Tiff Needell
Presenter
Tiff’s television career started in the mid 1980s as part of the BBC’s motor racing commentary team, where he worked alongside Murray Walker. In 1987 he joined Top Gear as the performance car specialist and presented some quite legendary road tests of cars like the McLaren F1 (in fact Tiff and the F1 still hold the UK circuit lap record for a production road car, topping 200.8mph).
In 2002 he became a founder member of the Fifth Gear team with Vicki. Tiff says his highlight to date is “accidentally, ahem, ignoring the strict instructions Ferrari issued about not touching the traction control on their half million pound Enzo…”
Tiff remains a racer at heart. As a child he’d sneak into grand prixs and watch his heroes Jim Clark and Graham Hill. In 1971 he won a racing car in a magazine competition, and after winning the Premier Grovewood Award in 1976, he turned professional. He’s raced all over the world in saloons, sportscars and single-seaters, including an all too fleeting experience in Formula One.
Tiff has raced at the Le Mans 24 hours an incredible 14 times, and his proudest moment came in 1990, when he achieved third place in a privately entered Porsche 962.
In 2006 Tiff competed in the European GT3 Championships driving an Aston Martin DBRS9. He will never to use the word ‘retire’ when it comes to racing or we hope, presenting.
Born in Havant, England. Tiff now lives in Salisbury with wife Patsy and his three sons, Jack, Harry and George.
