Rowan Atkinson reportedly injured in crash

Fresh from setting the fastest time ever recorded by a celebrity on the BBC's Top Gear, Blackadder and Mr. Bean star Rowan Atkinson reportedly received "minor injuries" in a car accident today. Hollie-Rae Merrick writes:

Emergency services were called to the A605 at Haddon at 7.30pm following reports that a man had been involved in a single car collision – believed to be a McLaren F1. On arrival, paramedics found that the car had left the road.

Rowan Atkinson in hospital following crash [Evening Star]

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Donald Petersen

Emergency services were called to the A605 at Haddon at 7.30pm following reports that a man had been involved in a single car collision – believed to be a McLaren F1. On arrival, paramedics found that the car had left the road. Mr Atkinson has been taken to Peterborough District Hospital, however it is believed the hospital have had a power cut. His injuries are believed to be minor, however this has not been confirmed.

That’s three beliefs in four sentences, with no confirmation. News reports these days might be just a tad too speedy.

Hope he’s okay, and please keep Dr “Minibrain” House far away from him.
nosehat

Was he brushing his teeth, shaving, and changing his clothes while he was driving from the back seat?
- AlexG55
  
  No back seat in an F1- it’s three seats across the car with the driver in the middle.
satn

Noooo! Not an F1!

It’s like crashing the mona lisa!
- Donald Petersen
  
  Nah. Just means he was driving it almost as it was intended to be driven.
- awjt
  
  It’s like crashing Jerry Lewis, Bob Hope and Chris Rock driving the Mona Fucking Lisa!
- http://twitter.com/samthepea Sam Pourasghar
  
  Except that the Mona Lisa is irreplacable.
http://twitter.com/mburchett Mike Burchett

I love the fact the Mr. Bean rolls in an F1. That’s like Dick Van Dyke in a Lotus.

I hope he’s okay, too.
http://twitter.com/liassic Paul Thomas

And to be pedantic he didn’t “set the top speed ever recorded”, he went went around the Top Gear track in the shortest recorded time. There’s a big difference
- http://boingboing.net/ Rob Beschizza
  
  Right you are.
Teirhan

I just watched this episode! Man did his new movie look bad.
pupdog

I need to go pull the news, but this isn’t the first time he’s had an oopsie in his F1 – A few years ago I believe he rear-ended someone in London
knoxblox

There’s a golf course right along there. I hope he didn’t get struck by a wayward ball-dric.

No, really. I hope he’s okay.
- Felton / Moderator
  
  I’m sure the words “I have a cunning plan” were somehow involved.
pupdog

Ok according to this report, it was Lancashire, in ’99

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2011/08/04/rowan-atkinson-cheats-death-in-mclaren-f1-supercar-crash-115875-23321015/
- Dak666
  
  that was the first crash, he’s crashed again…
Spriggan_Prime

But how is his teddy bear?!
dagfooyo

He was distracted from trying to run the three-wheeled car off the road.

Get better soon Rowan! We love you!
brerrabbit23

Sorry, I first read “repeatedly”.

Alright, I’m terrible. I hope he’s fine.
corydodt

Laughs at

… as is the mark of a great racing driver.
Atkinson: oh pish posh.
http://twitter.com/EC_Duncan Emily Duncan

Oh no! Was he riding in the three wheeled car? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FMR70aZoJyw
- Trent Hawkins
  
  to be fair, he doesn’t need to do much to flip a Reliant.
  
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQh56geU0X8
relawson

I read this somewhere and its always stuck with me.

“At the end of the day, your confidence makes you fast. Your fear keeps you on the road”

… or something close to that.

anyway, all this means is Mr. Bean is F’ING FEARLESS!!!
Culturedropout

But… was there an overstuffed chair tied to the roof at the time…?
Oskar

First off all, I hope everyone is ok and all injuries are minor and quickly cleared up.

That said, JESUS CHRIST DUDE CRASHED A MCLAREN F1! NOOOOOOOO!
http://disqus.com/Kimmoth/ Kimmo

That was the sweetest-looking lap of the Top Gear track by a celebrity I’ve ever seen. He was so tidy. Almost anyone else going nearly that fast would have been squealing and sliding all over the place… Atkinson’s precision verges on surgical; he made it look like he wasn’t even trying.

I remember being mortified when he broke his F1 in ’99; assuming he had way more money than driving skill and wishing there was some way to protect glorious artifacts like the F1 from rich loonies, but having seen this… Atkinson owns the benefit of the doubt.

Dude can steer.
- http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1125999602 Nathan Cross
  
  Well said, I could not agree more. After watching many celebs do this lap over the years, I have to say that Rowan’s lap is friggin’ EPIC. It was so tight, smooth and controlled. It truly was beautiful. It really makes me want to get out there on that track and give it a try myself to fully appreciate what the times actually mean. I hope he is ok…
  - Donald Petersen
    
    Certainly the tidiest, least dramatic, most precise lap I’ve seen. The guy knows his stuff. Puts me in mind of another guy you might not have expected to be among the speediest, Brian Johnson, singer of AC/DC, who turned in the second fastest lap in the old Chevrolet Lacetti of 1:45.9.
    
