Freddie Flintoff has spoken for the first time publicly since his horror crash while filming for Top Gear late last year.
The former Lancashire and England cricketer, turned popular TV personality and presenter – whose real name is Andrew, but is more commonly-known by the nickname of ‘Freddie’ – has been filmed giving an inspirational speech as part of his new coaching role.
The Preston-born sportsman opened up about “the hardest time” in his life as he presented an England cap to spin bowler Tom Hartley.
The 45-year-old was seen for the first time in the public eye as he sat on the home balcony at England’s opening One Day International match against New Zealand in Cardiff earlier last month, and could be seen displaying the ‘serious injuries’ – most notably to his face – which he sustained during the Top Gear crash last December.
Many will remember that Flintoff was filming at Top Gear’s test track at Dunsfold Park Aerodrome in Surrey back in mid December 2022 when he was involved in an accident and was subsequently airlifted to hospital for treatment.
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Although the BBC said at the time that his injuries were not life-threatening, sources close to the former England captain revealed he’d been left “psychologically traumatised” following the incident, and said it was likely he would “never return” to Top Gear filming.
But up until this week, the 45-year-old hasn’t spoken about his experiences in any capacity publicly.
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A clip from Flintoff’s kind-hearted words to Hartley as he presented the England cap was released by England Cricket on social media yesterday (4 October).
Freddie Flintoff presenting an Englad cap to Tom Hartley / Credit: England Cricket (via Tom Hartley)
Flintoff told Hartley this was a day a player “remembers for the rest of [their] life”.
Sharing more words of wisdom, Flintoff’s emotional speech continued: “Your journey hasn’t been like a lot of people’s… [but] when you get this cap, this changes your life.
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“It’s one of those things – it’s before and after it.
“This enables you to walk tall and move faster. Play with passion, play with pride, play with belief, and also be part of a family of people. They’ll share the good times with you, the successes, but as I found over the past few months, they’ll be there in the hardest times of your life. They will stand next to you.
“So like the lion on the cap Tom, be brave, be fearless, be proud and enjoy every minute.”
Get Baked is giving out FREE slices of its viral multi-layer chocolate cake in Manchester next week
Thomas Melia
The viral bakery known for its impressive multi-layer chocolate cake is offering slices of its huge sweet treat for free when it opens in Manchester next week.
If you’re fed up of your friends in Leeds banging on about how good Get Baked is, then don’t worry because, the headline-grabbing independent bakery is landing in Manchester next week, and if that news wasn’t sweet enough to tempt you to the new opening as it is, they’re also offering out free slices of their ‘Bertha’ cake to the first 1,000 people in the queue.
Get Baked’s first ever Manchester location will be in the Northern Quarter in the heart of Stevenson Square meaning you can pair your Aperol spritz with a serving of chocolate cake this summer… can life get any better?
The massive chocolate cake is inspired by the dessert featured in Roald Dahl’s book ‘Matilda’, later turned into a film adaptation in 2002, and its name ‘Bertha’ is a spin off the original ‘Bruce’ cake.
Rich Myers, who is the founder and creator of Get Baked, recently put out a statement on Instagram to explain why the company recently took the decision to increase a slice of ‘Bertha’ cake from £17 to £20, saying they’ve received nothing but love from people understanding the rising costs of owning a business.
Get Baked’s Manchester is soft-launching on Friday 14 March, but it’s the following day (Saturday 15 March) when the 1,000 slices of ‘Bertha’ will be up for grabs.
“Expect it to be a bit all over the place, because the first day of a new site is never easy. But that’s okay, because on the second day, we’re giving away 1,000 free slices of Bertha,” Get Baked announced on Instagram.
So if you fancy your luck at securing a slice of free cake, head down to Get Baked at 1 Stevenson Square in the Northern Quarter, from 12pm on Saturday… but let’s be honest, you’ll probably need to get there much sooner.
Featured Image – The Manc Group
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Real hawks hired to scare off pigeons ‘causing problems’ at northern train stations
Emily Sergeant
Northern has hired real hawks to help scare off pigeons who are ‘causing problems’ at train stations across the region.
You may remember that at the back end of 2023, the rail operator declared that it wanted to ‘force pigeons to take flight’ by trialing a whole host of new deterrents at stations across its network, and did so by positioning plastic owls around some platforms to scare them off, along with a host of other special measures.
As well as the fake owl statues, Northern also started using a special gel on ledges and roof trusses that’s designed to trick pigeons into thinking the surface is too hot for them to land on, and to really hammer it home, noises that simulate predatory hawks were broadcast out of massive speakers too.
But now, they’re ready to take things up a notch.
Introducing Maverick and Zulu, our skilled Northern hawks addressing pigeon concerns at stations. ⁰⁰For years, birds have posed challenges for both customers and staff, as well as stations due to their corrosive droppings. ⁰⁰After various attempts to resolve the issue, we're… pic.twitter.com/kC856Cnxg3
Because Northern claimed the ‘pests’ continued to keep ‘flocking to stations and nesting’, two real hawks called Maverick and Zulu have now been deployed at a couple of stations in Yorkshire as part of a 12-week trial.
If they prove to be effective, the rail operator says the real hawks could be introduced at other Northern stations which have been ‘plagued’ by pigeons in recent years.
Northern is keen to assure customers that the hawks are ‘not being used for hunting’.
Real hawks have been hired to scare off pigeons ‘causing problems’ at northern train stations / Credit: Libreshot
“We have tried plastic owls and recorded hawk noises, but they weren’t an effective deterrent,” explained Alex Hornby, who is Northern’s commercial and customer director. “So now we’ve brought in real birds of prey to help us with our pigeon problem.
“The pigeons are a real nuisance for our customers and cause headaches for the station staff who have to clear up after them.
Emily Sergeant -
5th October 2023 
