James May was born in the 18th century in the British city of Bristol. He studied music at university, although secretly he was thinking about old motorcycles. In his career to date he has been sacked from Autocar, let go from Driven, and relieved of his duties at CAR magazine. He previously presented Top Gear and is now one of the presenters on The Grand Tour, pending dismissal. He lives in London where he likes playing the piano, going to the pub and dismantling carburetors, often all at the same time.
He grew up near Sheffield in England.
He studied music at Lancaster University.
He is currently training for his light aircraft pilot's license.
He owns several cars including a Bentley T2, Fiat Panda, Jaguar XJS, Mini Cooper, Porsche Boxter S, Porsche 911 and a Range Rover. He also owns a Ferrari 458.
He plays flute, piano and saxophone proficiently.
presenting a new series of Top Gear [September 2004]
Along with co-presenter of Top Gear Jeremy Clarkson, became the first person to travel up to the magnetic north pole with a car.
Fired from "Autocar" magazine after putting in a hidden message in the 1992 "Road Test Year Book" with the first letter in each review. The message read out, "So you think it's really good, yeah? You should try making the bloody thing up; it's a real pain in the arse".
When asked by 史蒂夫·克罗夫特 on "60 Minutes" (24 October 2010) about the fastest speed he'd ever driven in a car, May confirmed that he reached a top speed of 259.2 mph behind the wheel of a Bugatti Veyron Super Sports at the Volkswagen Group's test track in Ehra-Lessien, Germany [ep: Top Gear: Reliant Robin Space Shuttle Challenge (2007)].
Born in Bristol but grew up in South Wales and South Yorkshire.
Fired from Autocar magazine for putting a hidden message into the road test supplement. The message was created using the drop cap at the start of each article. If you read them together, it spelt, "SO YOU THINK IT'S REALLY GOOD, YEAH? YOU SHOULD TRY MAKING THE BLOODY THING UP. IT'S A REAL PAIN IN THE ARSE".
Daily driver: BMW i3.
Has a degree in music and an incredible wealth of music knowledge. He can play the piano proficiently, although rarely in public.
Some of the cars he has owned: Saab 9-5 aero, Bentley T2, Rolls Royce phantom, Triumph 2000, Rover P6, Alfa Romeo 164, Rolls Royce corniche, Jaguar XJS, Range Rover, Fiat panda, Datsun 120Y, Porsche 911 carrera S, Vauxhall cavalier, Ferrari F430, Ferrari 458 Italia, Ferrari 458 speciale, Porsche 911, Porsche boxster S, BMW i3, Mini cooper, Citroën Ami, Mazda MX-5.