The Stig's true identity revealed: This time by Jeremy Clarkson
09/26/2024 10:43 PM
The secret was kept for over a decade, until Clarkson spilled the beans in a live Q&A session.
Jeremy Clarkson, former co-host of long-running car shows Top Gear and The Grand Tour, has revealed one of the most enduring secrets around the much-loved television series.
Answering questions after a screening of the final episode of the Grand Tour – which marks the end of Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond hosting an automotive television show – he identified the identity of the most recent iteration of The Stig as British professional race driver Phil Keen.
In the same session, Clarkson told the audience that new cars are “all s*** now”, suggesting the typically bold media icon has little to lose as he embarks on this next chapter of his career.
The Stig, who was always shown wearing a helmet and white racing suit, was a character used to set test track lap times for cars tested on each Top Gear episode.
Evidently, Phil Keen was The Stig between 2010 and 2022, and his identity was kept secret until now.
The Stig was initially performed by British Le Mans and Formula One driver Perry McCarthy, and succeeded by British racing and stunt driver Ben Collins. Each respective tenure as The Stig ended when their identities were made public.
McCarthy was The Stig for the first two seasons of the show, while Collins was fired from the role after giving up his anonymity through publishing an autobiography titled The Man in the White Suit.
Phil Keen currently competes in the European Le Mans series, and has a decorated career including being a factory Lamborghini driver and winning the GT World Challenge Europe Pro-Am title.
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