Category Entertainment News

Andrew ‘Freddie’ Flintoff has opened up about his recovery following his horror crash while filming Top Gear, admitting that his youngest son was ‘frightened’ of him

Cricket legend Andrew ‘Freddie’ Flintoff believe his youngest son was “frightened” of his face in the wake of his horror Top Gear crash. Flintoff was taken to hospital after he was hurt while filming the BBC motoring show at its test track at Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey in December 2022.

The sports star, 47, was left with life-threatening injuries and admits that during his initial recovery, he wondered if it had been better if he had died in the crash. Speaking in a new documentary, the dad-of-four opens up about the first months at home following his release from the hospital.

Flintoff, who shares children Holly, Corey, Rocky and Preston with wife Rachael Woods, recalls spending a lot of time inside the house at the time. “The only time we were getting out is for medical stuff,” he explains.

“And what I’ve done, I suppose, in this house, it’s become safe and it’s good to step outside of it.You want to be there for the kids, and you don’t want to miss stuff. You know, unfortunately, we got four of them.”

Emotional, he adds: “I spent all this time with a three-and-a-half year old [Preston]. He won’t come near. I think he were frightened of my face. Frightened of me. That was heartbreaking.”

The 47-year-old speaks about the accident in a new Disney+ documentary, which includes graphic photos of his wounds and commentary from an oral and maxillofacial surgeon who witnessed his injuries.

At one stage, he says: “After the accident I didn’t think I had it in me to get through. This sounds awful … part of me wishes I’d been killed. Part of me thinks, I wish I’d died. I didn’t want to kill myself … I wouldn’t mistake the two things.

“I was not wishing, I was just thinking, ‘this would have been so much easier’. Now I try to take the attitude that the sun will come up tomorrow and my kids will still give me a hug. I’m probably in a better place now.”

Reflecting on his recovery, the former England cricket captain admits: “I’ve got PTSD and I get anxious, for periods of time, I just find myself crying for no particular reason.” Flintoff also said that he relives the crash every night when he goes to bed and described the experience as a “vivid” movie.

“Even the memories of it are real, to the point where now I’m talking about it and I’m getting a bit jittery and I can feel the pain on the side of my face”, he says. “I can feel like a phantom pain. It’s like a bit of a curse, really.”

Recalling the accident, he says: “I thought I was dead because I was conscious but I couldn’t see anything. I was thinking ‘is that it?’”. He adds: “My biggest fear was, I didn’t think I had a face. I thought my face had come off. I was frightened to death.”

The BBC “rested” Top Gear for the foreseeable future in 2023 after reaching a financial settlement with Flintoff, an agreement reportedly worth around £9million. In the documentary Flintoff appears resentful about the entertainment culture he was involved in, likening it to his own injury-ravaged playing career.

“Everybody wants more. Everybody want to dig that bit deeper,” he says. Flintoff also speaks about his relationship with alcohol and experience with bulimia in the 90-minute documentary.

Comedian Jack Whitehall and actor and TV presenter James Corden, who appeared alongside him on A League Of Their Own, feature in the film, with Whitehall admitting that he was bulimic when he started his television career.

Speaking ahead of the documentary’s premiere, Flintoff told the PA news agency that he been asked to do autobiographical-style pieces before “and always found it a bit embarrassing.”

“The nice thing I suppose from a cricket sense is looking back on it, on a cricket career, which I don’t tend to do to be honest, I tend to look forward,” he said. He added: “For me, I think people watch it and make their own minds up about me. I’m not trying to influence that. I’ve made it. It’s gonna be out there, and it’s up to people to decide. I’m sure there’ll be some opinions.”

Referencing the crash, he said: “It took a while, it’s been hard. It’s still a work in progress. I’m different but I’m all right.” Speaking about the future, he added: “I’m comfortable in what I’m doing now. I really enjoy it. You know, I do the odd TV job but I’m happy”.

Flintoff led the Northern Superchargers in the most recent edition of The Hundred and in December 2024 he presented a festive version of darts-themed game show Bullseye on ITV.

Flintoff will premiere exclusively on Disney+ in the UK and Ireland on Friday April 25.

After being criticized by Sharon Osbourne for their Coachella set, the Irish rap group Kneecap received backlash from their fans.

Kneecap’s Coachella performance set the Internet aflame, after the Irish rap group began a pro-Palestine chant during one of their sets and platformed anti-genocide messaging. Following their set, Sharon Osbourne became the latest public figure to condemn the performance, advocating for their US work visas to be revoked. Despite this, fans have been quick to show the West Belfast musicians their support.

