Freddie Flintoff has opened up about the harrowing aftermath of his life-threatening car crash, confessing that during his darkest times he thought: “I wish I’d died.” The cricket legend endured a severe accident while filming for Top Gear in 2022, which resulted in significant facial injuries. In an emotional revelation in the new Disney+ documentary ‘Flintoff’, premiering on Friday, he gives a candid insight into his ordeal.
The documentary features stills from the crash site and graphic images of his injuries, yet Flintoff’s personal narrative is even more powerful. He reveals: “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.”
The documentary concludes with Flintoff returning to his roots in sport, taking on roles as head coach of England Lions and Northern Superchargers, and making a television comeback on the revamped darts show Bullseye.
Despite suffering regular flashbacks to the crash, he remains hopeful about his future, stating: “I don’t think I’m ever going to be better…just different now. I’m getting there slowly.”
His wife Rachael Flintoff reflected on her husband’s ordeal, saying: “I do think cricket saved him. It gave him a reason for being again.”
The gripping documentary by John Dower features insights from ex-cricketers Michael Vaughan, Steve Harmison and Rob Key, alongside celebrity pals James Corden and Jack Whitehall.
Surgeon Jahrad Haq also features, comparing Flintoff’s severe injuries to one of the top five worst cases he’s seen in two decades, likening the repair work to solving a jigsaw with missing pieces.
In a harrowing account, Flintoff recalls insisting on watching the footage of his accident and describes the sheer terror he experienced during the crash. “I remember my head got hit, I got dragged out. I went over the back of the car and it pulled my face down on the runway, about 50 metres, underneath the car,” Flintoff recounted.
“My biggest fear was, I didn’t think I had a face. I thought my face had come off. I was frightened to death.”
After a financial settlement with Flintoff, believed to be in the region of £9million, the BBC decided to put Top Gear on hold indefinitely in 2023.
Now 47, Flintoff expresses a sense of bitterness towards the demanding nature of the entertainment industry, drawing parallels to the relentless expectations he faced during his injury-laden cricket career.
“Everybody wants more. Everybody want to dig that bit deeper,” Flintoff remarked. “I learned this in sport as well. All the injuries, all the injections, all the times I got sent out on a cricket field and treated like a piece of meat. That’s TV and sport. It’s quite similar, you’re just a commodity. You’re a piece of meat.
“Flintoff” is available to stream exclusively on Disney+ from Friday 25th April.
Content Source: www.express.co.uk