I THOUGHT.. HE IS DEAD

Driver Chris on Freddie's horrific car crash that led to axe for show | He claims BBC was warned that safety blunders could prove fatal

- TOM BRYANT

TOP Gear star Chris Harris has told how he feared Freddie Flintoff had died after the car crash that led to the show being axed.

And the former presenter claimed he had already warned BBC bosses numerous safety failings on the hit programme could prove fatal, but said they did not take him seriously.

Chris, 49, also told how England cricket legend Freddie had no crash helmet on and was not briefed properly about driving the Morgan three-wheeler he flipped.

And he claimed there were other "dangerous" examples where safety was compromised on the show.

Speaking for the first time about Freddie's accident at Dunsfold Aerodrome, Surrey, in December 2022, experienced driver Chris said: "I was there, I was the only presenter with Fred that day. I remember the radio message.

"I heard someone say there has been a real accident. The car's upside down. So I ran to the window, looked out and he wasn't moving. So I thought he was dead. I assumed he was, then he moved.

"Fred, he's a big guy, six foot five, six foot six, strong. And if he wasn't so strong, he would have just snapped his neck, he'd be dead.

"He wasn't wearing a crash helmet.

And if you do that, even at 25, 30 miles an hour, the injuries that you sustain are profound."

Speaking about his safety warnings to Top Gear chiefs, Chris - who appeared alongside Freddie, 46, and Paddy McGuinness, 51 added: "What was never spoken about was that three months before the accident, I'd gone to the BBC and said, unless you change something, someone's going to die on this show.

"I told them of my concerns from what I'd seen as the most experienced driver on the show.

"I said if we carry on at the very least we'll have a serious injury, at the very worst a fatality.