Flintoff still has facial injuries nine months after Top Gear crash

By Laura Elston, PA

TV presenter and former cricketer Andrew “Freddie” Flintoff displayed injuries to his face as he appeared in public for the first time since his Top Gear crash nine months ago.

The former England captain, 45, has kept a low profile since he was taken to hospital after being hurt while filming for the motoring show at its test track at Dunsfold Aerodrome last December.

On Friday, he was pictured in an England coaching kit on the home balcony at the opening one-day international against New Zealand in Cardiff, but sported large cuts or scars on his face and surgical tape on his nose.

It is believed to be the first time Flintoff has been photographed in public since the accident.

His son Corey said at the time he was “lucky to be alive” and described it as a “pretty nasty crash”.

Filming of series 34 of Top Gear was halted and it has been reported the daredevil presenter intends to quit the hit programme.

Flintoff was seriously emotionally and physically affected by the incident, a source told The Times when it first reported the accident.

The BBC said in March that it would be inappropriate to resume making the series at that time following an internal investigation into what happened.

Former sports star Flintoff began presenting Top Gear in 2019, and also appeared on Sky’s A League Of Their Own and won the first series of the Australian version of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!.

He is known for his time as an England all-rounder, most notably during the Ashes victory in 2005.

His other shows with the BBC include Andrew Flintoff’s Field Of Dreams, where he embarked on a mission to find cricketing talent in his home town of Preston.

Flintoff is a close friend of England managing director Rob Key and is set to be with the squad for the remainder of the series. The PA news agency understands the role is unpaid.