Richard Hammond opens up about year from hell: divorce, father’s death, and car-business losses

Richard Hammond has disclosed a difficult year, detailing the end of his 23-year marriage to Mindy Hammond, the death of his father Alan, and substantial losses at his Herefordshire-based car restoration venture. The disclosures come as he promotes a new series, Richard Hammond’s Workshop, which chronicles his attempt to run a classic car workshop and confront rumors surrounding his personal life. Hammond described the marriage collapse as devastating and said he is trying to move forward with the same practical mindset he has used in other challenging moments of his life. He framed his reaction as a deliberate choice, echoing a line of thought he has shared in past interviews: that how a person responds to what happens defines the outcome. The interview forms part of a broader conversation about resilience in a year that has forced him to retool both professionally and personally.

Hammond has relocated from Bollitree Castle, the sprawling Grade II-listed manor he shared with Mindy, to a rented farmhouse in the countryside closer to The Smallest Cog, his Hereford-based workshop. The setting is pragmatic rather than glamorous—misted fields and a vintage Jaguar sit outside as he emphasizes that the move is practical: closer to the business, closer to his two daughters, and closer to work. The space may be modest, but Hammond says it helps him keep a steady focus on the future. His new show centers on The Smallest Cog, a garage he founded five years ago to repair his own classic cars and others’ in a bid to build a proper, hands-on career within the automotive world. While the mood is sober, he insists he’s trying to identify the “silver lining” in a sequence of challenging years.

The financial dimension of Hammond’s year is stark. The series documents ongoing struggles to monetize a niche in a market where rising living costs and a thinning pool of high-end buyers have squeezed margins. Hammond has been candid about the costs of running an ambitious restoration business, noting that profitability has proven elusive across the four series of The Smallest Cog. In the new episodes, he reveals that he has absorbed significant losses, estimating that the venture has lost around half a million pounds. He has also sold several valuable cars and bikes to fund equipment and day-to-day operations, listing vehicles such as a Lotus Esprit 350 Sport, a Bentley S2, a 1969 Porsche 911T, a Honda Gold Wing, and a Kawasaki Z900 among the items shed. He stresses that these were real assets, not abstract numbers, and that the losses reflect more than a simple miscalculation—there were real jobs and people depending on the business’s success.

Hammond ties the financial stress to a broader personal narrative about responsibility. He explains that he does not have unlimited financial cushions and feels obligated to earn what he spends, especially given that The Smallest Cog employs people and sustains livelihoods in the local community. He compares the work with his past television fame to a new, more grounded phase of his career, in which the hands-on craft—restoring cars, baring metal and wood, and guiding a team—takes center stage. The stakes feel personal: not only is this a business risk, but it implicates the futures of the people who depend on it, including the technicians and apprentices who have become part of his work life.

The emotional toll of the year is also tied to a family arc that Hammond has long described as close and meaningful. His father, Alan, became ill with cancer and died in October, an event Hammond says left an unmistakable void in the family’s daily rhythm. The elder Hammond maintained a quiet dignity through his illness, and Richard recalls sitting with him in hospice, sharing imaginary walks around Buttermere in the Lake District as a way to stay connected. When the news broke publicly only in January, Hammond paused his professional commitments to be with his family. He credits his father with shaping his outlook on endurance, grace, and the value of focusing on the present while honoring the past. The loss has reinforced a sense of responsibility toward his daughters, Izzy and Willow, and he speaks about them with a mix of pride and tenderness that underscores why he continues to push through difficult periods.

Izzy, now 24, has become a partner in the creative ecosystem around her father’s work, co-hosting podcasts and pursuing her own work as a car journalist. Willow, 22, is treasuring a focus on art and horses, and while she is less inclined toward filming, Hammond notes that both daughters have grown up with the cameras as a constant presence in their lives. He has embraced the shift in his personal life as he also navigates the continuing evolution of his public image. The father-and-daughter collaborations reflect a broader trend of intergenerational collaboration in automotive culture, where family ties can anchor a career that might otherwise feel unstable in light of recent events.

Hammond also addresses questions about his relationships with friends and colleagues from his most famous television eras. He says that he remains on good terms with James May and Jeremy Clarkson, insisting that their bond endured despite the end of The Grand Tour’s original run and the broader shifting landscape of their collaboration. He stresses that there is no imminent plan for a reunion, but that regular contact remains normal and cordial. The trio’s long-running on-screen dynamic is part of a larger cultural conversation about how television brands transition as stars age, markets shift, and audiences demand new forms of storytelling. Hammond’s current emphasis, however, is firmly on building a sustainable, craft-centric career at a scale that aligns with his life outside the studio.

The season’s shift to a more pragmatic, hands-on approach is also tied to a broader career philosophy that Hammond has spoken about before. He has endured personal and professional ups and downs, including a well-documented jet-powered dragster crash in 2006 that left him in a coma for weeks and later shaped his approach to risk, recovery, and resilience. In recounting those memories, he emphasizes the power of choosing a constructive response to hardship rather than letting adversity define him. The new series gives him a platform to demonstrate how calculated risk, careful planning, and a commitment to craft can form the foundation of a meaningful second act in the automotive world. It is a narrative about reinventing a career while honoring past achievements, a theme that resonates with audiences who have followed Hammond’s career through multiple outlets.

Richard Hammond’s Workshop is scheduled to return on October 6 on Discovery+. The new episodes are positioned as a turning point—a way to translate personal upheaval into professional purpose and a renewed sense of direction. As Hammond himself notes, September can symbolize beginnings, even when autumn carries vestiges of melancholy. For now, the focus remains on building a sustainable workshop, supporting his family, and continuing the work that has long defined him: restoring cars, mentoring others, and staying connected to the craft that first drew him to motor culture.