Sharon Osbourne, the trio “took their performance to a different level by incorporating aggressive political statements,” she wrote in an X post. She continued, “I urge you join me in calling for the revocation of Kneecap’s work visa,” saying that they “openly support terrorist groups.”

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Ozzy Osbourne, a British singer in the rock band Black Sabbath, and Sharon is well-known for their union. War Pigs, an anti-war song that heavily criticizes the “war machine,” is one of his most well-known hits. The song attacked the brutality of war, which causes the deaths of countless innocent people.

Kneecap quickly reacted to the online criticism with a quick clap of applause. They wrote in a post to X that, “Among the hundreds of violent Zionist threats, there are thousands of these [messages]”. screenshots of fans’ supportive messages were included in the post.

“Retired British Military (Royal Navy) Officer in Bangor,” one read. Send me a message about you. Palestine that is free.

The group also hit back at Sharon’s harsh condemnation. Speaking to HuffPost UK, the band said: “Statements aren’t aggressive, murdering…children is though. Or executing 15 medics and burying them and their ambulances.”

According to the Gaza Health Ministry, since 7 October 2023, over 51,000 Palestinians have been killed – more than a third of which have been children. Meanwhile, the Israeli military states that 408 of its soldiers have been killed in combat, as reported by the BBC.

Following the Rap Group’s recent controversy surrounding its Coachella performance, all of this comes at a high level. On April 19 at the festival’s second weekend, Kneecap displayed three screens of text at the end of their set.

The first read: “Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people. This was followed by: “It is being enabled by the US government who arm and fund Israel despite their war crimes.” A final screen added: “F–k Israel. Free Palestine.”

Moglai Bap, the singer of Kneecap, then addressed the audience, “We were never bombed from the skies with nowhere to go, but the Irish were persecuted by the Brits not so long ago. There is no place for the Palestinians. They are bombing it from the sky because it is their home. What do you call it if you’re not referring to it as a genocide?

He then went on to lead the crowd into a “free Palestine” chant. The performance was not streamed to Coachella’s official YouTube channel.

One star sign has feelings associated with a coworker, and the other doesn’t want to be by themselves. Today’s horoscope for April 24 indicates that one star sign has feelings associated with a coworker.

On Star Sign’s special wish, which is set to be granted, it is Thursday, April 24.

There are 12 zodiac signs – Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces – and the horoscopes for each can give you the lowdown on what your future holds, be it in work, your love life, your friends and family or more.

These daily forecasts have been compiled by astrologer Russell Grant, who has been reading star signs for over 50 years. From Aries through to Pisces, here’s what today could bring for your horoscope – and what you can do to be prepared.

Aries (Mar 21 – Apr 20)

You are being asked about finances by someone. Be careful not to reveal too much about your circumstances. You might also want to encourage those who talk too much to keep their financial conversations private. Instead, talk about safer subjects. Later, there will be a more upbeat atmosphere.

Taurus (Apr 21 – May 21)

You’re dealing with a challenging coworker who seems to drain your happiness from every circumstance. You currently have no choice but to accept this. Finding enjoyment in non-work related activities is the best way to deal with stress.

Gemini (May 22 – June 21)

A special wish is about to be granted. You’ll soon be able to accomplish your goal. Additionally, you may be able to obtain some lucrative positions. You’ll want to put in even more effort in the near future because of the positive changes in your life.

Cancer (June 22 – July 23)

Only after considering all the benefits and drawbacks, can you accept new responsibilities. You might come up with a secret plan after discussing some seemingly fantastic ideas in a team. Before you are ready to release it out in the world, you must give this more thought.

Leo (July 24 – Aug 23)

You won’t want to travel alone for too long. Don’t limit yourself to just one person’s or place’s company. Your enjoyment grows the more places you travel. Entertainment, childcare, and luxury goods offer some promising opportunities. You can be certain that you will be able to predict trends.

Virgo (Aug 24 – Sept 23)

You won’t feel the need to rush anything because the pressure is easing. You can finally approach your work more at ease. You’ve witnessed others commit errors as a result of carelessness, so it’s great to be able to take your time and do the right thing.

Libra (Sept 24 – Oct 23)

You will have the chance to help a friend find a fantastic job. Make sure to give your boss a glowing recommendation. Your support will help someone who deserves it get a stable job in a competitive job market.

