Essex racing driver who became the original Stig spills the beans on Top Gear and Jeremy Clarkson

But Essex driver Perry McCarthy was also the original Stig on Top Gear.

He is coming to Chelmsford this month to share his high adrenalin stories of being behind the wheel and in front of the camera.

What will you talk about in the show?

The career has been an unusual one. I came into contact with motor racing at college and made the stupid decision I wanted to be a racing driver but had no money but you can’t get sponsors if you haven’t been on the track and even then it’s very difficult. So I went to work on the North Sea oil rigs for two years to get the money together to start. I was very quick but was crashing all the time because I didn’t know what I was doing. But I got my act together and won the British Championship the following year and then had a very big accident that put me out for one year but came back. Then bit by bit I dragged myself up and with some friends made it to Formula 1, Damon Hill and Johnny Herbert and Mark Blundell. We became known as the rat pack and I tell all the adventures and stories of getting through in 1992 but possibly with the most shambolic team.

The crash at Oulton Park that almost ended it all for Perry

How did you become The Stig on Top Gear?

Well all my stories became well known in the pit lanes, sort of infamous, and everyone said I had to write a book, so I did. And at the launch Jerry Clarkson said they were bringing Top Gear back and had an idea for me. So that’s how The Stig was born and I became possibly one of the best known racing drivers in the world but in disguise. At the same time I was racing in Le Mans. The book went on to become an international best seller which was nice.

Why are you only doing these theatre shows now?

I drifted into speaking but most of it has been corporate so the general public has never really heard it. But there is such an appetite for cars and The Stig right now. This will be the first time really people can come along and ask questions and see the videos. It’s come at quite a poignant time with the show relaunching.

Where did you grow up?

I was born in Stepney but have lived in Stanford-le-Hope, Laindon, Little Badow and now I live in Stock.

How did you get into driving?

I had no interest at school, none. I tried football and everything but was no good. But when I got inside a car, not to sound bigheaded, I found I could do almost anything and that was it. Word got around to the chief instructor at Brands Hatch and I took him around the track and he then made calls to the circuit owners and manufacturers but I needed money. I just felt inside me that was it so I followed the dream and no many occasions it was a complete nightmare. I became known because I was quick but also too stupid to give up.

What was your first car?

A 15-year-old Ford Escort sprayed in silver fox for the princely sum of £90. But the paint had all fallen off so it looked like the motoring version of alopecia. It was one ugly piece of junk but I honed my driving skills in it and that was the beginning.

What does it take to be an F1 driver?

One of the key things about motor racing is judgement. People think it’s about balls and bravery and that is in there but you have got to understand within a fraction of a second what is going on with the car to have the confidence to break as late as possible and put the power down as soon as possible. You also have to feed back to the team what the problems are. I had a good feeling for that and got better as I went along. With race drivers our mistakes can be quite costly so you have to exploit everything you have inside you and constantly evolve. Even someone with the genius of Lewis Hamilton keeps getting better.

Does it take arrogance?

Yeah you have to have complete confidence in yourself and believe you are one of the best, if not the best. Things are happening at a rate of knots and if you don’t make the right decision you have potential disaster on your hands. It’s no good just being good, you have to want it at all costs.

Does luck come into it?

Yes no question. There is good fortune in life and I have had it because some of the accidents I have had if I’d been half a centimetre left or one second slower I would not be taking to you now, 15 times over. A lot of races I led or should have won, things went wrong, I did seem to be a magnet for bad fortune but I must have made my own bad luck with over optimistic moves.

So was it luck you became Stig or did you know Jerry Clarkson before?

Yes I did, we met in 1997 at Le Mans, I was friends with Noel Edmonds and they were there filming together and we met and stayed in contact. I was pretty much an easy choice for The Stig.

What was it like being The Stig?

I thought it sounded fun but had no idea what was going to happen. We realised early it was popular. At one time ‘Who is the Stig?’ was in the top ten most asked questions on the internet, just below ‘Is there a god?’ and ‘Am I pregnant?’.

Was it hard to keep secret?

