Hammond, May to Reject $6.1M BBC Offer to Return to Top Gear

If true, this isn't a particularly shocking development. Since essentially day one of this long-running saga, the hosts have made clear that they're a team, and that a show without one of them would never work.

So where does that leave Clarkson, Hammond, and May? Well, The Mirror is citing an inside source who claims that, along with long-time producer Andy Wilman, the trio are "very close" to signing a huge deal to produce a program for streaming giant Netflix. Maybe House of Cars is more realistic than we thought.

"They are all very excited at the prospect of having total editorial control over their new show, to make it and get it distributed," the source told The Mirror. "It would be groundbreaking and also incredible [sic] lucrative. They would stand to earn much, much more than they would with the BBC."

While Hammond and May won't be returning to Top Gear in the long term, as we reported previously, the pair were on hand to film links and studio segments for the final episodes of Top Gear's 22nd season. The final few episodes were shelved after Clarkson's "fracas" with producer Oison Tymon.