Outraged Freddie Flintoff has accused TV executives of treating him "like a piece of meat" following his harrowing Top Gear accident. The ex-cricket star, aged 47, has declared in his new Disney+ documentary that he plans to scale back on television work. In December 2022, Flintoff's life took a dramatic turn when he crashed a roofless three-wheeled car, sustaining severe facial injuries.

Reflecting on the relentless push for more sensational television, Flintoff remarked: "I think that is the danger that TV falls into. And I found out the hard way eventually. It's always more. Everybody wants more. Everybody wants that thing that nobody's seen before. Everybody wants that bigger stunt. Everybody wants to dig that little bit deeper.

"Everybody wants an exclusive. Everybody wants, 'Oh, let's have that near miss, because then that'll get viewers.' Everything's about viewers, always, always. And I should have been clever on this, because I learned this in sport as well, with all the injuries and all the injections and all the times I got sent out on a cricket field and just treated like a piece of meat."

He finished: "That's TV and sport. I think that's where it's quite similar. You're just a commodity. You're just a piece of meat."

During filming for BBC's Top Gear in 2022, Flintoff was involved in a serious incident while driving a Morgan Super 3 car without a roof, which ended up flipping over. In a split-second decision, he chose to land face-first to avoid breaking his neck or facing potential death.

Following the incident, Flintoff became a recluse, rarely venturing out of his house. However, in his new Disney+ documentary, it appears that most aspects of his life are back on track.

Nevertheless, despite their close friendship on the show, Flintoff has yet to reunite with one of his former Top Gear co-stars. Flintoff worked alongside Chris Harris and Paddy McGuinness on the BBC series.

In the documentary, Flintoff shares: "So Chris, we saw each other. He got upset. I got a bit upset. It was really nice to see him. I feel bad I haven't been in more contact with him and Paddy."

He continues, "Part of it is for myself a little bit. I hate the word triggering, but I'm worried about that.

"It's also something stopped, I suppose, in some ways, because of what happened to me. Like their careers have been altered as well. So I feel not guilty, but I feel bad for him. And also, what happened gets dragged up. I have enough in me head without adding to that."

In September 2024, Chris Harris revealed that he had expressed safety concerns to Top Gear bosses prior to Freddie's accident.

In response, BBC Studios, the production company behind Top Gear, cited an independent investigation conducted in 2023. The investigation found that the show had adhered to industry best practices, but also identified areas for improvement that would need to be implemented if the show were to return.

Top Gear is currently on hiatus following Freddie's accident, and the BBC has reached a multi-million-pound settlement with him.

Express Online have contacted the BBC for comment.