It had its challenges. It used to make me laugh down the pub when I’d hear guys discussing it and I’d be standing right next to them. But I’d never say, not even for free lager. A lot of people inside motor racing sussed it immediately because of how I drive and I used to fold my arms a lot and could get grumpy and intense. I had a flurry of text message from TV producers the next morning saying ‘Morning Stig’. It became an open secret but I never talked about it and used to stop down the road from the studios and out my black Stig helmet on before I got to the gate. I was so often smiling and laughing behind the helmet because I put on this thick French accent.

What was the weirdest thing you had to do?

Try not to hit Tara Palmer Tomkinson. And when Jamie Oliver came down he brought his VW campervan which was fitted with a Porsche engine and I drove it round the track as fast as possible while Jamie tried to make a salad in the back. By the end he was upside down with tomatoes all over him.

What did you make of the Top Gear trio and do they actually know about cars?

I knew Richard already because he was an up and coming TV presenter and I’d met James in Le Mans when he was reporting on it. But it was Jeremy I knew most, I’m quite find of him. Yes they do know cars. James is very technical and could probably strip an engine and out it back together. Jeremy I think is god’s gift to broadcasting and a very good journalist and Richard is a great TV presenter. James is fairly quiet and considered chap and his fame has grown considerably. Richard is chirpy and Jeremy is out to pull your chain the whole time and that’s why we get on because I won’t let him get away with anything and my mouth is just as big as his.

Were you sad when Jeremy got sacked and the show ended?

I have said I think the BBC made a massive mistake. Clearly it’s not a good work ethic to go around punching producers but the people at the top of the BBC are supposed to be double bright and the way they handled it was like amateurs.

Why did you leave Top Gear?

I wasn’t getting my own way basically. I was driving for Audi at the same time and they were very generous to me. But the BBC contract wasn’t worth much money. But I thought I would give it a go and maybe become one of the presenters. But the success of The Stig meant they wanted me to continue with it so I did for the second series. But I had to keep my mouth shut and not use it to earn money from anything else. And the cars are good but my races cars are infinitely better so I would do my job and try to strangle every last tenth of a second out of them but it was just a job and it had to make commercial sense for me. So I spoke to the powers that be and they wouldn’t budge so I said it wasn’t working and we agreed I would be killed off going off and that’s how white Stig was born. It gets on my nerves when people say I was fired because I told everyone it was me in my autobiography. But it was only three months after I left the show that we upgraded the book with some pages about being Stig.

Did you ever regret leaving?

Absolutely not. Well maybe when Cameron Diaz was on and I wasn’t there.

What do you think Chris Evans will be like?

I know him. I took him around once in a Porsche Turbo in torrential rain and he was quite brave must have trusted me because I was siding everywhere at high speed and he didn’t scream once. He did give me a big look at the end of it.

Do you still drive now?

I get on track occasionally and took a modern Formula 3 car out a few weeks ago and suddenly it all just came back to me and I was pelting around trying to match the times of kids and didn’t do a bad job which worried the wife as she thought I might get back into racing. I’ve spent the last few years developing something for cars though and working with some of the Formula 1 teams and FIA and it’s great to be back in the pit lane. It’s all secret for now but we mays be it used on F1 cars next year.

What cars do you drive?

Porsche Turbo and Min Cooper. My dream car is a Ferrari 458 because they are mega. It has an engine noise to die for and is stunning looking and a technical revelation.

Best moments?

Getting accepted in Formula 1 was amazing after all those years of trying. Leading Daytona 24 hours by three laps was a great feeling. Being in poll position in America. And the huge friendships I have had for many years with all my pals in motor racing. We still get together, Damon is a pretty funny guy and has a whacky sense of humour. We’re all getting together at Christmas for our lunch. That’s been going on for 30 years. That’s me Damon, Johnny Herbert, Mark Blundell, Martin Brundell, Julian Daley, Martin Donnelly, and some others. Sometimes Dave Coulthard.

Do you still get the same thrill from it?

Yes and that’s why I try and stay out of a racing car because when I do the ego takes over. If I had an accident now what would it be for? I’m not getting back into Formula 1 so what would be the point? Things can go wrong in this game and I have to be bright enough not to get in.

An Audience With Perry McCarthy - The Original Stig is on at Chelmsford City Theatres, Fairfield Road, Chelmsford, CM1 1JG, on Tuesday, November 17 from 7.45pm. Details: 01245 606505, chelmsford.gov.uk/event-type/theatre