    Like Atkinson, Johnson turns out to be a lifelong car nut, and he’s been doing a fair amount of racing over the last decade or so. It’s a treat to watch the calm these guys bring to the experience, Atkinson with his muttered self-criticism and Johnson singing old Louis Jordan and Dooley Wilson numbers, while they zip around the track.
    
    And it’s weird that Johnson’s lap looked faster, simply because there was a bit more body-roll in the Chevy, and a bit more violence in the driving. (He catches a bit of air after Gambon.) But Atkinson’s looked like he was simply coasting around, not in any hurry at all… and cleans everyone’s clock. Damn, that Blackadder can drive!
- MDwebguy
  
  I must agree with Kimmo… Rowan looked as skillful and smooth as anyone could in an underpowered, soft-suspension Kia.
  
  Best wishes for a speedy recovery (no pun intended)!
penguinchris

Just wanted to say in case anyone wasn’t planning on watching the interview – I’ve seen all of the episodes of Top Gear (since the “reboot” in 2002 or whenever) and this was easily one of the top, if not the very best, interview. He’s hilarious and really rather interesting. They talk about his F1 (the one he crashed) a bit, too.

But yeah, his new movie looks dreadful :)
http://disqus.com/Kimmoth/ Kimmo

I would like to see Mr Bean laid to rest, and Blackadder dusted off.

That sardonic bastard was purest win.
- Antinous / Moderator
  
  I would like to see Mr Bean laid to rest, and Blackadder dusted off.
  
  I’d like to see Mr. Bean and Blackadder in a cage match.
  - Tommy Timefishblue
    
    Now that I think about it, I wonder why I’ve never seen them in the same room before…
  - Felton / Moderator
    
    That would have made a good Celebrity Deathmatch episode. Or maybe Baldrick vs. Manuel, from Fawlty Towers.
  - knoxblox
    
    Well, judging by their records, I think Mr Bean would be the favorite to win, even if by accident.
Thorfin

Fortunately for Mr Atkinson, Tony Robinson was strapped to the bonnet cushioning the impact.
ackpht

Reads as a shoulder injury, so not life-threatening. Now whether his heart holds out when he sees the repair bill for the F1…
http://www.facebook.com/people/Abdul-Alhazred/100000416725737 Abdul Alhazred

There seems to be a line drawn in the sand here. Do you make a Mr Bean reference or a Blackadder reference?
It’d be interesting to see the breakdown of that choice in nationality as well. I get the impression Blackadder is a treat more known and revered among Europeans.
- Flashman
  
  Me, I was trying to think of an obscure Not The Nine O’Clock News reference.
Flashman

But where would Blackadder go after the Somme? Burma? Cyprus? Northern Ireland? Basra? Or, 21st century City of London?
Actually, that last one I can imagine would work very well – Blackadder as a ruthless, tyrannical hedge fund manager. Baldrick a clueless Shoreditch hipster.
Benzene

I can imagine the police report now:…Next to the wrecked car, Mr Atkinson was found lying unconscious wearing a giant turkey on his head…
dagfooyo

No one’s made a Thin Blue Line or Johnny English reference yet. I can’t think of any either, but thought I’d point it out.
wagonjack

I LOVE this show, but the hijinks these three go through are often dangerous, and I’ve been expecting that one of these days, one of them, or one of the stars or politicos competing on their track for the lowest times, to be killed or seriously injured.

Maybe this is a wake-up call for them…
- penguinchris
  
  Perhaps you missed the time when, a couple years ago, Richard Hammond crashed (through no fault of his own – a wheel came off) a jet-powered dragster and suffered a massive head injury which incapacitated him for months and nearly killed him? They showed it on the show later after he’d recovered.
  
  James May also was knocked out in an episode last winter, I think when they were in Syria or someplace like that, and was hospitalized. I’m guessing they receive minor injuries (cuts and scrapes, pulled muscles, etc.) rather frequently as well (when they’re caught on film they always show these kinds of things).
  
  I imagine they’re insured to the hilt and are fully aware that they do dangerous things. I also think the show is structured and edited to make things appear more wild and crazy than they actually are. But, everyone who loves cars accepts and respects that they very easily can kill you.
  
