BORO may have struggled to get out of second gear against Nottingham Forest, but Top Gear's star presenters and adrenalin junkies left the Riverside buzzing about their experience.

BBC TV celebrities Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond delighted fans with a surprise half-time appearance on the Riverside pitch to promote their exhibition taking place all this week at Middlesbrough's mima art gallery.

Chelsea fan Clarkson, the show's outspoken front man, was clearly buzzing with excitement long after participating in several minutes of on-the-pitch banter with both sets of supporters.

"I will treasure that memory for the rest of my time," he said. "It was one of the best experiences I have ever had. It was every bit as good as piloting an F-15 fighter jet, driving a Ferrari flat out or racing trucks to the centre of the Arctic."

Followed by three of the show's TV cameras, the trio initially drew a highly negative reaction from most of the 22,700 supporters when they emerged from the Riverside tunnel, arms raised, wearing Newcastle United shirts!

But boos quickly turned to cheers when Clarkson, May and Hammond disappeared back down the tunnel and re-emerged seconds later in Boro shirts, having performed a well-rehearsed quick-change.

There, Clarkson announced over the stadium PA system details of mima's Top Gear exhibition, inviting home fans to snap up an additional 3,500 free tickets for the show after an original batch of 7,000 tickets was snapped up in just 24 hours.

All of the additional allocation were quickly snapped up by fans leaving the Riverside with many travelling straight from the stadium to mima, where an episode of Top Gear was being filmed for planned screening on December 20.

When Clarkson told the army of Forest fans that the free tickets were not available to them, he received a barrage of light-hearted abuse and chants suggesting he was in need of losing a little weight.

The trio left the Riverside soon after their appearance but all departed buzzing about their football flirtation.

Clarkson, who regularly attends Stamford Bridge with his son Finlo, crowed: "That was brilliant. I was a bundle of nerves before we went out there. I thought they might react badly to the Newcastle shirts but fortunately they got our joke, rather than killing us!

"The noise was incredible, while being slagged off for my size by 3,000 fans was amazing, so I thank the Forest fans too for that!"

Both May and Hammond readily admit to not being football fans, but both left the Riverside with memories that will live with them for many years.

May smiled: "It was a fantastic experience to go out and get that reaction. I always wondered what it was like to be a footballer and get thousands of people singing for or against you. That must be amazing to do that every week."

Hammond added: "It was exhilarating and really fantastic. It was right up there with anything I've ever done. The Boro fans showed a great sense of humour in going along with our little joke. What a great place!"

Anthony Emmerson, Boro's Head of Supporter Services, said: "Middlesbrough FC were delighted to work with the BBC and Top Gear on this exciting project, which proved hugely popular with supporters.

"Jeremy, Richard and James were great fun to work with, as were all of their background crew, and left the Riverside with a really positive impression of Middlesbrough Football Club.

"Despite prior arrangements, they resolutely refused to put on their Boro shirts as they stood in the Riverside tunnel. We were naturally puzzled until they revealed what they had on under their coats!

"It was a typically humorous stunt they pulled and their appearance was great entertainment for both sets of supporters."