Richard Hammond is an English TV presenter, writer, and journalist. He is best known for being the co-host of the BBC Two car show Top Gear starting from 2002 to 2015. Besides that, he is also known for presenting shows such as Brainiac: Science Abuse (2003–2008), Total Wipeout (2009–2012) and Planet Earth Live (2012).
Born Name
Richard Mark Hammond
Nick Name
Hamster
Sun Sign
Sagittarius
Born Place
Solihull, Warwickshire, England, United Kingdom
Nationality
Education
The first school he attended was Blossomfield Infant School from the age of 3 to 7. He was then admitted to Solihull School which he later left to join Ripon Grammar School. He further went on to attend Harrogate College of Art and Technology in 1986.
Occupation
TV Presenter, Writer, Journalist
Family
- Father – Alan Hammond (Businessman)
- Mother – Eileen Hammond
- Siblings – Andrew Hammond (Younger Brother) (Writer), Nicholas Hammond (Younger Brother)
Manager
Richard is represented by Independent Talent Group Ltd.
Build
Slim
Height
5 ft 5½ in or 166.5 cm
Weight
64 kg or 141 lbs
Girlfriend / Spouse
Richard has dated –
- Amanda Hammond (2002-Present) – Richard married the columnist for the Daily Express, Amanda Hammond in May 2002. They are proud parents to 2 daughters Isabella Hammond and Willow Hammond.
Race / Ethnicity
White
Hair Color
Black
Eye Color
Dark Brown
Sexual Orientation
Straight
Distinctive Features
French cut beard
Brand Endorsements
Richard had done advertisement work for brands like –
- Morrisons supermarket (2008)
- LeasePlan (2017)
Best Known For
- Being the co-host of the famous BBC Two car show Top Gear, starting from 2002 until 2015
- Being the presenter for British entertainment documentary show, Brainiac: Science Abuse from 2003 to 2008, the famous British game show, Total Wipeout from 2009 to 2012, and the live-action nature documentary, Planet Earth Live in 2012
First TV Show
Richard made his TV show debut on Car File as a Presenter in 1998.
Personal Trainer
Richard tries to keep himself by doing a lot of physical activity such as . As per an interview, he revealed that he tries to go for a five-mile run, a few times in a week. He also likes to ride a bicycle whenever he gets time.
Richard Hammond Favorite Things
- Food – Cottage pie
Source –
Richard Hammond Facts
- His family moved to the city of Ripon, Yorkshire when he was a child.
- In an interview, he revealed that he got a degree in arts just to attract girls.
- The first car that he drove was a Toyota Corolla Liftback which he unfortunately crashed.
- After completing his graduation, he worked for many of the BBC radio stations, such as Radio Cleveland, Radio York, Radio Cumbria, Radio Newcastle, Radio Leeds, and Radio Lancashire.
- After radios, he moved into the work in monitoring PR and it was from here that he got the first big break of his life in British television series Top Gear.
- When he joined the show in 2002, the show had just begun with its latest format.
- He was given the nickname ‘Hamster’ because of his name and also because he is the shortest of the 3 presenters of the show including and .
- He was again reinforced by that nickname in the series 7 of the show when he mimicked hamster-like behavior on 3 separate occasions by eating cardboard.
- On September 20, 2006, he met with an accident during the filming of a Top Gear segment at the former RAF Elvington airbase and suffered serious injury in the crash of the jet-powered car he was piloting at a speed of 288 mph (463 km/h).
- The vehicle he was driving at the time of the crash was a dragster called Vampire and was the same dragster car that was piloted by Colin Fallows in 2000, and set the British land speed record at 300.3 mph (483.3 km/h). He was said to be completing a 7th and final run to collect extra footage for the show when the accident occurred after his front-right tire failed.
- During the accident, his helmet was completely embedded into the ground that led to soil getting into his mouth and damaged his left eye.
- As a result of the accident, he suffered a serious brain injury but still managed to leave the intensive care and enter a private hospital within 10 days.
- It was so severe that Richard had to be cut free from the vehicle with the help of hydraulic shears and was taken to the hospital with the air ambulance.
- After recovering, he revealed that due to the brain injury, he completely lost a year and did not remember events like Jonathan Ross interview or presenting Top Gear Live in South Africa.
- On June 10, 2017, he met with another accident, this time crashing a Rimac Concept One electric supercar while he was filming for The Grand Tour in Hemberg, Switzerland. Even after crashing badly, he himself crawled out of the vehicle before it burst into flames. As a result of the crash, he suffered a tibial plateau fracture in his left knee and a plate and ten screws were surgically inserted.
- Besides being the presenter of shows like Top Gear, he himself is a motoring enthusiast and has owned some well known cars such as Ford Mustang GT 390, Bentley S1, Jaguar E-type, Porsche 911 SC, Range Rover classic, Land Rover defender 110, BMW 850Ci, Porsche 928, Porsche 911 Carrera S, Fiat 500, Lamborghini Gallardo LP-560-4 Spyder, Aston Martin DBS Volante, Porsche 911 GT3, Porsche 911 GT3 RS to name a few.
- He also owned an Opel Kadett and had named it Oliver.
- He is also a writer of a motoring column in the British tabloid newspaper, the Daily Mirror.
- As an author, his first book What Not To Drive came out in 2005.
- His idea of a perfect vacation is camping in the rain in the English Lake District.
- He owns a farm containing animals such as horses, dogs, cats, chickens, ducks, sheep, and peacock.
- Richard can also play bass guitar.
- In his ideal time, he likes to ride a bicycle, scooter, or motorbike.
- Richard has often times openly expressed his dislike for the English rock band Genesis.
- His comments have sparked controversies numerous times among viewers, LGBT rights charities, and foreign diplomats.
- Besides all the controversies, he is active in charities and has been an active ambassador for a charity called The Children’s Trust, that supports children with brain injury.
- Follow Richard Hammond on and .
Featured Image by Land Rover MENA / Flickr / CC BY 2.0
Facts of Richard Hammond
- full nameRichard Hammond
- Date of Birth December 19, 1969
- Age 54 years 11 months
- Horoscope Sagittarius
- Lucky Number 11
- Lucky Stone Turquoise
- Lucky Color Orange
- Best Match for Marriage Leo, Aquarius
- weight64 kg
- height5 ft 5½ in