  Also, the “star in a reasonably priced car” bit is in a “reasonably priced car” for a reason – obviously sticking these people in a supercar would be a disaster, and on an open track with a slowish car and the safety equipment they use I really can’t imagine any possibility of injury.
- Rob Prior
  
  Ah, you mean like the Hamster getting his noggin nearly turned into a road crayon while rolling a rocket-powered dragster?
Morgan Willcox

It’s so nice to see the respect for the McLaren F1… even we Alonso fans love that car.
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_GJO7JGJFACICMLOKUWREOSWZAE Peter

he was driving too fast like most people in this country, why does no-one say this? I wonder if the police will investigate as they should when there is an injury (or will his celeb status shield him). From a motoring site “Good news: fewer people are now killed on
the UK’s roads. Department for Transport statistics, just released for
2007, show 2946 died last year. That’s one of the lowest figures ever” – all that’s missing here is the word only. We need fewer cars, lower speeds and better public transport. And because of this reasonable request people will be incensed and hurl vitriol at me. We do not need rich celebrities driving supercars too fast on public highways.
- Steve Mayne
  
  You seem to have more facts about the accident than the mainstream media. Where does it say he was driving too fast? Or are you just making an assumption? Just because the car _can_ go fast, doesn’t mean he _was_ going fast. Besides, it’s also one of the fastest stopping cars too.
- Phil Worthington
  
  Actually, it has been confirmed as a low speed collision that was not the fault of the driver…. so – jump to more conslusions why don’t you?
george57l

http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv-and-radio/2011/aug/05/rowan-atkinson-mclaren-f1-crash

Picture of trashed car here.
- Paul Bowen
  
  I’m not a physicist but that’s an interesting look for a “low speed collision” isn’t it? Or is that how the doors open on these supercars?
  
  I do hope Simon Cowell has an F1.
  - dculberson
    
    Yes, that’s how the doors open on these cars – since the driver sits in the middle, it helps them to get in and out if the roof swings up a bit.
    
    Also, I can believe this was low speed – I can’t imagine trying to handle one of these cars in the wet at any speed. (And the article does say the road was wet.)
    - Paul Bowen
      
      Cool. Move along, nothing to see here, etc.
  - pimlottc
    
    That is, in fact, how the doors open on my supercars, including the F1. They are commonly called “Lamborghini doors”.
    
    http://static.cargurus.com/images/site/2008/11/10/20/43/1995_mclaren_f1_gtr-pic-17563.jpeg
http://twitter.com/MarkoStrbac Marko Strbac

I just love that car… Can`t imagine MR. Bean handling it :)

Mr.Bean driving on roof of car :) – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMW3Q7TQars
Baldhead

Of course the argument about high speed or low speed ignores the fact that all cars are not created equally. Cars like Mclaren F1′s are designed to be driven fast by a bit more than having a giant engine. They can take a corner at 120 better than a Toyota Corolla can take the same corner at 60. Also- not Rowan’s first crash. He was nearly killed ten or so years ago racing his Mini Cooper
redrobot25

This pic of the car was posted at a car site- it’s pretty intense!

With absolutely no knowledge of the details of the accident, I am
thinking that he was a bit fast, and the road was a bit wet- bad bad
combo in a car with probably next to no tread on the tires..

http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/comment//2011/08/6061f2d49f3f6bdf6fdeef5826727c3a/original.jpg
- Paul Bowen
  
  Curiouser and curiouser. Y
  
  I must say I’ve had more low speed collisions than you could shake a stick at and they’ve usually resulted in a cracked lamp unit or a dented bumper, rather than the car ending up at 90 degrees to the original direction of travel having hit a tree and a lamppost, with the rear wheels separated from the rest of the vehicle and me leaving hospital in a wheelchair the next morning. I guess I have a lot to learn about supercars but on this evidence they don’t seem all that safe – I mean, if a low speed collision can cause this much damage, just imagine what could have happened if Mr Atkinson had been driving like a fucking idiot. Hardly bears thinking about.
http://www.facebook.com/Reverend.Professor.Stephan.Cook Cookie Monsta

Atkinson beans himself. I wish him a speedy recovery.
Mujokan

Such an unassuming and humble fellow he appeared in that video.
bklynchris

Is this the same company that makes the maclaren stroller? If so (and I believe that it is-LOL), take that Fugaboo!
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1029375128 Domenic Ciccone

Was Elin Nordegren chasing the car with a golf club?
hallam

Hey guys, I really can’t believe everyone is being so insensitive, a guy crashes an F1 and nobody stops to ask if the car is OK?
- Cardinale
  
  I really do want to know about the car. Was it damaged beyond repair? If not, when a famous acter crashes a car (for reference, a McLaren F1 has sold for $4M+) does the value go up? Does the insurance company pay up? Who insures $1M+ cars?
Bart

If the road was wet at all, it would be fairly easy to get the back end to step out with too much gas. I’ve only driven an F1 on flat dry pavement, but in 6th gear at about 80 mph, I was able to spin the tires with about 3/4 throttle. Amazing car to drive, stupidly quick, and surprisingly easy to handle, but there’s a whole lot of power just waiting to scream out the back wheels.
- Paul Bowen
  
  In which case would it not make more sense to drive the little shopping car on the road and the F1 at the track, as opposed to the other way around?