Jeremy Clarkson reveals he's off the booze and saving $1000 a week

Jeremy Clarkson is well known for his love of rose wine, seen here drinking it outside Auckland's Euro restaurant in 2013. Photo / Natalie Slade

Former Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson has revealed he's quit drinking as he looks for a new job and is saving more than $1000 a week in the process.

Clarkson made the revelation in his Sunday Times column, saying he gave up alcohol two weeks ago but has no plans for a permanent booze ban.

The former BBC presenter is well known for his love of rose wine, which he had reportedly been drinking ahead of an altercation with his producer, which ultimately led to his sacking.

Clarkson, 55, wrote that he had recently watched a "gut-wrenchingly sad" documentary about Amy Winehouse and had also been moved by the death of former Lib Dem leader, Charles Kennedy.

"He was an affable soul who liked what I'm sure he would have called a tincture, and a family statement says the post-mortem showed his death 'was a consequence of his battle with alcoholism'."

Kennedy was found dead in his Fort William cottage last week, with family attributing his death to alcoholism.

Clarkson says he's saving more than $150 a day but says without drinking, he's now driving more, which means he's spending more money on parking tickets.

"Because I'm not spending 40 quid a day on wine and another 40 on taxis to run me around, I'm saving more than £500 a week. But because I'm now driving everywhere I'm spending more than that, and a lot more besides, on parking tickets."

Clarkson also hinted at his next career move, saying he has sworn off alcohol while he looks for work as "Californians have a habit of ringing at 11pm, and I realised I couldn't think as straight as they do with their leaves and mineral water existence if I was halfway through my third bottle of Leoube."

Rumours that the host is in talks with Netflix have circulated since he left the BBC.

Meanwhile, his former co-hosts Richard Hammond and James May have been offered a multi-million dollar deal to continue with Top Gear, which would make them the BBC's highest-earning starts.

- nzherald.co.nz