2009 Is The Year Of The Warne

Can life get any better for Warney? Beloved by the nation and safely back in the arms of his missus Simone, he recently enjoyed a fantastic (although sadly Uma-less) 40th birthday party where vodka and Red Bull concoctions were consumed with celebratory gusto – and absolutely nothing inappropriate was photographed or recorded on a mobile phone. Win! And the good times just keep on rolling…

Shane Warne has just been announced as the new host of Top Gear Australia! Sure, the show has been plagued by a few “issues” but knowing Shane’s luck of late, crap ratings will obviously be a thing of the past.

Oh, and Jeremy Clarkson’s going to appear in the new series too.

He’s known for his love of fast cars, now Australia’s spin king Shane Warne will be revving up our TV screens as the host of a new series of Top Gear. Warne, whose stable of luxury cars includes a head-turning black Lamborghini Superleggera, is set to front a new series with Jeremy Clarkson.

He is believed to be hosting six episodes of the popular motoring show, the Herald Sun reports.

I should probably also mention the fact that Channel Nine have successfully nicked the Top Gear franchise from right under SBS’s nose!

In a TV coup Channel Nine is believed to have snared the rights to the motoring franchise from SBS. Nine and SBS were both believed to have been in discussions with BBC Worldwide, which owns the rights to the motoring show fronted by Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May.

Nine CEO David Gyngell has been chasing the rights to Top Gear for eight months and recently spent time in London to lock down a deal.

The role would mark the first TV presenting gig for Warne – who has previously worked in cricket commentating roles.

So, will Top Gear Australia actually morph into a fairly decent program now? It all sounds very promising! Although if it doesn’t perform in the ratings after the very first episode is broadcast, expect to see it pushed back to a timeslot better suited to informercials before being yanked from our screens altogether in favour of a rerun of Two & A Half Men.

MORE: Shane Warne to co-host Top Gear Australia