presenter confessed he still harbours violent fantasies about the amateur pilots whose light aircraft regularly interrupt filming on his Oxfordshire farm.
“I was out there last week, in the sunshine, and we were having to stop all the time and I was consumed with a need to find out where the pilots lived so that I could go round to their houses that night and set fire to them,” he admitted.
“Yes, I’d lose my national treasure status, but at least I could get some work done.”