Top Gear has been blasted for filming a car stunt near the Cenotaph.

Host Matt Le Blanc was filmed performing wheelspins and doughnuts in Westminster for the new series of the BBC Two show.

Colonel Richard Kemp told GMB that the stunt is "sickening and grossly disrespectful" and said that the BBC should not air scenes that show the Cenotaph as a backdrop for car stunts.

He told the Telegraph: "This is a sacred tribute to millions of people who have done far more for their country than Chris Evans and Matt Le Blanc ever will."

The BBC said paparazzi photos made filming appear closer to the Cenotaph than it was in reality, and that all scenes were shot around 40 metres away from the memorial.

A Top Gear spokesman said: "The filming took place a respectful distance away from the cenotaph and it was all agreed with Westminster Council in advance."

Earlier on Sunday Chancellor George Osborne scolded Le Blanc's fellow host Chris Evans for making a racket near Downing Street and distracting him from writing the Budget: