Jeremy Clarkson, the man who single-handedly gave jeans a bad name, has shown his immense influence in the world of cars by making sales of a Citroen model soar.
The effect of Clarkson's ringing endorsement of the Citroen Berlingo Multispace car is reminiscent of the effect of Delia Smith's championing of cranberries, sea salt and omelette pans.
In the new, revamped series of the BBC's Top Gear, the presenter raved about the modest £7,700 car/estate hybrid in a 15-minute tribute.
"This car has character. It is the bargain of the century," he enthused in the first episode of the series as he took a diesel version across the Channel to stock up on booze and food.
He raved about the boot space, the extra compartments for storage in the roof and the sheer good value for money of the vehicle.
And he went on to dismiss the qualities of every other car in the same category.
Better known for his love of performance cars, Clarkson's unexpected praise helped sales of the Berlingo soar by 22% last month, compared with an industry-wide average of -0.5% growth.
Citroen are, unsurprisingly, delighted. "We knew we had a good product and we were delighted Jeremy Clarkson agreed," said a spokesman for the company.
"It shows he is not just interested in supercars like Ferraris and can recognise a good value car when he finds it," he added.
The sales figures show Clarkson holds as much sway over the car-buying public as TV chef Delia Smith has over the sales of cookery ingredients.
Supermarkets reported selling out of Malden salt flakes after Smith recommended them on her show. She also caused a rush on cranberries in 1995.
Clarkson made his name on Top Gear in the 90s as a witty, outspoken motor expert, unreconstructed male and dedicated wearer of jeans.
He presented the show for 10 years until quitting in 1998 to branch out in other directions, including a BBC2 chat show.
