Ever wonder who is actually behind The Stig helmet? Ready to whizz the Top Gear crew around a race track, the identity is usually kept a secret… but now fans wonder whether co-host Chris Harris ever filled the mystery role. The character is a play on the anonymity of racing drivers’ full-face helmets, with the running
joke that nobody knows who or what is inside the Stig’s racing suit. The identity was previously revealed, until a second stig came into place. Since series 16, the presenters explained that Stigs grow very quickly, and the new Stig was thus already fully grown. Making their debut, the current Stig set a speed record around the track (1:15.1) in an Ariel Atom V8! So, just who is The Stig on Top Gear and was Chris Harris ever the face inside the helmet?
From fan guesses to confirmed identities from the past, Reality Titbit has all the details on the well-known character. The Stig absent from Top GearSeries 32 of Top Gear has shown no sign of The Stig, despite some races being absolutely perfect for the character. This has led to viewers being convinced that the car-based series has scrapped the white helmet altogether. The BBC has confirmed that Top Gear has definitely not scrapped The Stig for series 32 and told Reality Titbit:
Before the network denied the rumours, one fan wrote on Twitter: “Seems #TopGear have done away with the stig in this new series.” Others are confused about why they’d ever remove the character – and luckily, they haven’t. Top Gear executive producer Clare Pizey and series editor Alex Renton previously confirmed their intentions to remove The Stig from Star in a Reasonably Fast Car coaching duties, as per Top Gear Box. They said:
It comes as the series appeared to be slowly phasing out The Stig’s appearances, but this is not the case at all, despite the series 32 trailer showed no sign of the mystery identity. Fans ask if Chris Harris was The StigChris Harris has been inundated with questions about whether he is actually The Stig, especially as the character is thought to be from Bristol like the racing driver. However, there’s been no confirmation about him filling the role. According to a 2005 article in The Sunday Times, most of the Top Gear crew did not know the Stig’s identity; one camera assistant reportedly observed the Stig eating his lunch in the back of an ambulance to avoid being spotted. However, in 2009, another Times article reiterated that only a few production staff, the show’s presenters and other BBC journalists knew the Stig’s true identity. So it’s possible that Chris knows the man inside the white helmet!
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The Stig’s past identitiesIn series 13 episode 1, the show jokingly unmasked the Stig as seven-time world champion F1 driver Michael Schumacher. In the hiatus following series 15, racing driver Ben Collins was revealed to be the Stig. Perry McCarthy was The Stig in 2004, before Collins took over. Before Collins let slip on the secret, it was reported that eight drivers shared the role, including Lewis Hamilton, Heikki Kovalainen, Chris Goodwin, Dan Lang and Julian Bailey. Collins’ identity as The Stig was revealed in a court battle over Collins’ impending autobiography, titled The Man in the White Suit. However, he was replaced by a new Stig whose identity has never been officially confirmed. An unverified source on Twitter recently revealed that one of the locals near where they live, who owns a rally school, told them he used to be The Stig. There are several people on Instagram to dress up at The Stig, including a guy Tom. WATCH TOP GEAR ON BBC ONE EVERY SUNDAY AT 8 PM AND GET FREAKY WITH US ON INSTAGRAM AND FACEBOOK Ist The Stig wirklich Michael Schumacher?Es ist Michael Schumacher! Offen bleibt, ob "Schumi" wirklich die Testfahrten für das Automagazin absolvierte oder die Enthüllung nur ein PR-Gag war. Eine BBC-Sprecherin wollte nach der Sendung nicht bestätigen, dass der Formel-1-Rekordweltmeister wirklich "The Stig" ist.
Wer war der erste Stig bei Top Gear?Von 2002 bis 2003 übernahm der britische Rennfahrer und ehemalige Formel 1-Pilot Perry McCarthy die Rolle von The Stig. Seine Identität wurde 2003 in einer Zeitung enthüllt. Später bestätigte McCarthy, dass er der geheimnisvolle Fahrer war.
Wer ist der Stick von Top Gear?Ben Lievesley Collins (* 13. Februar 1975 in Bristol, England) ist ein britischer Automobilrennfahrer. Laut seiner Autobiografie trat er zwischen 2003 und 2010 als The Stig in der britischen Fernsehshow Top Gear auf. Daneben arbeitet er als Stuntfahrer für Spielfilme wie James Bond 007: Ein Quantum Trost.
Wird Top Gear noch produziert?Die BBC gab zu diesem Zeitpunkt bekannt, Top Gear werde auf unbestimmte Zeit nicht weiter produziert; mit einer Entscheidung über die Zukunft der Sendung werde man bis zur Genesung von Richard Hammond warten.
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