- Paul Rees, ‘The Stig’ from Top Gear, is suing the BBC for damages, with the broadcaster strenuously denying negligence.
- Rees was in the vehicle with presenter Freddie Flintoff when it flipped in 2022 at Surrey's Dunsfold Aerodrome, claiming in an interview with The Sun that he “genuinely felt like we were going to potentially die, because we had no protection”.
- He alleges that he had “highlighted the risks [of the manoeuvre] from the very start” and that he waited two hours before being rushed to hospital, only later discovering that he had broken his back.
- The BBC strenuously denies negligence, saying the “manoeuvre was not unacceptably dangerous” and “simply needed to be carried out with proper instruction”.
- Flintoff, who suffered severe injuries and reached a reported £9m settlement, said in the Disney+ documentary Flintoff: “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.’”
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