Richard Hammond: My family values

The Top Gear presenter talks about how his two brothers were his best friends growing up, how his parents encouraged him to get a motorbike at 16 and how he loves having daughters

Richard Hammond and wife Mindy

Richard Hammond with his wife, Mindy: ‘I never had sisters, so when I became a father to the girls a whole new world opened up.’ Photograph: David Fisher/Rex

I grew up in Solihull, near Birmingham [famous for coachbuilding and the automotive industry], so I guess the car thing was always there – my mother’s father was a coachbuilder and my dad’s dad loved cars. He was in bomb disposal in the war and very good with his hands. I had a happy childhood, and most of it revolved around bicycles, moving on to motorbikes and cars.

On the Road: Growing up in Eight Journeys – My Early Year

My grandad moved to Weston-super-Mare and a typical memory is of driving down with my parents and two brothers – I was the eldest – in our Ford Anglia, which had that strange smell of sour milk that all childhood cars used to have. Apart from squabbling and singing songs, I’d watch the back of my dad’s head as he drove, wondering what magic he did at the controls, and what the machinery under the car was up to. I remember one trip there was a car show on the seafront. I was dazzled by the colours, the chrome, the shapes and forms. Thought, this is for me.

My brothers were my best friends – a gang growing up with two years between each of us. I was always Batman, though – they were the Joker and Robin. We’d belt around on bikes until we fell off – usually from a ramp we’d built over some toy cars. We had mates at school and on the same road, but we three were very tight – still are.

I started building my own bikes when I was 11, right through to 14 or 15. I’d have boxes of spare parts and Dad would help. He always let me lead, though, which I now think is quite significant. Other dads might have wanted to take charge; to do it their way. I remember building a Chopper-style bike out of a smaller racer with a tiny wheel on the front. It was a disaster. The first time I braked, I went straight over the handlebars.

I remember Dad and me working out when I was five how many days it would be before I could ride a motorbike. I didn’t stop badgering him about getting one. I had motorbike wallpaper; knew every bike on the road. On my 16th birthday, they handed me my first set of keys – to a 49cc Honda – and off I sped. It was incredibly brave of them to let me have one.

That bike was everything to me. It also meant I had a set of keys so I could stamp around the house like a grownup and say, “Where are my keys?” It was wonderful. My eldest daughter, who’s 13, loves riding with me on my bike, so I guess I’ll have to do the same when she’s old enough to ride one herself.

The accident [in 2006, Hammond was seriously injured when a Top Gear stunt went wrong and the car he was driving crashed] was a defining time of my life and the sense of family and belonging together came to the fore. But that solidarity did work the other way too – it was quite difficult, as all my family wanted and needed to be near me. I didn’t know anything about it at the time as I was out of it.

As one of three brothers, it has been amazing having daughters. I never had sisters, so when I had the girls a whole new world opened up. They are fascinating. I hope I can be like my parents and help the children enjoy the lives they have. It’s been quite a journey, from a smelly Ford Anglia to a Land Rover full of hairbrushes and hockey sticks.