Former Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson has joked about making a bizarre claim to the Guinness World Records as he issued a candid health update to his fans

Jeremy Clarkson (Image: NurPhoto, NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Jeremy Clarkson has made a cheeky suggestion about claiming a bizarre Guinness World Record while providing a frank health update to his followers. Penning his thoughts in The Sun, the Clarkson’s Farm presenter reminisced about his youthful fascination with the Guinness Book of Records, which once featured “interesting stuff like the tallest mountain, fastest jet and biggest shark.”

However, he admitted his disappointment with how the records have changed over the decades. He said: “Then it became stupid and allowed itself to be filled with records for stuff like who’d eaten the most baked beans with a cocktail stick.” The ex-Top Gear host went on to mock the organisation’s recent decision to celebrate its 70th anniversary by unveiling 70 new records — including one for “the largest number of whoopee cushions sat on in one minute.”

TV presenter Jeremy Clarkson (Image: Carl Court, Getty Images)

Taking a swipe at the concept, Clarkson joked: “I’ve got a cold at the moment and am thinking of calling them up and announcing it’s the worst cold in the history of humankind.”

He remarked that, given the standard of some modern records, “they’d probably agree and give me a certificate.”

Clarkson’s playful comment about his ailment follows a series of recent health concerns. In 2017, he was rushed to hospital with pneumonia during a Mallorca getaway, later revealing that medics warned him he “would have died” without intervention.

More recently, in 2024, the television personality disclosed he had undergone a cardiac procedure to clear blocked arteries after a routine check-up revealed potential problems.

These days Jeremy is a keen farmer in the Cotswolds. (Image: Getty)

The 65-year-old reported experiencing symptoms including feeling “clammy,” a “tightness in my chest,” and “pins and needles in my left arm.” After learning of former Scottish first minister Alex Salmond’s fatal heart attack, he chose to consult his GP.

Clarkson disclosed that he was transported to the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford by ambulance.

He explained that he was then taken to an “operating theatre” following additional examinations, with medics warning that he was potentially “days away” from becoming seriously unwell.

Since departing from Top Gear and The Grand Tour, Clarkson has reinvented himself as a farmer after purchasing a 1,000-acre estate in the Cotswolds.

His decision to try his hand at agriculture led to the successful Amazon Prime series Clarkson’s Farm, which has earned critical acclaim for its candid portrayal of modern farming challenges.

The programme has become one of Amazon’s most successful UK productions, establishing Clarkson as an unexpected champion for British farmers while documenting his frequent battles with bureaucracy, unpredictable weather, and livestock mishaps.