Jodie Kidd fuels Top Gear hosting rumours as she drops major hint over show comeback - more than a decade after turning down presenting role

Jodie Kidd has fuelled rumours she could be heading to Top Gear after dropping a major hint about joining the revived BBC series.

The supermodel and racing fanatic, 47, has been touted as a possible presenter after the broadcaster confirmed last month that its flagship motoring programme will return following a near four-year hiatus.

And more than a decade after she turned down the chance to join Top Gear alongside Chris Evans, Jodie has now teased she could finally be ready to get behind the wheel.

Speaking exclusively to the Daily Mail, Jodie said: 'Top Gear is such an amazing show. It was so loved and so adored, and it's something that we need. It deserves to come back. We're really missing, on terrestrial TV, a good, wonderful car show.'

The former Vogue cover star, who made her name in the '90s alongside Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell, was in talks about joining Top Gear in 2015, following the departure of Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May.

But she ultimately ruled herself out of the running, saying at the time – when her son, Indio, was four – that taking on the high-profile job would be 'completely all-consuming' and would 'take over your soul'.

Jodie Kidd has fuelled rumours she could be heading to Top Gear after dropping a major hint about joining the revived BBC series  

Now, the glamorous petrolhead appears far more open to the prospect this time around.

She said: 'I'm a good translator. I love cars. Can I change a carburetor [a device in older engines that helps the engine run]? Probably not. But I definitely bring the passion... We'll see. We'll see what happens.'

The model added: 'I know there's a ginormous appetite for people that love cars. Top Gear is really missing. That space needs to be filled.'

Acknowledging the challenges Top Gear has faced in recent years, Jodie said: 'It's just been a complicated one in the past, with the boys leaving and the terrible thing that happened with Freddie [Flintoff]. So it's complicated, but really needed. I miss it terribly and I love the show.'

Jeremy, Richard and James left Top Gear in 2015 after the BBC declined to renew Jeremy's contract following a physical and verbal attack on producer Oisin Tymon during a row over catering at a hotel.

Richard and James followed him out, with the trio later launching The Grand Tour on Amazon Prime in 2016, which they fronted until their final special in 2024.

Top Gear was later relaunched with a succession of hosts, including Chris Evans and Friends star Matt LeBlanc, before Andrew 'Freddie' Flintoff joined Paddy McGuinness and Chris Harris in 2019.

James May, Jeremy Clarkson and Richard Hammond (L-R) left Top Gear in 2015 after the BBC declined to renew Jeremy's contract following a physical and verbal attack on producer Oisin Tymon

Jodie is seen in Imola in 2004, where she obtained her international racing license 

The programme has been off air since December 2022, when Freddie was seriously injured in a crash while filming at its Dunsfold Aerodrome test track in Surrey.

The former England cricketer suffered facial and rib injuries when the open-topped Morgan Super three he was driving overturned and slid along the track.

But the BBC confirmed last month that Top Gear would finally return to screens.

A host of names have been linked to the presenting line-up, including Jodie, comedian Jimmy Carr and former England rugby star Joe Marler.

Jodie has plenty of motoring credentials. The catwalk star has been obsessed with cars for years and famously appeared on Top Gear as the Star in a Reasonably Priced Car in 2003.

She impressed Jeremy Clarkson with her lap in the show's Suzuki Liana and later went on to gain a racing licence and compete in motorsport.

Jodie has also raced for Maserati and carved out a career presenting motoring programmes, including Channel 5's The Classic Car Show

Jodie posed with Azzi Glasser at the Ginny Litscher Catwalk Show

Jodie has also raced for Maserati and carved out a career presenting motoring programmes, including Channel 5's The Classic Car Show.

She now fronts her own YouTube series, Kidd in a Sweet Shop, which sees her get behind the wheel of an array of extraordinary cars.

And Jodie revealed that her time racing has even helped her overcome the anxiety she still suffers when stepping onto the catwalk.

She stepped away from modelling in her late teens after suffering a severe panic attack during a show, later revealing that anxiety had plagued her throughout her early career.

But speaking to the Daily Mail backstage before walking in Ginny Litscher's London Fashion Week show, in collaboration with the launch of Per-Fume Discovery sets by The Perfumer's Story by Azzi, she said: 'It [the anxiety] is always there, but I think after learning to race cars, I've had to learn to turn anxiety and adrenaline into something positive.

'And I think that's definitely come with age - and understanding what your body's doing when it's flooded with adrenaline. That's something I've learned to deal with.'