The forty-third series of Original format Top Gear, starring presenters Tiff Needell, Quentin Willson, Vicki Butler-Henderson and Kate Humble premiered on the 20th of January, 2000 and concluded on the 25th of May, 2000.
It was the final series for long-term used car expert Willson, who at that point was the longest serving presenter in terms of episode count, having appeared in 190 episodes since 1991. It remains unknown as to the circumstances surrounding Willson's departure, as he rejoined Needell and Henderson for spiritual successor series Fifth Gear in 2002.
Viewing figures fell below the 3 million mark, with an average weekly figure of 2.98 million people watching each episode, which was 170,000 less than Series 42.
Production[]
Producer Richard Porter cites this series as the point in which he felt he could take the show no further than was possible at the time; a proposed segment featuring comparisons of petrol station sandwiches prompted him to depart from the show in the Summer of 2000 and set up SniffPetrol, a motoring satire magazine.