This TOP GEAR segment filmed in Lucca has gone down in television history as vintage Clarkson-May-Hammond TOP GEAR. When the BBC contacted ITALYfixer saying that they wanted to film Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond getting stuck driving through the narrow streets of a typical Italian town, Fabio Di Segni suggested they use Lucca as their location.
It’s a beautiful medieval Tuscan town, surrounded by an impressive wall, inside which traffic is strictly limited, and the locals get around the winding streets on foot or bicycle. ITALYfixer negotiated with the local council to get complete open access, without charge, to the whole town, including the pedestrian-only areas and wall, for the three presenter cars and all 6 tracking vehicles.
The BBC television crew numbered over 40 and as the on-location producer, Fabio Di Segni organized all the vehicles, local drivers, helicopter, catering, crew transportation, and equipment hire.
Jeremy Clarkson is famous for ad-libbing on set and changing scenes as he goes along, so Fabio had to find contributors and props on-the-spot – an old bicycle in a river, a woman with a dog, and so on! The final product was a great success and is one of the most viewed episodes of TOP GEAR on YouTube.