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Privacy NoticeAn emotional Freddie Flintoff has opened up about the severe injuries and crippling anxiety he suffered following his Top Gear crash, which left him housebound for months and “crying every two minutes” for weeks. Discussing the December 2022 incident, the ex-cricketer shared that he’s been plagued by flashbacks and nightmares of the near-fatal event. In a raw new TV documentary, viewers will see footage Freddie recorded at home, showcasing the extent of his facial injuries and capturing his fragile state. Speaking to the camera with evident emotion, Freddie says: “Week and a half after my accident. Genuinely should not be here after what happened. This is going to be a long road back and I have only just started and I am struggling already. I need help. I really am not the best at asking for it. I need to stop crying every two minutes.” The video was part of his self-filmed BBC series Field of Dreams on Tour, a sequel to the hit show Field of Dreams. Despite the harrowing ordeal, Freddie had plans to lead a group of young cricketers from Preston on a tour to India in March 2023, a mere three months after his terrifying accident in an open-topped three-wheeled Morgan Super 3.
Freddie speaks to camera in new BBC series
(Image: INSTAGRAM)
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Emotionally charged moments are captured in a video where Freddie, almost in tears, shares his eagerness: “I am looking forward to seeing the lads and being around them, I really am. This India trip is going to be for me as much as them now. Determined, I really want to go.” However, Freddie’s anticipated tour encountered a delay as the beloved Top Gear show faced cancellation from TV following his severe crash, reports the Mirror. Freddie’s pal and cricket mentor Kyle Hogg imparts some advice to the Preston youth, indicating the necessity to “push back” the tour. He confesses about Freddie’s condition: “I’ve seen him briefly a couple of times. You know, he has had a tough few weeks. Fred’s accident is really bad. He’s gonna need a lot of recovery time. You know, he’s pretty lucky that he managed to get through it alive.” The documentary, airing seven months later, depicts Freddie at home, a stark contrast to his life before. Confined to his home, a cricket tour was unthinkable. Reflecting on his ordeal, Freddie admits: “I thought I could just shake it off. I wanted to shake it off and say ‘here I am, I’m alright’. But it’s not been a case of that, it’s been a lot harder than I thought. As much as I wanted to go out and do things, I have just not been able to.”
Top Gear was taken off air after Freddie’s terrifying crash
(Image: PA)
“All the way through this when I was in hospital, I was thinking ‘right it’s March I was aiming towards March’ and then September I was aiming towards that. It’s always been a little bit unachievable. I think about it all the time[going to India]. I think about going, how good it’ll be. I rewind and I am thinking ‘I am not leaving the house either’. We have got to get on a plane and be away for two and a half weeks.” “But some of those lads have had a tough life, you’ve got to put it into perspective. I feel guilty. I can’t do that. I don’t want to sit here and feel sorry for myself. I don’t want sympathy, but it’s going from being in here for seven months really and then going to India for two and a half weeks. “Everywhere I go at the minute I have got a full face mask and glasses. I can’t do that. I struggle with anxiety, I have nightmares, I have flashbacks. It has been so hard to cope with. But I’m thinking, if I don’t do something I’ll never do owt. I’ve got to get on with it.”
The star had been involved in other crashes in the past – but managed to escape without serious harm
(Image: BBC Studios/ Lee Brimble)
Freddie did reunite with the young lads in Preston, though it happened about 12 months post accident, as they had already visited India earlier in the year. Approaching the tour, he admits: “We are going somewhere which is incredible. I am trying to focus on the good stuff that is gonna happen.” “And as much as I stand there and tell the lads about how great it is, there’s a bit of nervousness from my point of view. I found myself over years being in situations which I’m never quite sure I could get through. And that’s how I’m feeling in a small way about it. There will be times when I take myself off and you won’t see me for half an hour. I will have a good cry in my room and come back. But y’know we will be alright.” Freddie was injured at Top Gear’s test track at Dunsfold Park Aerodrome in Surrey in December 2022 and left with horrible facial injuries. He reached a settlement with the BBC last year, reportedly worth £9m. The payout was not funded by the TV licence fee, as BBC Studios is a commercial arm of the broadcaster.
Freddie bravely breaks his silence on the Top Gear crash which he says ‘changed everything’
(Image: aflintoff11/Instagram)
Flintoff had joined BBC One’s Top Gear as a host in 2019 alongside Paddy McGuinness and Chris Harris. However, after the accident, the show was discontinued. In March 2023, the BBC offered an apology to Flintoff, stating: “We have sincerely apologised to Freddie and will continue to support him with his recovery. We understand this [halting the show] will be disappointing for fans, but it is the right thing to do.” The father-of-four’s adventures have seen him involved in several crashes, including a market stall collision in Mansfield during February 2019, a drag race crash at Elvington Airfield later that same year, and a bobsleigh spill in Norway in June 2022 – but until his most recent accident, the presenter had always emerged relatively unscathed. The second series of Freddie Flintoff: Field Of Dreams on Tour is set to start on BBC1 from August 14.Story SavedYou can find this story in My Bookmarks.Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right.Follow OK! MagazineFacebookTwitterCommentMore OnPaddy McGuinnessPrestonTop GearDocumentaryFreddie Flintoff
