Photo: Instagram/Freddie Flintoff
Time is running out for Top Gear, arguably one of the most popular and enduring auto series on television if we're to believe a recent report. That same report claims the BBC is the only one to blame for it after cutting costs in favor of safety.
Series 34 of Top Gear is on an indefinite hiatus, shutting down production halfway after a crash involving one of the three hosts, Freddie Flintoff. The single-vehicle accident took place in December last year, during a test drive in a three-wheeler, at the Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey, and its circumstances and aftermath remain shrouded in secrecy. This, despite the fact that so much time has passed since, and the BBC has completed an internal investigation into its causes.
As speculation is running rampant on the future of Top Gear and Flintoff's involvement in it, reports are also saying that the secrecy is coming from the BBC with good reason. They have no interest in having people know what happened because they were in the wrong, sacrificing safety by cutting costs. Specifically, they ditched safety measures for test drives and stunts, and it showed when Flintoff crashed in that three-wheeler.
On the day of the crash, he was at the wheel of a Morgan Super 3 with a staffer in the passenger seat. He crashed when he lost control, rolled over, and skidded across the tarmac. Since the Morgan doesn't have a roof or an airbag and Flintoff wasn't wearing a helmet, he suffered extensive injuries to his face and jaw, in addition to broken ribs and contusions.
Had the BBC not cut down costs in case of an accident, he could have been laid out on a stretcher right away. According to tabloid The Sun, speaking to sources on set, he had to wait on the ground for 45 minutes for the air ambulance to arrive because there wasn't a stretcher he could use.
The tab claims the producers at the network failed Flintoff in their duty to protect him in case of a crash and then to offer him proper assistance when the worst-case scenario did happen. More shocking still, this occurred on a set where accidents had a higher probability rate – not just because it's an auto series but because of the kind of stunts involved.
"How this could have been allowed to happen on a notoriously high octane show like Top Gear, which is famed for its dangerous stunts, is beyond bewildering," one insider notes. "The BBC has been keen to keep a lid on the extent of Freddie’s injuries for obvious reasons. The accident itself was far worse than anyone really realizes."
If silence is an answer, the complete radio silence coming from Flintoff hints at some truth behind these allegations. Since the December crash, neither he nor his family has addressed the crash in any way. Moreover, the star has only been seen in public once since that day, and then too with the lower part of his face fully covered. Buzz online claims he’s never returning to Top Gear and seriously considering ditching his TV career altogether or even suing producers.
As speculation is running rampant on the future of Top Gear and Flintoff's involvement in it, reports are also saying that the secrecy is coming from the BBC with good reason. They have no interest in having people know what happened because they were in the wrong, sacrificing safety by cutting costs. Specifically, they ditched safety measures for test drives and stunts, and it showed when Flintoff crashed in that three-wheeler.
On the day of the crash, he was at the wheel of a Morgan Super 3 with a staffer in the passenger seat. He crashed when he lost control, rolled over, and skidded across the tarmac. Since the Morgan doesn't have a roof or an airbag and Flintoff wasn't wearing a helmet, he suffered extensive injuries to his face and jaw, in addition to broken ribs and contusions.
Had the BBC not cut down costs in case of an accident, he could have been laid out on a stretcher right away. According to tabloid The Sun, speaking to sources on set, he had to wait on the ground for 45 minutes for the air ambulance to arrive because there wasn't a stretcher he could use.
The tab claims the producers at the network failed Flintoff in their duty to protect him in case of a crash and then to offer him proper assistance when the worst-case scenario did happen. More shocking still, this occurred on a set where accidents had a higher probability rate – not just because it's an auto series but because of the kind of stunts involved.
"How this could have been allowed to happen on a notoriously high octane show like Top Gear, which is famed for its dangerous stunts, is beyond bewildering," one insider notes. "The BBC has been keen to keep a lid on the extent of Freddie’s injuries for obvious reasons. The accident itself was far worse than anyone really realizes."
If silence is an answer, the complete radio silence coming from Flintoff hints at some truth behind these allegations. Since the December crash, neither he nor his family has addressed the crash in any way. Moreover, the star has only been seen in public once since that day, and then too with the lower part of his face fully covered. Buzz online claims he’s never returning to Top Gear and seriously considering ditching his TV career altogether or even suing producers.
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