Jeremy Clarkson

The thing which really puzzles me over the Jeremy Clarkson affair is that he is alleged to have punched a producer. Now if it had been a camera man/director or  the director himself I could have fully understood it - but a producer just doesn't make sense.   Let me explain why.

Doing TV work is actually very hard intense work for all concerned and tempers do get frayed not least because good directors will constantly want you to repeat everything umpteen times.  They do this because they are perfectionist which is fair enough but you, the talent, know that 99% of the footage shot everyday is going to end up on the cutting room floor and the chances of this scene doing the same are therefore virtually 100%. What's more it is now seven o'clock in the evening and you are -literally -dying for a pint. And then the director says; 'Oh Francis could you go round and drive over the bridge once more as the battery on the third camera went dead - or whatever- and you feel like screaming - NO I FUCKING WON'T -I'VE DONE IT FIVE FUCKING TIMES ALREADY -I'M GOING FOR A FUCKING PINT and them you remember that you are -actually -being rather well paid- so meekly -but with grinding teeth - you do it once again and again until he/she is satisfied.
Sometimes -as well - you and the director will just disagree .  He/she will want you to do something and you - for whatever reason won't -again tempers will become frayed, and high words will be exchanged but then -like a thunderstorm -it will be over -hands will be shaken and the incident forgotten.

So if the news item had been that Jeremy Clarkson had laid out his director I would have thought- fair enough. Producers though are different animals. They are responsible for the schedule and for ensuring that the right locations, hotels,flights, train tickets  etc. are booked. Now it is -I suppose -possible that the producer in this case fucked up but I just find it difficult to believe that Jeremy Clarkson would have lashed out at a producer for just a fuck up. The most puzzling thing about the whole incident though is that it has ballooned up into such a big deal. In my limited experience of working in TV you - the talent - and the crew- eat, drink, and travel together and bond into a team -us against them.  So that's the puzzle - who let the cat out the bag and why?