Andrew 'Freddie' Flintoff hurt in Top Gear accident

He received medical care at the scene before being taken to hospital for further treatment.

The incident happened at Top Gear's test track at Dunsfold Park Aerodrome in Surrey on Tuesday.

His injuries are not thought to be life-threatening and a BBC spokesperson said details would be confirmed "in due course".

It is understood that the accident did not happen at high speed.

On Tuesday, a BBC spokesperson said: "Freddie was injured in an accident at the Top Gear test track this morning - with crew medics attending the scene immediately.

"He has been taken to hospital for further treatment and we will confirm more details in due course."

In a statement on Wednesday, the BBC said: "Our primary concern is and has been for the welfare of Freddie - as well as the Top Gear team. All health and safety procedures were followed on site and the incident is now being fully investigated, in line with standard policy and practice."

The BBC has to report such incidents to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), a non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Department for Work and Pensions

A spokesperson for the HSE said it was "making inquiries".

Comedian Jason Manford, who recently appeared with Flintoff in camping show Two Men in a Tent, told BBC Breakfast he didn't know "the ins and outs" of the accident, but said he was "thankful it's not life-threatening and he can get over the injuries that he has".

Manford said: "Like with any of these things, it is the recovery and the mental health afterwards that people need help with. Friends and family will be around."

He went on to describe Flintoff as a "robust" and "inspiring" character. "From the cricket, from the boxing, just from from life... he's pretty inspiring actually. He's a guy who has got a lot of get up and go and yeah, he'll be good."

It is not the first accident Flintoff has suffered since he first began presenting the show.

The former England cricketer, who is a father of four, crashed into a market stall in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire in February 2019.

In September of the same year, he crashed during a drag race while he was filming at Elvington Airfield in Yorkshire, but walked away unharmed.

Former Top Gear presenter Richard Hammond was involved in a serious crash at Elvington Airfield in 2006, leaving him in a coma.

Flintoff joined Top Gear as a host in 2019 and co-stars in the show with Paddy McGuinness and Chris Harris.

He's better known to many as an international cricketer - he retired from the sport in 2009 having played 79 Tests, 141 one-day internationals and seven T20s for England.

He played a key role in England's Ashes successes of 2005 and 2009.

After initially retiring from all forms of the game in 2010, Flintoff had one professional bout as a boxer.

He's also been on the Australian version of I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! - where he was crowned king of the jungle.

He took to acting - appearing in BBC drama Love, Lies and Records in 2017 - and singing, in Fat Friends The Musical.

Top Gear has been running under different presenters since 2002 and is one of the BBC's most successful and exported programmes.

-bbc