Freddie Flintoff: Top Gear filming halted by BBC after accident

Andrew "Freddie" Flintoff was injured in December at Top Gear's test track in Surrey

By Steven McIntosh and Charley Adams

BBC News

The BBC says it has halted the latest series of Top Gear after presenter Andrew "Freddie" Flintoff was hurt in an accident while filming.

The presenter was injured in December at Top Gear's test track at Dunsfold Park Aerodrome in Surrey.

The BBC said: "Under the circumstances, we feel it would be inappropriate to resume making series 34."

The broadcaster said a decision on how best to continue would be made later this year.

Following the accident on 13 December, the former England cricketer received medical care at the scene before being taken to hospital for further treatment.

In a statement, the BBC said: "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, and we'll make a judgement about how best to continue later this year."

Image source, Jeff Spicer

Flintoff hosts Top Gear with Paddy McGuinness and Chris Harris

The decision has also impacted the production team, said the BBC, adding that there would be a health and safety review of the show, undertaken by an independent third party.

BBC Studios, which produces the show, also conducted its own investigation of the accident.

A spokesperson for the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) - the national regulator for workplace safety in England, Wales and Scotland - said: "We've completed our enquires into this incident and will not be investigating further."

It is understood the circumstances of the incident did not meet the threshold for further investigation. The regulator can launch criminal prosecutions against employers where staff have suffered serious injury or died at work.

Philippa Childs, head of Bectu, the union for workers in the creative industries, told the BBC: "Crew wellbeing on set is paramount, and it's critical productions have stringent policies and procedures in place to protect freelancers' physical and mental health.

"Productions must ensure they are meeting the highest safety standards and, where incidents occur, must ensure lessons are learnt and appropriate support is provided for the workforce."

Image source, BBC/Hoonigan Racing

Former presenter Matt LeBlanc drove past a bride and groom at St Paul's Cathedral in 2016

Top Gear, one of the broadcaster's most successful and exported programmes, has had a series of different presenters since 2002.

December's accident was not the first Flintoff has suffered since he first began presenting the show.

The father-of-four crashed into a market stall in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire in February 2019.

In September of the same year, he also crashed during a drag race while he was filming at Elvington Airfield in Yorkshire, but walked away unharmed.

In June 2022, Flintoff was racing in a bobsleigh at a course in Norway when it flipped over, but he again came out of the crash unscathed.

Flintoff 'helped rescue' Top Gear

By Steven McIntosh, entertainment reporter

Paddy McGuinness, Chris Harris and Freddie Flintoff were announced as Top Gear's latest hosts in 2018

Flintoff's impact on Top Gear should not be underestimated - he played a key role in rescuing the show after the tricky era that followed the departure of Clarkson, Hammond and May.

The show faltered under Chris Evans and Matt LeBlanc, who took over presenting duties in 2016. They struggled to recapture the chemistry of the hugely popular previous hosts.

But when Flintoff, McGuinness and Harris took the reins, there was palpable relief among BBC bosses when it became clear the unlikely trio of a cricketer, car expert and comic and gameshow host had great on-screen chemistry.

That relationship between the lead presenters is crucial to the show's appeal. The slightly juvenile pranks and jokes are what elevates Top Gear from being a car review show for petrol-heads to a winning entertainment format which appeals to a mainstream audience.

Its success over the years has made the programme a cash cow for the BBC. The corporation profits significantly from the series being sold to other countries. It is a strong brand, with its own magazine and merchandise.

The show's immediate future may be in doubt for now, but Flintoff's health and wellbeing must remain the top priority for the corporation. As a source close to Flintoff told the Times: "Freddie has been seriously emotionally and physically affected by the crash."

Flintoff retired from cricket in 2009 having played 79 Tests, 141 one-day internationals and seven T20s for England.

He played a key role in England's Ashes successes of 2005 and 2009.

After retiring from cricket in 2010 - he had one professional bout as a boxer, won the Australian version of I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! and also took to acting.

He joined Top Gear as a host in 2019 and has co-starred in the show with Paddy McGuinness and Chris Harris. Their most recent series attracted an average consolidated audience of 4.5 million viewers.

Racing driver Perry McCarthy, who previously portrayed the Stig on Top Gear, told The World At One on BBC Radio 4: "One thing about life in a car, whether it be on the road or on a track, is that when something goes wrong, it goes wrong really quickly.

He added: "You've got this enthusiasm from presenters which is wonderful, that's great, that's what the show's about. But you've got to be careful. So you need people around that show who really understand what can go wrong."

Richard Hammond (left, with Jeremy Clarkson and James May) was injured in 2006

One of Top Gear's previous presenters, Richard Hammond, was also injured while filming for the series in 2006.

Hammond crashed a car while travelling at nearly 300mph at the former RAF Elvington airbase near York, leaving him in a coma with a frontal lobe brain injury.

He survived and ultimately returned to the series alongside fellow hosts Jeremy Clarkson and James May.

The trio left Top Gear in 2015 after an altercation between Clarkson and a producer.

Top Gear in stats

The BBC said Top Gear is:

• The world's most-watched factual entertainment show, sold to and broadcast in more than 200 territories
• The world's largest motoring social media brand, with over 21 million Facebook fans and four million Instagram followers
• The world's most-published motoring magazine, with 30 editions across the globe
• The world's biggest motoring YouTube channel, amassing almost eight million subscribers and over 570m video views this year
• TopGear.com reaches up to four million motoring enthusiasts per month