James May admits he ‘wasted years’ of his life before becoming a presenter

James May has become a national treasure through his work presenting on shows like The Grand Tour and Top Gear but there was a time when he didn't work in this field, and feels he "did waste years" of his life as a result.

Speaking to Yahoo UK for Origin Story, the presenter looked back at his youth, admitting he "suffered from" the feeling that he should do what he was "supposed to do", rather than what he wanted to do for years.

"I wouldn't have believed I was allowed to work in magazines or newspapers," he says. "I would have believed I was supposed to work in something quite square and quite administrative, and you shouldn't do that.

And I would have been better off going and getting a job in a vibrant bar, or pub, or shop, or something where I met more people and had more interaction."

May, who recently launched the newest season of his Prime Video travel series Our Man in India, had several jobs before becoming a presenter, like working in the civil service. But he was set on his path to presenting after being given roles on car magazines as a sub-editor and later a columnist, which opened the doors for him to join Top Gear during its first run from 1977 to 2001 and later in the 2002 revival.

Thinking of what advice he would give to his younger self if he had the chance, May also says: "I can't really remember now whether or not I was worried about life, but I suspect I probably did. I'd go back and say 'it'll be all right'.

"And the other thing I would do —and this is a bit of advice I'd give to young people even though they should ignore it— [is say] when you're a teenager, when you're in your 20s and you have that vitality of youth and the energy and the imagination you mustn't do things that you don't really like doing.

"And it is pointless thinking you have to do something because that's what's expected of you, or that's what you're supposed to do, or that's what you are meant to do."

The presenter added: "If you're not doing what you like you will never be very good at it, you can only be good at things that inspire you. So whatever that is, do that, that's what I would have told me.

"I used to make the analogy that that I got up and ran across the field with a load of people firing at me with machine guns and every bullet had on it a life disaster for me — moving to the wrong place, taking the wrong job, settling down with the wrong people. That everybody missed, that was a remarkable stroke of good fortune because they should all have."

James May: Our Man in India is out now on Prime Video.

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Watch James May speaks to Yahoo UK for Origin Story: