Former English cricketer, Andrew "Freddie" Flintoff, had largely stayed out of public view for a prolonged period after a horrific car accident while filming an episode of Top Gear. There was a sense of mystery regarding his well-being ever since. A documentary entitled, Flintoff, was released on Friday, 25 April, on Disney+ to clear up the mystery.
This accident occured In December 2022. Freddie was test driving an open-topped three-wheel Morgan Super 3 at the 'Top Gear' Test Track at the Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey, when the car flipped over and slid along the track. Afterwards, 'Top Gear' was taken off screens as the BBC announced the hit driving show would not be returning, "for the foreseeable future."
In the documentary, he said, "I think that's the danger that TV falls into, and I found out the hard way, eventually," he tells the cameras: "It's always more, isn't it? Like, even you with your [director John Dower] questions, everyone wants more."
He continued: "Everybody wants that thing that nobody's seen before, everyone wants that bigger stunt, and it's not a go at you, John. But everybody wants to dig a little bit deeper, everyone wants an exclusive, everyone wants that bigger stunt."
"Everyone [is like] 'actually, in someways, let's have that near-miss, because then that will get viewers'", he told the cameras in the emotional film: "Everything's about viewers, always, always. And I should have been cleverer on this, because I learnt this in sport as well, with all the injuries and all the injections, and all the times that 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," he finished.
He has since admitted the repercussions could've been so much worse if he hadn't relied on his sporting senses to make one crucial decision. As his open-topped three-wheel Morgan Super 3 sports car flipped through the air, the father-of-four experienced a moment of clarity and approached the collision like a cricket game.
He explained in the documentary, "[In cricket] you get 0.4 seconds to make your mind up where the ball's going, what shot are you going to play, how are you going to move your feet.
"It’s so weird. As it started going over, I looked at the ground and I knew that if I went on the side, I’d break my neck. If I hit my temple, I’m dead. The best chance is [to] go face down." Freddie confessed that part of him 'wishes he had been killed' in the terrifying ordeal as it would have been "easier" to die than to face the gruelling recovery.
He said: "After the accident, I didn’t think I had it in me to get through. This sounds awful: part of me wishes I had been killed. Part of me thinks, 'I wish I had died'. I didn’t want to kill myself – don’t mistake the two things – but I was thinking: 'This would have been so much easier.'"
Revealing the exact details of the high-speed smash, which was shown for the first time during the Disney+ documentary, he recounted: "It was a three-wheeler, [with] a reinforced windscreen, so I’m exposed."
"Probably doing about 40-45 [miles per hour]. The wheel came off at the front. It’s a funny thing rolling a car because it’s a point of no return and everything slows down. I remember hitting [my jaw] but then I got dragged out. The car went over, then I went over the back of the car and then [I] was pulled facedown on the runway about 50 meters underneath the car."
"Then it hit the grass and flipped back. I thought I was dead because I was conscious but I couldn’t see anything. I was thinking, 'Is that it?' Black for the rest of my days. But I had a hat over my eyes. So I pulled my hat up and I thought, 'No I’m not, I’m alive. It’s the Top Gear track. This is not heaven'."
He added: "I looked down and the blood just started 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's wife, Rachael Wools, who has been married to the sportsman since 2005, also spoke about the moment she laid eyes on him after the horrific accident. She said: "When I did see him I walked in the room, he was in the bed… his eyes. I’ve never seen someone so scared in his eyes.
"He was looking at me to know how bad he was so I totally pulled myself together and I just didn’t cry. I just said, 'It’s fine, you’re going to be OK. I can’t believe how amazing you look'. Before we got home, I did call the kids and said to them you have to be as strong as you’ve ever been. Your dad does look different at the moment."
"It’s going to get better but I don’t want you to look shocked and horrified because that’s going to knock him. That was hard. Andrew doesn’t know I did that."
Interspersed with this, was a discussion on his cricketing career. It was quite clear that he was a gifted player. He was racking up runs and wickets. He would eventually be signed by county side, Lancashire. He was the U-19 captain.
The pinnacle of his career could be the 2005 Ashes. It was the first time in 19 years that England won the Ashes. Flintoff played a key role in the triumph. A key performance was the Edgbaston Test. England won by 2 runs. There is a famous photo of him consoling Aussie, Brett Lee. This was done all while the English were celebrating the victory.
Flintoff could do many things but it was apparent that captaincy was a bridge too far. He was appointed to lead the side in the Ashes 2006-07 tour of Australia. Australia whitewashed England 5-0. To add insult to injury, the media were fat shaming him and bringing up his drinking habits.
His last stand would be the home Ashes series in 2009. He was fighting off an injury to play in the series. He was eventually cleared fit. He once again played a starring role in the series as England regained the Ashes. He was soon scheduled for knee surgery and retired from the game.
After the accident, he chose to recluse himself from everyone. The only times he would leave his home would be for doctor appointments. He would shield himself from possible media getting a snapshot of him.
A turning point was when former cricketer, Rob Key, invited Flintoff to attend a Test match. No one would know he was there. That was successful and soon attended another match, again he remained unseen.
He would soon be part of the Northern Super Chargers team (The Hundred franchise - England's T20 league). He would soon be invited to be part of the England coaching set up in the Carribean. A little later, he would return to tv media by hosting the show, Bullseye.
By the end of the documentary, he seemed to be in good spirits and out of his recluse behaviour - a happy ending of sorts.
This documentary can be inspirational. It showcases how one can overcome a potential life threatning accident and return to normality. It certainly helps when you return to an environment that once brought you joy and happiness.
A story of redemption is always nice to read/watch. It shows that someone can come over various obstacles to succeed. It proves that anyone can do it if they put in the effort required. One shouldn't allow a singular event conquer your life. It's best to process it and move on as quickly as possible.
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