Bedder 6

Bedder 6 is a British company, responsible for exploiting and promoting the Top Gear brand, including international sales.^[1] It was founded by presenter Jeremy Clarkson and executive producer Andy Wilman in October 2006.^[2] In November 2007, BBC Worldwide purchased 5001 shares giving them a stake of just over 50% of the business. They are believed to have paid £100 for the shares, but also transferred merchandising and some foreign sales rights^[3] to the company.^[4] The remaining 5000 shares were split 60/40 between Clarkson and Wilman respectively.^[5]

The company posted a £1.8m post-tax profit in September 2008, giving its shareholders £700,000 in dividends.^[6] By 2013 Bedder 6 had revenues of £149m, and paid out dividends of £16.2m divided between Clarkson (30%, £4.86m), Wilman (20%) and BBC Worldwide (50% £7.5m).^[7]

Bedder 6 own 50% of Sub-Zero Events Limited, a joint-venture set up by BBC Worldwide and Brand Events in February 2008 to run the Top Gear Live shows. Both Bedder 6 and Sub-Zero Events' registered addresses are at BBC White City, the building where Top Gear's offices are located.^[8]

The name of the company is believed to refer to a room that Clarkson or Wilman (or both) lived in at Repton School, where dormitories are called "bedders".^[9]

In 2012 BBC Worldwide took on the whole of the rights to the Top Gear brand to ensure that the BBC gets all the money from the show and its spinoffs.^[10] In July 2015 Clarkson and Wilman, along with Richard Hammond and James May, founded production company W. Chump & Sons. The company is currently working on The Grand Tour, a motoring show for Amazon Video, which debuted on 18 November 2016 in the UK, US, Germany and Japan; then subsequently rolled out worldwide in December 2016.

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