Ben Collins: ‘There is no one Stig, there are more’
Posted on 09-10-2013 at 18:33 by ricardo – 20 Comments”
Do you know him? This gentleman was for many years hidden in the white suit and matching helmet, and bore the illustrious title of ‘The Stig‘. Until his identity was announced/himself from the school clapped and went off to the autoprogramma. On Reddit, he gives a further disclosure.
Like any celebrity who has something to promote, went to Ben Collins to Reddit for an AMA (Ask Me Anything). There were visitors for him to ask anything, and Collin (proof) gave a chatty answer to just about anything.
An anthology of questions and answers:
1. If you could come up with your own “some say” intro for The Stig, what would it be?
‘Some say they should just give me the keys and let me drive without the damn intro!’
2. How did you get the job? What kind of training did you go through to become such a badass driver?
‘Still learning – I had the best teachers which is to say i’ve race some big talents and you have to learn quickly or finish 2nd all the time. I got the job by writing to the boss, meeting him and then driving a car quickly. It is Quite traditional. I beat the Old Stig’s lap times and got hired – SWEET!’
3. Do you really have 600 testicles pillory?
‘Yes – i carry them like scalps in my leather satchel from every driver that ever hogged the middle lane on the M4.’
5. Top Gear or Fifth Gear?
‘Top Gear. You can’t beat a big fat hairy budget.’
6. For how long had you had access for each supercar? Was it only one or two fast laps or whole day?
‘The tyres can’t take more than 5/6 laps on the supercars and we rarely had spares so it was a 25 minute blind date.’
7. What sort of measures did you have to take to guard your identity for so many years? P. S. Big fan
‘I got myself a BBC ID card with a fake name “Richard Jameson” cleverly made of the 3 presenters names – so that i could book hotels and get up to mischief without getting caught. Used to wear a balaclava everywhere to hide my face anywhere near a Top Gear shoot and generally be as sneaky as possible.’
8. Were you always the Stig? Or were there stand-in stig’s? Did the presenters always know that you were the Stig?
‘I couldn’t make a photo shoot once because I was filming for Top Gear difference and they booked a stand in – apparently Jeremy said “get rid of it” and refused to have his photo tasks with him, which made me laugh. With some very rare exceptions, i did all of my stuff from walking through London to all the testing off camera and all the studio work.
The presenters didn’t know for a while at first then yes, they knew, but Jeremy often used to open the visor just to double check.’
9. How much of the time Stig was on camera did you actually spend in the suit? Was it you walking around London, appearing in studio.
‘I was entirely method. I slept in that suit. I spent family christmases never revealing my identity. To anyone. Not even myself.’
10. What does Jeremy’s hair feel like?
‘If you’ve ever had a scratch in the morning ‘down there’ then you’ll know. Child or pubey but longer…’
And then there was the note about that there are now multiple stig’s. So it is no longer one person, as in Ben’s time. At least, that he claims himself. There are in the AMA on Reddit much more interesting questions & answers, check them here.