Born on January 16, 1963 in Bristol, James May is estimated to be worth £9 million.
He began his career working at The Engineer and Autocar as a sub-editor during the early 1980s.
He soon hosted Channel 4’s Driven (1998) and co-hosted 1999’s original series of Top Gear. He went on to present the second series of the revived Top Gear alongside Richard Hammond and Jeremy Clarkson until 2015.
What other programmes did May take on thereafter?
For BBC One, May hosted James May’s Top Toys (2005), James May: My Sister’s Top Toys (2007) and co-presented ITV1’s 2006 London Boat Show.
Besides contributing regularly for Top Gear magazine, Car Magazine and The Daily Telegraph, May also wrote May on Motors (2006), co-authored Oz and James’s Big Wine Adventure (2006), Notes From The Hard Shoulder (2007) and James May’s 20th Century (2007).
May accompanied wine connoisseur Oz Clarke on BBC’s Oz and James’s Big Wine Adventure (2006-2007) and Oz and James Drink to Britain (2009).
In 2007, May presented Sky’s Inside Killer Sharks and BBC Two’s James May’s 20th Century.
He also hosted several BBC shows including James May’s Big Ideas (2008), James May’s Toy Stories (2009), James May on the Moon (2009) and James May at the Edge of Space (2009)
From 2010-2012, he endorsed London Pride Beer.
For Flight Club in Christmas 2012, May and his crew built a gigantic toy glider, which flew from Devon to Lundy (35 km). May created a life-sized Meccano motorcycle with sidecar and rode a full lap with Clarke on the circuit of the Isle of Man TT Course in 2013.
May’s ever-increasing vehicle collection includes Rolls-Royces, Ferraris, Bentleys, Alfa Romeos, Jaguars, Range Rovers, Porsches, a Fiat Panda, a Mini Cooper, alongside the bikes Triumph Daytona 675R, Yamaha XJR1300 and two Guzzis.
A licensed pilot since 2006, May owns an American Champion 8KCAB Decathlon light plane He lives in his £2 million house in Hammersmith, West London with dance critic Sarah Frater.