AMAZON Prime's The Grand Tour has been criticised after Jeremy Clarkson and co-hosts mocked independence supporters and a Scottish town during a recent episode.

The former Top Gear presenters began a journey around the scenic North Coast 500 (NC500) route in the fishing port of Invergordon, with Clarkson quipping that "This isn't exactly like the tourist authority would have you believe, is it?".

He followed this up by aiming a jibe at Scottish nationalists, saying "You can see why they want to be independent, can't you?"

Co-host Richard Hammond responds to say "You wouldn't want people messing all this up, would you?"

The episode, titled "Well Aged Scotch", challenged the trio to race around the NC500 in three old Italian cars.

While it does later showcase much of the beauty of the north, the earlier scenes in Invergordon seem to have had a grey filter applied to make the town appear even more grim

Clarkson later claimed that the starting location was chosen "simply to annoy" The Grand Tour's Scottish producer, saying: "That was the only reason we met on a beach full of oil rigs and then drove through a council estate of hypodermic needles."

Later in the episode, Hammond attempts to serve deep-fried Spaghetti "McBolognese" and bananas to some Scottish locals.

The episode went down less than well on Twitter, with one user saying: "Spoiler: they start their journey by making derogatory and condescending comments about people's homes..." while another responded with "I'm shocked, shocked I tell you".