'Jeremy Clarkson is as emblematic of our shires as an oak,' writes Rowan Pelling - Amazon Britons have a huge soft spot for bons vivants and iconoclasts. If we're lucky, the two attributes merge in one glorious, larger-than-life personality. They certainly did when God created Jeremy Clarkson – a one-man handbrake turn, who feels like everyone's favourite wayward uncle. The sort of chap who will heckle your wedding speech, but in a good way, making everyone howl with laughter.