Idris Elba - King of Speed

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Discussion

Riley Blue

20,915 posts

225 months

Sunday 29th December 2013
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That's what I thought, his own knowledge was superficial and when he narrated from a script it sounded insincere.

selym

9,539 posts

170 months

Sunday 29th December 2013
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ManaghGB said:
Came across as a the type of person who thinks they're into cars, but haven't got the slightest clue. An Audi S-line type of person, "yeah it's the sports model so it's faster".

Some of the footage was nice but let down by the presenting, some of it was really cringe worthy.
Come on now, he had a Fiesta, you have a Fiesta.........

ManaghGB

682 posts

182 months

Sunday 29th December 2013
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selym said:
Come on now, he had a Fiesta, you have a Fiesta.........
Who says I know anything about cars? wink

selym

9,539 posts

170 months

Sunday 29th December 2013
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ManaghGB said:
selym said:
Come on now, he had a Fiesta, you have a Fiesta.........
Who says I know anything about cars? wink
Well, I can only go on your car choice.......but I drive a Vauxhall so I shant cast aspersions.

ManaghGB

682 posts

182 months

Sunday 29th December 2013
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selym said:
Well, I can only go on your car choice.......but I drive a Vauxhall so I shant cast aspersions.
I'd say there's worse Vauxhalls to own though!

hairyben

8,516 posts

182 months

Sunday 29th December 2013
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Saw the first 10 mins of the first ep then switched off.

Came across as a bit too clinical or aloof.

750turbo

6,164 posts

223 months

Sunday 29th December 2013
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Just catching up...

Just when was Lanarkshire in the Highlands of Scotland, FFS!

Apart from that, I am enjoying it.

S. Gonzales Esq.

2,556 posts

211 months

Sunday 29th December 2013
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ManaghGB said:
Came across as a the type of person who thinks they're into cars, but haven't got the slightest clue. An Audi S-line type of person, "yeah it's the sports model so it's faster".

Some of the footage was nice but let down by the presenting, some of it was really cringe worthy.
I might have to agree with this, as much as I admire the man's other work.

The most interesting thing to me was the way Max Vatanen pulled him over and said that if he didn't calm down then they were going to have an accident. Just one look at the state Idris was in at that point should have been enough to end the session.

Star In A Reasonably Priced Car has shown that there are plenty of celebrities with a feel for how to drive, so there's every chance the next attempt at a programme like this could be better. Just as long as it features Ari, that is...

Rollcage

11,327 posts

191 months

Sunday 29th December 2013
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V8 Fettler said:
6R4 was the real star of the show.
No, the star was Vatanen. smile

northwest monkey

6,370 posts

188 months

Monday 30th December 2013
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MC Bodge said:
Riley Blue said:
the claim to be 'King of Speed' was laughable, he's not even a pretender to the throne.
I didn't see the very beginning. Was Idris supposed to the "King of Speed"?! laugh

Edited by MC Bodge on Sunday 29th December 19:20
No - he was talking to some street racers in the US & one of them was the current "champion" so Idris was telling him he was known as the King of Speed & if he had his car here he'd kick his arse etc. He was joking.

Only seen the first episode & I quite enjoyed it to be honest. He came across as a bloke that likes cars rather than a bloke that can bore about cars.

I also now want to hire an "RV" and do a road trip across the US - NY to SF should do itsmile

GC8

19,910 posts

189 months

Monday 30th December 2013
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Difficult since the New World Order. No hotel means little chance of getting past the Homeland Security STASI.

coppice

8,561 posts

143 months

Monday 30th December 2013
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Yup; it's all the United Nations' fault some nutjob in Tennessee told me.

HD Adam

5,143 posts

183 months

Monday 30th December 2013
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GC8 said:
Difficult since the New World Order. No hotel means little chance of getting past the Homeland Security STASI.
Sorry, absolute cobblers.

If you are filling in the ESTA or the airline wants to have the info, just put down any hotel address in the city you are arriving in or if in an RV, the name of the first camp site you will stop at.

Eric Mc

121,776 posts

264 months

Monday 30th December 2013
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northwest monkey said:
Only seen the first episode & I quite enjoyed it to be honest. He came across as a bloke that likes cars rather than a bloke that can bore about cars.
Sorry - but did you mean to say "someone who is knowledgeable and interesting" about cars?

I really hate when people dismiss knowledge as "boring". No wonder TV wants to dumb things down repeatedly with attitudes like that.

