Clarkson's final ever Top Gear show to air on Sunday

Some say he has an allergic reaction to the word "fracas"... and that if you don't warm his food properly, he'll punch you in the nose. All we know is, his last episode of Top Gear will air on BBC Two on 28 June at 8pm.

The 75-minute special will draw the curtain on 12 years of Clarkson, Hammond and May, following the trio on the final two location shoots that were filmed before the now-infamous producer-harming events that saw the remainder of the most recent series pulled from production. Will it be a classic, fitting end to the series? Probably not, given the broken format of the show: the studio links will feature only Hammond and May, with a notable absence of sniggering studio audience and befuddled Clarkson.

Andy Wilman, the show's former executive producer, told the Radio Times that the show is set to finish things off on a poignant note - rather than a racist one. "The final session without Jeremy was very poignant," said Wilman. "We’ve had a lot of fun in that studio, but we had a job to do and we got it done, professionally, and without tears or tantrums."

Filmed before Chris Evans was officially announced as the new lead presenter of the show, don't expect the new host to make an appearance at any point. Instead, you'll be in for a task which sees the original trio immerse themselves in the lifestyle of the traditional classic car enthusiast, while the second film sees them take some affordable motors on the road as "lifestyle leisure enthusiasts".

It's not the end that Top Gear fans will have wanted - but the 12-year-old ship has been creaking in recent series, with the once-natural banter of the trio drying up in favour of scripted, controversial spectacles. A new set of presenters could bring a much needed change of gear, away from casual xenophobia and into new grounds of casual car entertainment.

Here's hoping the new series will be able to match the likes of these classic moments. 

The Budget Supercar Challenge

Good old fashioned Top Gear magic here. Three beautiful supercars from years gone by, filled with more mechanical faults the average car wreck. Their mission? To travel from Bristol to a lap dancing bar in Slough.

Watch highlights here

The Polar Special

If you want to watch two men edge dangerously close to the point of insanity, watch the Top Gear Polar Special. With Clarkson and May trapped inside the admittedly large cabin of the Toyota Land Cruiser, there were points during this programme where you could see the well-rehearsed professionalism and friendship begin to crack. It also featured some of the best camera work the show has ever produced. 

The Alabama special

A genuinely special programme, in which the show's "controversial", oft-childish humour rubbed up against the real world it was trying to offend. From the slogans painted on their cars to the disproportionate anger they inspired from locals, it was a thoroughly entertaining special which subsequent series were constantly trying (and failing) to recapture.

The Botswana special

Another international special, the road-trip through Botswana highlighted just how close the trio had grown over the years. The friendship was palpable - producing a warm, squishy feeling of joy only bettered by Hammond's love affair with a 1962 Opal Cadet called Oliver. 

Killing the Toyota Hilux

Never a "proper" motoring show, Top Gear has always managed to take an approach to cars that even non-drivers have found entertaining - even informative. The point of this show was to prove that Toyota's Hilux pickup truck was a near-indestructible piece of engineering. By hitting it with a wrecking ball.