The latest episode of The Grand Tour, titled Eurocrash, hit our screens on Friday as the trio made their way from Poland to Slovenia in a return to form, evoking memories of road trips they’ve done in the past. It was funny and silly in equal measure with a wide array of cars on display. Among these was the Praga Bohema, which made its global on-screen debut in the episode, gaining praise from Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May.

The episode paid special tribute to Central Europe’s heritage of automotive design and engineering, in a part of the world perhaps overlooked by many petrolheads. Czech brand Praga has 117 years of history, becoming a huge brand in the first half of the 20th century and producing more cars than Skoda and Tatra combined in the 1920s and ‘30s.

The Bohema prototype was driven by James May at an airfield in Slovakia as part of the episode, a welcome break from his arduous time in a 1947 Crosley CC. The appearance comes just weeks before the start of manufacturing begins on the car at the Praga factory in the Czech Republic.

Commenting on the Bohema during the episode, James May, said, “It has incredible steering. It obviously has enormous acceleration, and they haven’t gone for top speed, they’ve gone for low weight and agility, and it definitely has that. It’s wonderful…it’s just wonderful.”

Richard Hammond also complimented the car, praising it for its design and styling, saying: “It’s a difficult path to tread isn’t it, because it’s got to look childish and silly, which it is, but it looks accomplished and finished.”

Throughout the episode, the trio passed through Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Slovenia. The trouble for The Grand Tour is that the list of countries they are allowed to film in grows smaller by the day, mainly due to political issues, war, and the odd personal ban. While many of the locations seen on this episode were stunning in their picturesque nature, the scenes with Jeremy Clarkson trying to get out of a race car and the trip to the waxwork museum produced genuine belly laughs and reminded me why I love this format so much.

During the lockdown three years ago, I’d say rewatching old Top Gear road trips got me through many of the lowest moments and reignited that passion for cars that had remained dormant for a number of years. I hope many more episodes are in the pipeline because whilst it is a tried and tested format, the talents of the trio, Andy Wilman and the rest of the production team haven’t waned, and special films are still being produced year after year.

Words: Mike Booth
Pictures: Praga