Richard Hammond has opened up about the surprising way he found happiness after losing his marriage, home and a significant chunk of his fortune over the past two years
Richard Hammond has opened up about the personal and financial challenges he has faced over the past two years, admitting he has lost a significant chunk of the fortune he made from The Grand Tour .
The former Top Gear presenter has endured a series of major life changes, including the breakdown of his marriage to Mindy Hammond after 28 years together. But while the past two years have brought considerable upheaval, Richard has also discovered an unexpected source of happiness.
Speaking on the High Performance podcast with Jake Humphrey, the 56-year-old reflected on leaving behind parts of his former life and revealed how he has been rebuilding things on his own terms.
He said: “Don’t forget, I’ve also, in the last two years, lost my father, my dog, my marriage, my house [laughter] and a chunk of the money I earned from The Grand Tour .”
Despite the difficulties, Richard insisted he had found happiness in a surprisingly simple setting, explaining: “The happiest I’ve been in years was living in a rented cottage, my divorce cottage.”
He recalled contacting a friend who owned a large estate to ask about finding somewhere to live after suddenly leaving his former home. Richard was subsequently offered a small farmhouse called Camp Farm, where he spent around a year.
Describing his time there, he said the property had little furniture and could be cold during winter, but he loved the experience.
Richard explained that when friends visited, they were there to spend time with him rather than admire his house or collection of cars. He even cooked Sunday roasts for groups of around 14 people, making room by moving furniture and bringing an outdoor table inside.
He said: “And I lived there for, like, a year, and I bloody loved it.”
His comments come as a company associated with the presenter has entered voluntary liquidation after 18 years of operation.
Hamster’s Wheel Productions, founded by Richard and his former wife Mindy in 2008, was put into liquidation last month. Documents filed at Companies House indicate the business has £2.3 million and is owed a further £1.45 million, with an additional £176,573 recoverable from the Government in corporation tax payments.
The company’s closure followed the couple’s separation after nearly three decades of marriage, with the business having been involved in television projects including Richard Hammond’s Blast Lab , Wild Weather and Lab Rats .
Richard has also spoken candidly about the money he invested in his other business venture, Richard Hammond’s Workshop , which follows his classic car restoration company.
During the podcast, Jake asked about the latest series and pointed out that Richard had invested £500,000 of his own money into the business.
Richard responded: “And since then, I’ve got divorced. So it’s not altogether brilliant.”
The presenter acknowledged that the venture involved genuine financial risk, explaining that the latest series would focus on bringing in people with specialist skills.
His fortunes have not been entirely bleak, however. Richard confirmed earlier this year that he was in a new relationship following the end of his marriage.
Speaking about his evenings in a column for The Telegraph , the former Top Gear star said: “I tend to eat relatively early. Sometimes it’s just me; sometimes I’m with my girlfriend; sometimes friends are still around. I’m perfectly happy with a quiet evening watching television.”
Ensure our latest headlines always appear at the top of your Google Search by making us a Preferred Source. Click here to activate or add us as Preferred Source in your Google search settings
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: mirror.co.uk
