Not in Top Gear? Matt Le Blanc looks glum as he shoots scenes in the California rain for the next season of the BBC motoring show... following last series' ratings flop

By Andrew Bullock For Mailonline

Published: 15:03 EST, 19 December 2016 | Updated: 15:58 EST, 19 December 2016

There's a lot of pressure on the cast and crew of BBC's Top Gear following the negative reviews the rebooted series received this spring.

And things didn't look particularly jovial on the set of the motoring show on Mammoth Mountain, California where the crew were filming.

Among the huddle of people was returning presenter Matt Le Blanc who is continuing the role of show host, but without his former co-star Chris Evans who quit the series as soon as the final episode had aired earlier in the year.

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Not in Top Gear? Matt Le Blanc looks glum as he shoots scenes in the California rain for the next season of the BBC motoring show... following last series' ratings flop

Having rebooted the show following the departure of long-standing hosts Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond, the 2016 series did not go down well with viewers, who slammed Evans as the new face of the show.

Former star of American sitcom Friends, Le Blanc, was spared the vicious critique Evans received, and has consequently been asked back for the next series.

But he didn't look particularly happy as he shot the new scenes in California, as he huddled under the open boot of a vehicle sheltering from the miserable weather.

Despite shooting in The Sunshine State, things looked drab as Le Blanc wrapped up in a yellow bomber jacket and a beanie hat, with a thick fleece underneath his coat.

The TV star, 49, stared up at the rain as it dripped from the sky, clearly irritated that it had delayed filming.

He passed the time chatting to other trussed up members of the crew, also unable to do anything but wait for the shower to run its course.

At a standstill: Things didn't look particularly jovial on the set of the motoring show on Mammoth Mountain, California where the crew were filming.

Coming to a halt: Among the huddle of people was returning presenter Matt Le Blanc who is continuing the role of show host, but without his former co-star Chris Evans who quit the series as soon as the final episode had aired earlier in the year

There was an array of flashy cars parked along the side of the road on the location shoot, presumably for Le Blanc to do a scene with.

Several of them were covered in snow - another reason for the filming hold up.

Little has been released about Top Gear's next series - which will be it's 24th - but the BBC revealed in September that Le Blanc has agreed a two series deal with the channel.

Also returning are Chris Harris and Rory Reid, with regular appearances from Eddie Jordan, Sabine Schmitz and The Stig.

Meanwhile, the original Top Gear trio of Hammond, Clarkson and May have since premiered their Amazon series The Grand Tour - to much fanfare.

With its astonishing £160 million budget, it's among the most expensive series of all time and has now become the most illegally downloaded show in history.

Gridlock: There was an array of flashy cars parked along the side of the road on the location shoot, presumably for Le Blanc to do a scene with. Several of them were covered in snow - another reason for the filming hold up

Official figures for the series have not been revealed by maker Amazon, but since its launch on November 18, the first episode had been illegally downloaded 7.9 million times; episode two has been ripped off 6.4 million times; and the figure for the third episode is 4.6 million.

Viewers in Britain are the worst culprits, making up 13.7 per cent of the total.

Online pirates log on to websites that have stolen the Grand Tour – for which Clarkson is paid £10 million a year to make – instead of subscribing to Amazon.

Asked about the illegal downloads, Amazon said: 'The Grand Tour has become the biggest show premiere ever on Amazon Prime Video, breaking records around the world.'    

 

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