James May: who is former Top Gear host, is he married - and release date of Our Man In Italy series

Presenter James May returns with a new Amazon travel series following on from the success of Our Man in Japan, which saw him travel the length of the historic Asian country.

Our Man in Italy will see May jet off to the gorgeous Mediterranean country where he will take in the culure from Rome to Florence to Venice and plenty of places in between.

The six-part series is the latest of many factual programmes that the former Top Gear presenter has fronted over the years.

But what else is James May known for, why did he leave Top Gear, and when is Our Man in Italy out on Amazon? Here is everything you need to know:

Who is James May?

James May, 59, is a British TV presenter and journalist best known for presenting motoring show Top Gear from 2003-2015 alongside Jeremy Clarkson and Richard Hammond.

May was born in Bristol and has two sisters and a brother. He spent his teenage years in South Yorkshire.

Early in his career, May worked as a journalist, as a sub-editor for The Engineer and Autocar magazine.  He continues to write and has a weekly column in the Daily Telegraph.

On the show May was known as Captain Slow because he was less keen to put the pedal to the metal than his other speed demon colleagues.

The trio left Top Gear in 2015 and began presenting a very similar but legally distinct motoring show, The Grand Tour on Amazon Prime the following year.

May has also presented several other science and factual shows including Inside Killer Sharks, James May’s 20th Century, Man Lab, Toy Stories, and Big Ideas.

May started his own YouTube channel after leaving top gear where he shared cooking videos and builds of Airfix models. The channel has over 200,000 subscribers and his latest video is a mock advert for Aviation Gin.

May presented Our Man in Japan in 2020, a travel documentary series where he journeyed from the north to the south of the country, taking in the sights and culture along the way.

The series proved popular and was renewed but with a new location - Italy.

James May is not married but he has been in a relationship with art critic Sarah Frater since 2000. The couple do not have any children.

Why did James May leave Top Gear?

Following an infamous ‘fracas’ in March 2015 in which Jeremy Clarkson attacked Top Gear producer Oisin Tymon, Clarkson was suspended from the show.

Both Richard Hammond and James May refused to shoot with him, and after the BBC refused to renew Clarkson’s contract, the duo refused to renew theirs.

Within months of the presenters leaving Top Gear they had signed on to present a new car show, The Grand Tour, with Amazon.

What is Our Man in Italy about?

Our Man in Italy will see James May take in the culture of the historic country over six 50-minute episodes.

He will start his journey on the island nation of Sicily where he’ll get involved with the local customs including canoe polo and bagpiping.

Later episodes will see him travel to the Amalfi Coast, the capital city Rome, through Florence and Milan, where he will finally update his wardrobe.

Finally May will visit Venice and end his travels in the Dolomite mountains.

When is the Our Man in Italy release date?

The six part series will be released on Amazon Prime video in one go on Friday 15 July.

All of Our Man in Japan is also available to watch on Amazon Prime now.