Former Top Gear host Richard Hammond announces shock split from wife Amanda after 28 years together

Former Top Gear host Richard Hammond and wife Amanda have split after 28 years together. Richard, 55, shared the news on X.

"A little update from us; this Christmas we were together as a family but just structured a bit different," he wrote.

"Our marriage is coming to an end, but we've had an amazing 28 years together and two incredible daughters," he continued.

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"We will always be in each other's lives and are proud of the family we created," Richard said.

"We won't be commenting further and sincerely hope that our privacy and that of our children will be respected at this time. With Love, Richard and Mindy."

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The couple lives on a £7million ($13.8 million) estate, Bollitree Castle in Herefordshire, and share two daughters – Izzy, 24, which whom Richard hosts the podcast Who We Are Now about men's mental health and raising children, and Willow, 22.

It is understood Amanda, 59, is the one to have requested the divorce and is hoping to remain at the family's Bollitree Castle estate which boasts six bedrooms, a swimming pool and 20 acres of land.

Richard, who now hosts The Grand Tour, is reportedly living in rented accommodation near the home.

The couple's networth is said to be £70 million ($139 million).

In addition to their main residence, Richard runs the company Smallest Cog, a car restoration garage.

They also own a holiday home in Buttermere in the Lake District and a flat in London.

The pair also own TV production company Chimp Productions, of which Amanda is a director.

They also own horses and Richard has curated an impressive sports car collection including Ford Mustang, Porche, Lotus Esprit Sport and a 1931 Lagona.

Richard purchased a helicopter in 2009 for personal travel and currently earns £7million ($13 million) for hosting The Grand Tour.

The Sun reports Amanda has asked to remain in the couple's main residence and has asked for an annual stipend of £500,000 ($993,067) in addition to her share of the assets.

Richard shared the story of how he and Amanda met in his autobiography On The Edge: My Story, saying he fell in love with her "in an instant" and realised he'd "met my soul-mate and best friend for life." They wed in 2002.

Richard served as host of Top Gear from 2002 until 2015 with Jeremy Clarkson and James May.

In 2006 Richard survived a serious car accident during filming of Top Gear while travelling in a jet-powered car travelling 288mph (463kmh).

He miraculously survived but was left with a brain injury which he explained causes memory loss, depression and sometimes finds it hard to connect emotionally.

He was also involved in a crash in 2017, when a supercar he was driving lost control and burst into flames but this time he only suffered a fractured knee.

Talking on The Diary of a CEO podcast, Richard admitted his memory is still impacted from the crash.

"I worry about my memory because it's not brilliant. I can still read a script and deliver it but my long-term memory is not brilliant," he said.

"I have to write things down and work hard to remember them sometimes. It might be the age, it might be the onset of something else. I worry about that. I do, I do. I should probably have a look and find out, because I do," he added.

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