Freddie Flintoff to talk about crash and recovery in Disney+ documentary

By Charlotte McLaughlin, PA Senior Entertainment Reporter

Andrew “Freddie” Flintoff will explore the impact a Top Gear crash had on his life for a new Disney+ documentary.

The former England cricket captain, 46, was left with facial and rib injuries from a collision while filming at the motoring show’s test track at Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey in 2022.

The untitled documentary, will “look back at Flintoff’s incredible life and cricketing career that saw him win two Ashes series with England and become a national sporting hero, while charting his life today and return to cricket following his life-altering car crash in 2022”, Disney+ said.

Directed by John Dower, the 90-minute film about Flintoff will see the Top Gear star through “his recovery” as well as “document his cricketing career”.

It is executively produced by Andrew Mackenzie and Naomi Templeton for South Shore, who worked on the BBC show Freddie Flintoff’s Field of Dreams, and Flintoff.

Flintoff first spoke about the crash publicly in the second series of his cricketing show, saying it was “a lot harder than I thought” to shake off the impact, and disclosing he had struggled with anxiety, nightmares and flashbacks.

He has made a steady return to the public eye since. He rejoined England’s backroom staff for their T20 series against the West Indies earlier this year, and in September the England Lions named him as head coach.

Flintoff was also announced this year as the host of a Christmas special of darts-themed ITV quiz show Bullseye, which was originally fronted by late comedian Jim Bowen from 1981 until 1995.

The BBC “rested” Top Gear for the foreseeable future in 2023, after reaching a financial settlement with Flintoff, with the agreement reportedly worth £9 million.