Jeremy Clarkson has launched into a furious tirade against what he calls “lefties” and the rise of online trolling, warning that abuse on social media is beginning to take its toll.
Writing in his Sunday Times column, the Clarkson’s Farm star reflected on the backlash faced by fellow columnist Giles Coren last week, after he was accused of being flippant about antisemitism. Clarkson said he sympathised with Coren, having repeatedly found himself at the centre of internet storms.
“You write something you think is a little bit amusing and maybe a bit provocative and the next thing you know, the mob is building a guillotine in your back garden,” he wrote.
He contrasted the present climate with how things were a decade ago, when columnists received the occasional letter to the editor but were otherwise shielded from instant outrage.
Now, he argued, remarks are lifted from context, amplified by online outlets and then twisted further in what he likened to “an epic game of Chinese whispers.”
The 64-year-old broadcaster said that while he tries to brush off the pile-ons, the relentless nature of trolling is “wearing.”
He cited a recent example where he joked he would never move to Dubai, only for social media to claim he was emigrating there, complete with AI generated images.
Clarkson then turned to the killing of American conservative commentator Charlie Kirk, who was shot dead earlier this month while touring US university campuses. Kirk, a married father of two, had been known for challenging students to debates on topics ranging from climate change to gender identity.
Although Clarkson admitted he did not share Kirk’s views, he praised his quick-thinking and debating style, adding: “Unsurprisingly, a lot of people didn’t. And now it looks as though one of them has shot him.”
Blaming what he described as “angry pink haired leftie people,” Clarkson claimed social media has stripped away nuance, leaving opponents to trade only in insults such as “racist, bigoted fascist.”
He concluded with a grim warning that political anger in Britain could escalate, recalling that his own home had previously been targeted with horse manure.
“God knows what they’ll throw at me next time,” he wrote.
Elsewhere, the former Grand Tour presenter admitted at last week’s NTAs that he has ‘no clue’ who Beyoncé and Jay-Z are as the power couple are tipped to buy a Cotswolds estate which would make them his neighbours.
