Top Gear host feared show ‘wouldn’t end well’ when Freddie Flintoff was made presenter before horror crash – and said putting TV and sports stars in the driving seat ‘could be a problem’

A former Top Gear presenter has said he feared the show “wouldn’t end well” when TV bosses added TV and sports stars – Andrew ‘Freddie’ Flintoff and Paddy McGuinness – to the roster.

Rory Reid, 44, admitted he was scared of putting celebrities behind the wheel of Top Gear because they lack the driving experience and knowledge.

This comes after former England cricketer and former presenter Flintoff was seriously injured in an accident during filming of the show at Dunsfold Aerodrome in December 2022, when he overturned with a three-wheeled car.

The cricket legend admitted the aftermath of the crash could haunt him “for the rest of his life” and said he feels “he shouldn’t be here in the first place”. The incident prompted the BBC to suspend the show for the “foreseeable future”.

It is reported that the new Top Gear presenters received training from professional racing drivers from the start of the show and direct support from professional racing drivers was available throughout the series.

In an interview with Times Radio, former Top Gear presenter Reid was asked if he thought putting TV and sports celebrities at the helm could be a problem. He replied: ‘Absolutely, immediately.’

He admitted he thought there would be problems because people like McGuinness and Flintoff did not have the experience to ‘do some of the things the BBC asked of them’. [him] to do.’

He continued: ‘The first thing I thought was that these men, who I have been fortunate enough to see on their entertainment and sports journey, are fantastic at what they do.

“I don’t think they have enough driving experience to be able to do some of the things the BBC have asked me to do.”

He added that it was not for him to ‘say’ whether the BBC had given them extra tuition and time to put the new presenters in certain situations where it was ‘comfortable and safe’, as he was not there.

He continued: ‘But if you were to ask me, based on my experience, would it turn out well if you put someone without that much driving experience in those situations?

“I didn’t think it would end well. That was my first thought when I heard who was going to be on the show.”

He explained the dangers associated with the “sometimes inherently dangerous” show, saying: “This isn’t people just jumping in a car and driving down the road at 30 miles an hour. This is driving them in a way that’s exciting and fun.

‘And that’s quite difficult if you have no experience driving cars at speed and no understanding of driving dynamics and the things that can go right and wrong quickly.’

‘So, you know, and when you combine that with the fact that I think the BBC and Top Gear in particular want to make the show look fun and exciting, then there is a tendency or potential for things to go wrong very quickly.’

Top Gear presenter Chris Harris claimed he warned BBC bosses before Freddie Flintoff’s car crash.

The 49-year-old presenter, who was on set at the time of the accident which occurred during the filming of Top Gear, also said he believed Flintoff had died.

The 46-year-old former England cricketer suffered serious facial and rib injuries in the accident at Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey in December 2022.

Racing driver Harris told The Joe Rogan Experience podcast: ‘What’s never been talked about is that three months before the accident I went to the BBC and said that if something didn’t change, someone was going to die on this show.

‘So I went to them, to the BBC, and told them my concerns. I was the most experienced driver in the series, I think.

‘I said that if we continue like this, we would at least be seriously injured and at worst one person would be killed.

‘And I think what happened with Top Gear was that too often I saw my two co-hosts who didn’t have the same experience with cars that I did. That’s the crucial thing.’

Harris said he was “qualified to make those decisions because I’ve been doing it for a long time,” adding: “They weren’t. One of them is an actor-comedian. The other is a professional cricketer.

“Great entertainers. They were great hosts. But their role was to make people laugh. And my role was to tell people what cars were like.”

In the interview with Times Radio, in which he discussed Top Gear, Reid also revealed that he had asked the BBC for additional training during his time on the programme.

He said he believed the BBC did not know enough about his driving ability, adding: ‘They [were] “They’re pushing me to a point where I feel like I need to be better equipped to handle some of the things they’re asking me to do.”

“So I was actually the one who asked them to give me extra training. I think in my second series I said, listen, can you give me some extra lessons on the specific stunts that you asked us to do on this show.”

After this, Reid was given additional hours to work with a stuntman to perform some of the maneuvers they had to do in the series.

The BBC reportedly made the presenters take a driving test before they took part in the TV show, during which they received extra training.

All three of Top Gear’s most recent presenters have been awarded commercial truck and international racing licenses during their time on the show.

A BBC spokesperson said: ‘The independent review into the health and safety of Top Gear, which looked at previous seasons, found that BBC Studios had adhered to required BBC policies and industry best practice in making the series, but that important lessons had been learned that should be rigorously applied to future UK Top Gear productions.

‘The report made a number of recommendations to improve the approach to safety, as Top Gear is a complex programme production environment that routinely has to deal with tight filming schedules and ambitious editorial expectations, challenges that long-running series with a permanent team on and off screen often face.

‘Lessons learned include a detailed action plan with changes to the way we work, such as greater clarity around roles and responsibilities and better communication between teams for future Top Gear productions.’