Scorpio (Oct 24 – Nov 22)

You should aim for practicality and groundedness, which includes not acting on your guts too much. Particularly when a potential financial gift or prize appears to be approaching. Be aware of the possibility of conditions relating to it. If you decide to accept the gift, make sure to consider whether you’re willing to accept them.

Sagittarius (Nov 23 – Dec 21)

While a coworker is taking a sick leave, you will have to assume some of their responsibilities. Learning new skills will increase your value at work, despite the initial annoyance, and you will soon be able to ask for a raise.

Capricorn (Dec 22 – Jan 20)

You feel energized and motivated because of the strong positive vibe that exists in your surroundings. You also become aware that someone watching you closely in the background is interested in your ability to impress them.

Aquarius (Jan 21 – Feb 19)

You’re having trouble understanding your point of view when you live with them. This could cause some tension if your words make them anxious about the part they play in your life. You’re more likely to get a more favorable response by outlining how they fit into your plans.

Pisces (Feb 20 – Mar 20)

When discussing religion, politics, or history, a friend or coworker will pique your interest. Conversations about various theories will be enjoyable, even though you might not agree with everything. Your thinking has a depth that goes beyond what you initially appear to be.

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Steve McMichael, an NFL legend who won the Super Bowl with the Chicago Bears, passed away at the age of 67.

The sporting legend’s NFL and professional wrestling careers spanned decades, when his larger-than-life persona attracted newcomers to American football. In his 13 years with the side, the defensive tackle won the 1985 Super Bowl with the Chicago Bears.

Following a journey with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a type of motor neurone disease, which was identified in April 2021, McMichael, who was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2024, passed away on Wednesday at a Chicago hospice.

McMichael will become a legend in the Windy City itself as well as a hero of the Chicago Bears. He will be known as “Ming The Merciless” and “Mongo” after the character in Blazing Saddles who knocked out a horse. He and fellow 1985 Chicago Bears alum Dan Hampton and Otis Wilson both retired from the game after performing in the city’s “Chicago 6.”

The NFL and wrestling scenes were rocked by the athlete’s ALS diagnosis. McMichael had been working in both until 1999 before switching to the latter. He told the local media, “I promise you, this epitaph that I’m going to have on me now,” in a speech from 2021. This is never going to end the way I had hoped it would.

And friends and former teammates’ photos of McMichael’s depressive decline have been posted on social media for four years. The star, who was once a 270-pound giant who used to slam punch punch through linebackers and force wrestlers to jump headfirst into the mat, developed rail-thin, bedridden, and hooked up to machines.

The sports professional’s death was confirmed by McMichael’s publicist a few weeks after Grey’s Anatomy and Euphoria star Eric Dane, of San Francisco, California, admitted to having ALS.

And Ric Flair, who McMichael used to fight in the wrestling ring, was one of the first to condolence him today. He wrote online that “the world has lost the incredible Steve “Mongo” McMichael” Through it all, he was my best friend. “A fantastic athlete and person”

Loss of muscle control is a result of ALS, a type of motor neurone diseas that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. Dad-of-one McMichael suspected that his tingling in his arms was a result of his playing days or his wrestling career. He assumed it was a result of a neck or spine condition.

However, the NFL star, who was born in Houston, Texas, deteriorated and his wife Misty said he was afraid to pass away. The athlete’s wife, Moise, said: “He’s scared to die, and he shouldn’t because he’s the most badass man I’ve ever known inside and out.” He is a decent man. I don’t know what he’s afraid of because he’ll be in heaven before any of us. However, I’ve told him to “hang on” until the (induction), and then, you see, I don’t want to see him go through any pain. He has been experiencing pain.

McMichael spent 13 years with the Chicago Bears before joining the NFL. He battled ALS with the same tenacity he had for years on the field, leading to his rise as one of the mostfeared players inarguably the game’s greatest defense ever.

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Freddie Flintoff was involved in a horrific car crash while filming an episode of Top Gear in 2022, which left the former cricketer with life-changing facial injuries

Freddie Flintoff’s wife Rachel heartbreakingly revealed she warned kids about his shocking appearance before they saw him – after she fought back tears in the hospital. Worried Rachel rushed to hospital after she heard about Freddie’s Top Gear crash at Dunsfold test track in 2022.

Looking back she recalled: “I got a phone call. Andy’s been in an accident, in Top Gear, but we don’t have much information. I think they might take him to the nearest hospital, but it sounds like it’s just his teeth or something. I think everything’s fine. I put the phone down, and I didn’t think much of it to begin with. It just kind of escalated very quick.”

