Andrew Flintoff has spoken out for the first time about his serious Top Gear crash, revealing he "genuinely should not be here after what happened".
'Freddie' Flintoff was severely injured in an accident at the Top Gear Test Track - the Dunsfold Aerodrome, Surrey in December 2022.
The former England cricket captain reportedly flipped a Morgan Super 3 vehicle on the first bend at the test track during filming for the show while not wearing a helmet.
The vehicle was only travelling at 22mph but was open-top, meaning when it flipped Flintoff's face scraped along the tarmac, reported the Mail on Sunday.
The 46-year-old was left with both facial and rib injuries following the crash.
There were reports Flintoff's crash was so bad Top Gear staff who witnessed it had to be signed off work indefinitely as they struggled to come to terms with an incident described as "something you would truly want to unsee".
The BBC made the decision, last November - nearly a year after the crash, to rest Top Gear for the "foreseeable future".
Andrew Flintoff speaks out about Top Gear crash for first time
Flintoff has made a steady return to the public eye since the accident, joining the England Cricket team's backroom staff for their T20 series against the West Indies earlier this year, and as head coach of the Northern Superchargers in The Hundred.
But he is set to return to TV for the first time next Tuesday (August 13) when Freddie Flintoff’s Field Of Dreams On Tour airs on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
During the four-part series, Flintoff opens up about the Top Gear crash for the first time.
He reveals how close he was to dying and the struggles he has had since including "crying every two minutes", anxiety, nightmares and flashbacks.
"I genuinely should not be here after what happened"
The documentary shows Flintoff in hospital shortly after the crash where he says: "I genuinely should not be here after what happened.
“This will be a long road back and I’ve only just started, I’m stuck already.
“I need help, and I realise I’m not the best at asking for it. I need to stop crying every two minutes.
“I’ve got to look at the positives, haven’t I?
“I’m still here, I’ve got another chance, I’ve got to go at it. I’m seeing that as how it is, a second go."
The anxiety, nightmares and flashbacks that followed the Top Gear crash
The documentary moves on to showing the former England and Lancashire all-rounder seven months after the accident where he says he has struggled with anxiety, nightmares and flashbacks, and only left the house for medical appointments.
Flintoff says: “I don’t want to sit and feel sorry for myself, I don’t want sympathy, but it’s going from being here for seven months to going to India.
“I’m struggling with my anxiety, I have nightmares, I have flashbacks, it’s been so hard to cope.
“But I’m thinking if I don’t do something, I’ll never go. I’ve got to get on with it.”
Flintoff goes on to explain that he thought he could “just shake it off” after the crash, but admitted things had been “a lot harder than I thought”.
He added: “As much as I want to go out and do things, and I’ve just not been able to.”
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Flintoff says crash has changed him forever
The star goes on to say that he believes the crash has changed him forever.
When asked if he is feeling better, he replies: “Not really, I’m not sure I ever will again to be honest. I’m better than I was.
“I don’t know what completely better is. I am what I am now, I’m different to what I was, that’s something I’ll have to deal with for the rest of my life.
“Better, no, different.”
Cricket helping Flintoff recover from Top Gear crash
In one of the episodes, Flintoff’s former Lancashire teammate Kyle Hogg, who helps to coach the Field of Dreams team, can be seen telling the players about his crash, and that their trip to India has been postponed.
In a piece to the camera, Hogg adds: “Fred’s accident is really bad, he’s going to need a lot of recovery time, he’s pretty lucky that he’s managed to get through it alive.”
Hogg and Flintoff are then seen replanning the India tour, before the latter finally reunites with the team, hugging them and telling them “I’ve missed you”.
Once the team is in India, Flintoff explains that he feels “like a father to the lads”, and that cricket was helping him to recover from his crash.
He said: “When I’m around cricket, I seem to forget everything, I lose myself in the game.
“I feel like I’ve been more vulnerable than I ever have in my life in the past 12 months, so I’m reaching out to cricket I suppose again, to help me.”
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When Freddie Flintoff's Field of Dream on Tour will air on the BBC
The first series of Freddie Flintoff's Field of Dreams aired back in 2022 and saw the former England captain create a "cricket team like no other" in his home town of Preston.
It followed Flintoff as he transformed a rundown cricket club and changed the lives of the players in his "unlikely" cricket team.
Now Flintoff and his side are back for a second series, which will see the team head out on tour to India, one of the most revered cricketing nations in the world.
Freddie Flintoff’s Field Of Dreams On Tour will air on BBC One and BBC iPlayer at 9pm on Tuesday, August 13.
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