Top Gear: decision on BBC show following Freddie Flintoff crash has been officially made

In December 2022, the Preston born cricketer turned presenter suffered broken ribs and facial injuries when his car veered off the road at Dunsfold Park Aerodrome in Surrey whilst filming Top Gear.

Following the crash, series 34 of the show was halted and the 45-year-old officially stepped down from his Top Gear presenting role in March – the same month that the BBC announced it was launching a health and safety investigation.

Since March, there have been no official updates as to the show’s future, although insider sources had said a decision would be 'after a health and safety review into the show is concluded'.

Now, in a statement issued today, the BBC wrote: "Given the exceptional circumstances, the BBC has decided to rest the UK show for the foreseeable future. The BBC remains committed to Freddie, Chris and Paddy who have been at the heart of the show's renaissance since 2019, and we're excited about new projects being developed with each of them. We will have more to say in the near future on this. We know resting the show will be disappointing news for fans, but it is the right thing to do."

"All other Top Gear activity remains unaffected by this hiatus including international formats, digital, magazines and licensing."

Father of four Freddie had been noticeably absent from the spotlight since his horror crash, not being pictured in public again until a cricket match between England and New Zealand in September 2023.

Since then, Freddie has helped the England team in an unpaid mentorship capacity and last week, he was announced as the new coach of the Leeds based cricket team Northern Superchargers in next summer’s Hundred.

Although Freddie may not be appearing back on our TV with Top Gear, in September it was reported that he will be on our screens again for the second series of another of his popular TV shows-BBC’s Field of Dreams.

A source told The Mirror that Freddie “is gearing up to get back to work” on the programme, with filming starting this winter.