READ MORE: Freddie Flintoff makes rare public appearance at premiere of his intimate documentary

Rachel continued: “I wasn’t getting any information. I didn’t know how he was injured, and I just started just grabbing all my stuff, and just thought ‘I’m just gonna head to London, and then hopefully someone will tell me where he is’.”

In the documentary, viewers hear from someone who treated him on the day and says Freddie had “a mixture of hard tissue and soft tissue injuries, broken teeth, lost teeth and elements of the upper jaw bone that were also fractured and displaced”. He then had an initial five hours of surgery trying to begin to put his face back together.

Sounding tearful, Rachel added: “When I did see him, I walked in the room, and he was just in the bed, and he was bandaged up. Like his eyes, I’ve never seen someone so scared in their eyes. And he just stared at me, and I just think he was looking at me to know how bad he was.

“So to be fair, I totally pulled myself together, and I just didn’t cry. I didn’t, I just said, ‘it’s fine. You’re gonna be okay. I can’t believe how amazing you look’.

“Before we got home, I did, I did call the kids, and I did say to them, ‘you’ve just got to be as strong as you’ve ever been. Your dad does look different at the moment. It’s gonna get better, but I don’t want you to look shocked and horrified, because that’s gonna knock him’.

“And that was hard, but Andy doesn’t know I’ve ever done that. I was so grateful to all those people, I still had a husband, the kids still had their dad.”

Speaking on the Disney+ documentary, Rachel also recalls how she first met Freddie before he was a cricketing superstar. They met in 2002, married in 2005 and have four children.

Rachel said: “He introduced himself as Andrew, and I’ve always called him Andrew. We started talking, and then we didn’t stop talking. He was funny. I know he made me laugh, and I think the more I was talking to him, the more I was like, ‘Oh, you’re really lovely’.

“I didn’t actually know who Andy was at the time, not in a bad way. But I can’t put my finger on it, there was just something about him that was different.

“He takes it really negatively, but what I say to him, ‘he had potential, and he’s like, ‘Oh, I had potential, she tried to change me’, but I never meant that at all. It was just something in him that I knew he was just, there was so much more gonna happen.”

She also talks about his boozing when he was a player and also talks about him hitting some lows both during his career and after the car crash.

But looking ahead and being more positive, she says that since he has got back into cricket via coaching teams, she has seen a real change in him and his outlook on life.

Towards the end of the film, Rachel said: “It’s like back where he belongs, for a girl who knew nothing about cricket, or very little about cricket, it’s definitely become a big part of my life, and when Andrew needed it most, cricket was there for him.

“I mean, it sounds a bit weird saying a bit over the top to say, but I do think cricket saved him. It gave him a reason for being again.”

• Flintoff Premieres on Disney+ on Friday(April 25).

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Cricketing legend Freddie Flintoff suffered horrific injuries when he crashed a Morgan Super 3 car while filming the BBC’s Top Gear in December 2022

Andrew ‘Freddie’ Flintoff thought he was dead after his Top Gear car crash – and even now sometimes thinks it “would be easier” if he didn’t survive. In a raw and honest new documentary the England cricket legend details exactly what happened in the December 2022 accident and also suggested TV bosses had treated him “like a piece of meat” in the run up to the crash.

Freddie, 47, sustained serious facial injuries which have left permanent scars – and he admits he relives the accident every night when he tries to sleep, after choosing to watch back video footage of it in the aftermath.

The cricketing legend was filming the BBC ’s Top Gear in 2022 and was in a Morgan Super 3 car with no roof which flipped. He opted in a split second to land face first as he thought otherwise he would break his neck or be killed.

But afterwards he though “my face has come off” and his wife Rachel even braced their children for the shock before they saw him for the first time after the car crash. His youngest Preston “wouldn’t come near” him and Freddie says it broke his heart that his son was “frightened of his face”.

Looking back at the crash at Dunsfold Park in Surrey, Freddie says: “I remember everything about it. In some ways, it’d be easier if I’d gone unconscious and then been unconscious for a week or two and then you wake up and your stitches are out and everything. But I remember everything.

“I think about it now, back in the car, it were a three wheeler, a reinforcement windscreen and a bar covering half me back. So I’m exposed. We’re probably doing about 40 or 45, they were showing me how to get the car going sideways, and the wheel came up at the front.

