James May does Isle of Man TT run in electric Motor Bike made from Meccano

James May & Oz Clark in their electric Meccano Motor Bike & Sidecar in the Isle of Man

With Top Gear on a break, Messrs Clarkson, May and Hammond have the chance to go out and do their own projects. And one of those is James May’s Toy Stories. And it seems James May has been out on the Isle of Man filming for a Christmas Special for his Toy Stories series, together with long-standing sidekick on other projects, Oz Clarke.

The plan was to take an electric motor bike and sidecar – a proper Wallace and Gromit outing – designed and built by Toy Stories project manager, inventor and engineer Simon Oakley, for its first outing on the Isle of Man TT course.

It seems all went well (we’ve even got a bit of video below of the rather sedate outing) with nothing falling off and nothing breaking (unlike all the Meccano machines we made in our youth) and a top speed of 25mph coming down the mountain.

It was the perfect outing for Captain Slow, with James commenting:

There was a certain amount of flexibility and a couple of minor problems with bearings, steering, comfort, electricity and the passenger, but apart from that it was a very smooth run and very heroic I think.

The run was watched by a packed stand Glencrutchery Road in Douglas and coincided with the 90th anniversary of the Manx Grand Prix.

You’ll be able to watch James and Oz Clarke and their electric Meccano motor bike and sidecar in the Christmas episode of James May’s Toy Stories

Source: BBC

By Cars UK