What happened to Freddie Flintoff? Top Gear future explained
Flintoff has spoken out for the first time about the crash in a new documentary.
Freddie Flintoff has spoken out for the first time since his accident in which he was involved in a crash while filming for the BBC series Top Gear.
In December 2022, Flintoff was taken to hospital after he was left with facial and rib injuries in a crash at the Top Gear test track at Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey.
Following the crash, the BBC announced the motoring programme will not be returning "for the foreseeable future".
In a new season of Field of Dreams, Flintoff spoke candidly about how he was coping after the crash, admitting that he thought he'd be able to "shake it off".
Speaking to the camera, the cricketer said: "I thought I could shake it off, I wanted to shake it off and say, 'Here I am, I'm alright,' but it's not been the case of that, it's a lot harder than I thought. As much as I wanted to go out and do things, I've just not been able to."
Flintoff explained that after the crash he struggles with anxiety and has "nightmares" and "flashbacks", admitting "it's been so hard to cope".
But what exactly happened to Flintoff while filming the BBC motoring show? Read on for everything you need to know.
What happened to Freddie Flintoff? Top Gear crash explained
Flintoff was involved in a crash at Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey, home of the Top Gear test track, on 13th December 2022.
While it was initially reported that he was travelling at a high speed, The Sun claimed last month that he was only doing 22mph when the accident occurred and there was no fault with the vehicle.
He was airlifted to hospital and his injuries were described at the time as being non-life threatening, but his son Corey told the Mail Online he was lucky to be alive.
"It was a pretty nasty crash," he said. "It is shocking. We are all shocked but just hope he’s going to be OK."
In a statement shared in April, the BBC said that "under the circumstances" it "would be inappropriate to resume making season 34" following an internal investigation into the incident.
In October, it was confirmed that Flintoff had reached a settlement with the BBC, which The Sun reported was worth £9m, based on the presenter losing out on two years of earnings.
"BBC Studios has reached an agreement with Freddie that we believe supports his continued rehabilitation, return to work and future plans," a spokesperson said.
"We have sincerely apologised to Freddie and will continue to support him with his recovery."
The payout is not be funded by the TV licence fee, since BBC Studios is a commercial arm of the broadcaster.
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Another update was provided in November 2023 when the BBC said it had decided to take Top Gear off air “for the foreseeable future”.
The BBC said in a statement: "[We] remain committed to Freddie, Chris and Paddy, who have been at the heart of the show's renaissance since 2019, and we're excited about new projects being developed with each of them. We will have more to say in the near future on this.
Read more:
- Top Gear's Chris Harris offers update on Freddie Flintoff recovery
- Top Gear needs a rethink, says James May as BBC rests show
"We know resting the show will be disappointing news for fans, but it is the right thing to do.
"All other Top Gear activity remains unaffected by this hiatus, including international formats, digital, magazines and licensing."
Previous seasons of Top Gear are available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
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Authors
Molly Moss is a Trends Writer for Radio Times, covering the latest trends across TV, film and more. She has an MA in Newspaper Journalism and has previously written for publications including The Guardian, The Times and The Sun Online.