(I'm not criticising the programmes by the way - they were OK TV fare for an evening - but I don't want people to think that having someone who knows what they are talking about on a TV programme is a "bad thing").

MC Bodge

21,551 posts

174 months

Monday 30th December 2013
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northwest monkey said:
Only seen the first episode & I quite enjoyed it to be honest. He came across as a bloke that likes cars rather than a bloke that can bore about cars.
Is that a good thing?

I know plenty of people that "like cars". They can tell you the price, know all about the 'image' of them and all of the important options e.g big wheels & rock-hard suspension. They don't want to understand cars and rarely drive them anywhere other than to the office or Trafford Centre on urban roads and dual carriageways....

wanacoop

1,247 posts

221 months

Monday 30th December 2013
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MC Bodge said:
northwest monkey said:
Only seen the first episode & I quite enjoyed it to be honest. He came across as a bloke that likes cars rather than a bloke that can bore about cars.
Is that a good thing?

I know plenty of people that "like cars". They can tell you the price, know all about the 'image' of them and all of the important options e.g big wheels & rock-hard suspension. They don't want to understand cars and rarely drive them anywhere other than to the office or Trafford Centre on urban roads and dual carriageways....
But is that a bad thing?

It isn't easy for most petrolheads to find the spare time or money to go racing at the weekend, most of us on pistonheads are just the same i expect. I love cars, so do my mates, we have had nice stuff, but as we get older and more boring, we now spend time with our familes rather than going to a race track to blow our hard earned money. This doesn't mean i'm any less of a petrolhead than anyone else.
Take your head out of your arse and let people enjoy cars at any level. People like you are why i never bother reading anything on this site these days.

Edited by wanacoop on Monday 30th December 10:59

Eric Mc

121,776 posts

264 months

Monday 30th December 2013
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Are you a clairvoyant by any chance?

MC Bodge

21,551 posts

174 months

Monday 30th December 2013
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wanacoop said:
But is that a bad thing?

It isn't easy for most petrolheads to find the spare time or money to go racing at the weekend, most of us on pistonheads are just the same i expect. I love cars, so do my mates, we have had nice stuff, but as we get older and more boring, we now spend time with our familes rather than going to a race track to blow our hard earned money. This doesn't mean i'm any less of a petrolhead than anyone else.
Take your head out of your arse and let people enjoy cars at any level. People like you are why i never bother reading anything on this site these days.
Of course people can be "into cars" at any level, but somebody posting earlier seemed to think that it was better to have a programme presented (or written?) by someone who doesn't really know a lot about them and is very basic.

I don't have the time or cash to go racing either, but I do have some understanding, enjoy tinkering & experimenting, enjoy driving, riding (& not just talking) motorbikes in all kinds of conditions and like to be educated and informed about all kinds of things.

Hence Ari Vatanen (and the pieces about the Nascar, the Mini & 6R4)were the interesting, good parts of "King of Speed", rather than Idris Elba talking about fitting some tyres and driving a Mini and XR2 around the East End.

ps. I prefer Guy Martin, James May or Jeremy Clarkson(when not cocking about) presenting programmes.

Edited by MC Bodge on Monday 30th December 11:53

FiF

43,960 posts

250 months

Monday 30th December 2013
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Having watched the second show, Ari as always the star, so laid back almost horizontal.

To be fair to Idris he is clearly interested and enjoys cars. Again clearly interestedIin competition but isn't a natural for whatever reason.

That's fair enough in my book and really doesn't deserve in the slightest some of the snidey comments from some on PH. You should be ashamed of yourselves.

MC Bodge

21,551 posts

174 months

Monday 30th December 2013
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FiF said:
Having watched the second show, Ari as always the star, so laid back almost horizontal.

To be fair to Idris he is clearly interested and enjoys cars. Again clearly interestedIin competition but isn't a natural for whatever reason.

That's fair enough in my book and really doesn't deserve in the slightest some of the snidey comments from some on PH. You should be ashamed of yourselves.
Snidey? The guy isn't doing it for some free work experience, he's being paid by the BBC ...He's only on the programme because he's a famous actor.

I thought the programmes were fairly good, but I disagree with the need for some bloke to present it just because he's famous, for something completely unrelated.

Guy Martin (famous for being pretty good at something closely related, can talk, is pretty handy and fairly knowledgeable too. He also has/had a Bimota in his kitchen for the filming) having a dabble at driving a racing truck wasn't necessary in his cycling speed programme, but quite interesting and fair enough!