Chris Evans to replace Jeremy Clarkson as Top Gear host

Chris Evans will take over as lead presenter on the BBC program Top Gear after former presenter Jeremy Clarkson was sacked for assaulting a producer.

Chris Evans poses for photographers, in London. (AAP) Source: Press Association

Television personality Chris Evans will replace Jeremy Clarkson on the BBC motoring show, Top Gear.

The broadcaster this week announced that Evans, 49, had signed a three-year deal to present the program.

The two co-presenters who worked alongside Clarkson - James May and Richard Hammond - will not be returning.

New co-presenters will be announced “in due course,” a BBC spokeswoman said.

Clarkson was sacked from the program in March after he assaulted a producer.

He later said it was his "own silly fault" he lost his job.

Top Gear is one of the BBC’s most popular shows, with about 350 million viewers worldwide.