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Cricket hero Flintoff joins cartoon crew in TV advert
HE'S known as Freddie, his name sounds like Flintstone... and now Andrew Flintoff is poised to say Yabba Dabba Doo to BEING Fred Flintstone.
The 27-year-old England cricket superstar is on the verge of signing a £200,000 deal to play the roly-poly pre-historic cartoon favourite in a series of TV adverts.
In the run-up to Thursday's crucial Fourth Test against Australia at Trent Bridge, his advisers will hold talks with movie giants Warner Bros, who own the rights to Fred, Wilma, Barney, Betty and the other Bedrock characters.
They will then look at striking a deal with one of Flintoff's main sponsors - who include Red Bull, Volkswagen and computer game firm EA Sports.
A source said: "It could be a really good move for the firm. There's no bigger sports personality in the country than Freddie."
Flintoff was 15 when first called Freddie by Lancashire Second XI cricket captain John Stanworth.
The name stuck so well he is calling his autobiography Being Freddie - and his fans are often spotted turning up to matches in Flintstone outfits.
But the cartoon-makers may have to take a few liberties with his figure.
In real-life Flintoff has slimmed down a lot. In 2002 he was so well-padded he joked he had played quite well for a "fat lad". Fred would be proud...
SundayPeople