“It’s a funny thing rolling a car because there’s a point of no return, and everything slows down. It’s so weird. I used to play cricket. Used to bat. You get point four of a second to make your mind up where the ball was going. What shot you gonna play? Are you gonna move your feet?

“And as it[car] started going over, I looked at the ground. I knew if I get hit here on the side[of his head] I break my neck, on the temple I’m dead. My best chance is face down. I remember hitting and my head got hit and I got dragged out, and the car went over, and I went over the back of the car, and then pulled face down on the runway for about 50 metres underneath the car and then it hit the grass and flipped back in.

“I thought I was dead because I was conscious. I couldn’t see anything. I was thinking is that? Is that it for the rest of my days. My hat came over my eyes, so I pulled it off and thought, no I am not, this is not heaven. And then I looked down and blood was coming down. And my biggest fear was I didn’t think I had a face. I thought my face had come off. I was frightened to death.”

Freddie says the accident has left huge mental wounds as well as physical. He tells the Disney+ documentary: “I still live it every day, see the car every night when I go to bed, and it’s so vivid. Not slept the same since.

“It’s a movie in my head and I have watched it as well. In car footage. I’ve seen it. I demanded it. I wanted validation for myself. This is why I am feeling that, this is why I am so bad.”

Freddie adds that he used to use visualisation in cricket to “practice inside his head” so much so that he could feel it. He adds: “Problem is, when you relate it to this[crash], even the memories of it are real to the point where now I’m talking about it and I’m getting a bit jittery, and I can, I can feel the pain in this side of my face. I can feel the pains. It is like a bit of a curse really.”

Freddie does not directly attack Top Gear by name in the film, but he hits out at TV bosses. He says: “I think that is the danger that TV falls into. And I found out the hard way eventually.

“It’s always more. Everybody wants more. Everybody wants that thing that nobody’s seen before. Everybody wants that bigger stunt. Everybody wants to dig that little bit deeper.

“Everybody wants an exclusive. Everybody wants, oh, let’s have that near miss, because then that’ll get viewers. Everything’s about viewers, always, always.

“And I should have been clever on this, because I learned this in sport as well, with all the injuries and all the injections and all the times I got sent out on a cricket field and just treated like a piece of meat. That’s TV and sport. I think that’s where it’s quite similar. You’re just a commodity. You’re just a piece of meat.”

At his lowest on screen Flintoff seems to still be struggling with the aftermath of the accident. As he previously revealed in BBC programmed Field of Dreams, he barely left the house for the first seven months, except to attend hospitals and for dental work.

Speaking now several years on from what happened, he says: “After the accident, I didn’t think I had it in me to get through. This sounds awful. Part of me thinks I should have been killed. Part of me thinks I wish I had died. I didn’t want to kill myself, I won’t mistake the two things, but I just, I was not wishing I was thinking this would have been so much easier.

“Now, I try to take the attitude, you know, the sun will come up with tomorrow, and then my kids will still give me a hug, and I’m probably in a better place now.”

The film does also highlight Freddie’s incredible cricket achievements including the 2005 Ashes victory with England. And he seems more positive about the future after taking up cricket coaching and getting a new set of teeth fitted. He is now the head coach of England Lions, the second string of the national men’s team.

“I’ve got these teeth. This is it, this is what I am left with,” he says with a grin as he plays golf with friends. His wife Rachel says cricket and his love of the game have helped to “save” him.

The one area of his life he has not fully returned to is TV and he admits he is yet to fully reunite with the Top Gear team of Chris Harris and Paddy McGuinness.

He says: “So Chris, we saw each other. He got upset. I got a bit upset. It was really nice to see him. I feel bad I haven’t been in more contact with him and Paddy. Part of it is for myself a little bit. I hate the word triggering, but I’m worried about that.

“It’s also something stopped, I suppose, in some ways, because of what happened to me. Like their careers have been altered as well. So I feel not guilty, but I feel bad for him. And also, what happened gets dragged up. I have enough in me head without adding to that.”

Chris Harris claimed in September 2024 he expressed safety concerns to Top Gear bosses before Freddie’s crash. In response BBC Studios, which makes Top Gear, referred to an independent investigation in 2023 which found the show had complied with industry best practice, but that there were “learnings which would need to be rigorously applied” if Top Gear returned.

The show is currently being rested after Freddie’s accident and bosses reached a financial settlement with him worth millions.

*Flintoff Premieres on Disney+ on Friday (April 25).