Hammond, 36, was flown by the YAA’s current helicopter to Leeds General Infirmary in a matter of minutes after the jet-powered dragster he was driving crashed on an airfield near York. Medical staff at the hospital said his recovery was continuing as he recuperated on a general ward after being transferred from a high dependency unit.

Top Gear host Hammond ’walking’ - Sept 23, 2020
Top Gear star Richard Hammond got to his feet and walked, just 30 hours after his high-speed crash, his co-presenter Jeremy Clarkson has said.

The 36-year-old is in a stable condition at Leeds General Infirmary where friends and family have been keeping a bedside vigil following Wednesday’s accident at Elvington airfield, near York.

Clarkson, a Sun columnist and Hammond’s co-presenter of the motoring show, said in the newspaper: "In the wee small hours of Thursday night, just 30 hours after what is almost certainly the world’s fastest ever car crash, Richard Hammond suddenly sat up in bed, opened his eyes and asked what had happened."

Clarkson, who told him he had been in a car accident, said that Hammond then got out of bed and walked shakily to the lavatory.

The presenter was seriously injured when the jet-powered car he had been driving at speeds up to 300mph crashed.

Police and Health and Safety Executive investigations are continuing to establish exactly what went wrong in the incident which happened during filming for the BBC2 show.

The BBC has released no further information about the events leading up to the crash.

The hospital said Hammond suffered a "significant brain injury". Earlier a spokesman added: "Doctors say Richard Hammond is making satisfactory progress.

Top Gear’s Richard out of intensive care - Sept 22, 2020
Doctors treating Top Gear presenter Richard Hammond said today his condition has improved and he has been moved out of intensive care. The TV star is now said to be in a "stable" condition following his high speed crash in a jet-powered car.

A spokesman at Leeds General Infirmary said: "Doctors say Richard Hammond is making satisfactory progress. "This morning he has been moved from intensive care on to a high dependency unit. "His condition has been downgraded from ’serious but stable’ to ’stable’."

Doctors last night said Richard’s injury gave them "cause for concern" but added that they were "reasonably optimistic" he would make a good recovery.

Top Gear’s Jeremy Clarkson yesterday paid tribute to the father-of-two as he visited him in Leeds with co-presenter James May.

Clarkson revealed that he had made Richard smile during the visit by calling him "a crap driver". He told The Sun: "He was lying peacefully with a black eye but didn’t react so I tried something else. "I said, ’The reason you’re here is because you’re a crap driver’. He then smiled at me. It was an amazing moment, very moving."

Police and safety experts are investigating the crash, which happened after the presenter had been driving at speeds close to 300mph as part of filming. James May was originally due to drive the Vampire for the programme, but switched places with his colleague ahead of the event.

TV’s Hammond ’suffers brain injury’ - Sept 21, 2020
Top Gear presenter Richard Hammond suffered a "significant brain injury" after the 370mph jet-powered car he was driving crashed on an airfield, doctors said.