TOP GEAR STUNT DRIVER PAUL REES SUES BBC OVER FLINTOFF CRASH

Paul Rees, the driver known as The Stig on Top Gear, is pursuing legal action against the BBC for damages following a vehicle crash involving presenter Freddie Flintoff at Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey in 2022. The BBC has stated it strenuously denies negligence. Rees told an interviewer that he "genuinely felt like we were going to potentially die, because we had no protection". He alleged that he had raised concerns about the risks of the manoeuvre before it was attempted, and that he waited two hours before being taken to hospital, where he was later found to have broken his back.

The BBC's position is that the manoeuvre "was not unacceptably dangerous" and "simply needed to be carried out with proper instruction". Rees is a former Formula 2 and Porsche Supercup driver. Flintoff sustained severe injuries in the crash and reached a reported settlement of £9 million with the BBC.

In a Disney+ documentary titled Flintoff, the presenter described his psychological response to the accident, stating: "After the accident, I didn't think I had it in me to get through. This sounds awful: part of me wishes I had been killed. Part of me thinks, 'I wish I had died.'" The legal claim represents a separate dispute from Flintoff's own settlement and raises questions about safety protocols during the filming of television stunts.