Ben Elton used to give voice to left wing scepticism for that matter.

Clarkson rips into everybody not just Porrit. That's what the viewers want, same as the readers of tabloids want phone hacking if it adds to their puerile pleasure. Sad sick world we live in...

Tell you what though, humour is always at the expense of somebody, and if it is at the expense of an object or an animal, it is given human traits in order to be funny. Some people push the boundaries of that, both from right and left angles. If I were a conservative, I would be outraged at BBC Radio 4's The Now Show. If I were a socialist, I might be outraged at Clarkson.

Thing is, we all enjoy being outraged. Graham Souness got it right when he criticised football commentators for being hypocrites over violence on the pitch and dirty play. The punters love it and viewing figures go up when known "red mist" players are on the park. Same as the number of people who when Formula 1 becomes a procession genuinely want a pile up to make it interesting.

Bread and circuses.

Clarkson is a product of entertainment, not an instigator of it. And he knows it. Love or hate will do. It is indifference that would concern him.