Ah, Top Gear. Have we mentioned we love it? Because we do. And the episode when they visit the South is one of the all-time greatest. But like much of Top Gear, we wondered at the time how much of the events were manufactured for the viewer. They did, after all, face an angry, gun-toting gang of unhappy Alabamans on the trip.

Luckily, Richard Hammond puts our questioning minds to rest with this article from the Times.

Click through for videos of the episode’s best moments.