BBC axes Top Gear following Freddie Flintoff crash

The BBC has axed its world-famous Top Gear car show following last year's crash involving presenter Andrew 'Freddie' Flintoff.

The former England cricketer suffered "life-altering signficant injuries" after a three-wheeler car he was driving rolled at high speed.

A BBC statement today said the hugely popular show would not return "for the forseeable future".

"We know resting the show will be disappointing news for fans, but it is the right thing to do," the statement continued.

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

"[The BBC] remains committed to [presenters] Freddie, Chris [Harris] and Paddy [McGuinness] 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."

Top Gear has been running for 46 years, having debuted in the UK in 1977, though its popularity went global after Jeremy Clarkson revived and revised the show format. Co-presenters James May and Richard Hammond joined Clarkson as household names.

Hammond was left in a coma after suffering serious head injuries after he crashed a jet-powered dragster at more than 500km/h in 2006.

The trio left the show in 2015 after Clarkson was dropped by the BBC following a "fracas" with a member of the show's production team. They went on to create the rival The Grand Tour on Amazon Prime.

Flintoff, Harris and McGuiness became the new established trio of presenters in 2019 after previous post-Clarkson series disappointed with polarising stars such as Chris Evans and Matt LeBlanc.

Flintoff was filming for the 34th series of Top Gear in December when the accident occurred.

He was reportedly paid £9m ($17m) in compensation by the BBC.

It was recently announced that a localised version of Top Gear would return for Australia in 2024, featuring three new hosts: Mighty Car Mods co-host Blair "Moog" Joscelyne, former rugby league player Beau Ryan, and actor Jonathan LaPaglia.

The show will air on online streaming platform Paramount+.