Jeremy Clarkson has been rushed to hospital

Jeremy Clarkson has said he will be 'out of action for quite some time' after being diagnosed with pneumonia.

The former Top Gear host, 57, was struck down by the dangerous infection during a holiday in Majorca and is still recovering in hospital there.

He posted a message on Drive Tribe on Sunday which said: 'Thanks for all the good wishes.

'And to keep you up to date, I'll be out of action for quite some time apparently.

'It's really really annoying because I've never had one day off work since I started in 1978.'

Clarkson's co-presenter Richard Hammond tweeted a link to the message and joked: 'Wow. I didn't know he had a job.'

In a separate message to his friend Jemima Goldsmith on Twitter, he said he was currently 'in a wheelchair, connected up to tubes, in a hospital'. 

Yesterday, Clarkson posted an image on Instagram  showing his arm with a drip attached and covered in hospital identity tags, writing: 'Not the sort of bangles I usually choose on holiday.'

Clarkson was on a break with his family after shooting his Amazon Prime show with co-hosts Richard Hammond and James May, when he fell ill. He had planned to return to work after his holiday.

The television host's daughter Emily wrote his weekly newspaper column, published yesterday.