Top Gear star Freddie Flintoff has opened up about nightmares and flashbacks he has suffered following his crash.
The former cricket star was hospitalised in late 2022 after being involved in a car crash while filming the BBC show, with the broadcaster subsequently cancelling production on the latest season of Top Gear.
Flintoff has now opened up about the lasting effects of the accident, saying in the new season of his BBC show Freddie Flintoff's Field of Dreams that his recovery has been "much harder than I thought".
"I thought I could just shake it off, I wanted to shake it off, and say, 'Here I am, I'm alright,' but it's not been a case of that, it's been much harder than I thought," he said (via Metro).
"As much as I wanted to go out and do things, I've just not been able to."
Flintoff added: "I don't want to sit here and feel sorry for myself, and I don't want sympathy, but it's going from being here for seven months and then going to India, the other side of the world.
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"I struggle with anxiety, I have nightmares, I have flashbacks, it's so hard to cope," he continued. "I've got to get on with it."
In a recovery clip to be aired on the show, Flintoff suggests he "genuinely should not be here with what happened" and is "going to need help", admitting he is "not the best at asking" for support.
He also says he is not sure if he will ever be 100% again, though adds: "I'm better than I was. I don't know what completely better is, I am what I am now.
"I'm different to what I was, it's something I'll have to deal with the rest of my life, so better? No, different."
Last year, Flintoff admitted he had been through the "hardest time" following the crash as he reflected on the support he had received.
The BBC previously said in a statement confirming that Top Gear was being rested for the foreseeable future: "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."
Freddie Flintoff's Field of Dreams On Tour premieres next Tuesday, August 13, airing on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer.
Sam is a freelance reporter and sub-editor who has a particular interest in movies, TV and music. After completing a journalism Masters at City University, London, Sam joined Digital Spy as a reporter, and has also freelanced for publications such as NME and Screen International. Sam, who also has a degree in Film, can wax lyrical about everything from Lord of the Rings to Love Is Blind, and is equally in his element crossing every 't' and dotting every 'i' as a sub-editor.
