Following the departures of host Matt LeBlanc and co-presenter Rory Reid after the next series, McGuinness and Flintoff will join Chris Harris in a new all-British line-up of Top Gear.
Sabine Schmitz will remain in the Top Gear family with Reid continuing to host Top Gear spin-off Extra Gear on BBC Two.
The announcement took place near the River Thames in London as a photocall, as the new line-up was joined by the real stars of the show: a blue Porsche 911 GT2RS and a red Aston Martin DSB Superleggera.
McGuinness is best known for hosting the popular dating show Take Me Out on ITV and has become a much-loved television personality since his debut on The Comedy Lab in 1998.
Over the course of his career, McGuinness has starred in That Peter Kay Thing, Phoenix Nights and co-write Phoenix Nights: Max and Paddy - The Road To Nowhere with comedian Peter Kay.
The comedy actor and presenter more recently starred in The Keith and Paddy Picture Show with Leigh Francis (Celebrity Juice) and recently finished production on a new game show Catchpoint, which is set to release in early 2019 along with the 11th series of Take Me Out.
“To be hosting a show I’ve watched and loved from being a small boy is beyond exciting,” said McGuinness. “Top Gear fans worldwide are a passionate bunch and I consider myself one of them.”
BBC Sports Personality of 2005, Flintoff was awarded an MBE for contributions to professional cricket over the span of twenty years.
Due to a chronic knee injury Flintoff retired from Cricket in 2010 allowing him to pursue a career in entertainment, where he landed the role of team captain in Sky One’s sports show A League of Their Own.
Since his debut on the small-screen, Flintoff has fronted a large number of documentaries including an exploration of the Amazon rain forest with journalist Rob Penn (Freddie Down Under) in Freddie's Road to Nowhere for Sky One.
The success of the series led to Sky One continuing the duo’s adventures for Flintoff: Lord of the Fries and Freddie Down Under.
Flintoff even took the mantle of King of the Jungle in the Australian version of I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here! In 2015 and recently hosted Sky One’s extreme motoring show Carnage.
“It’s not often you have the chance to do both of your dream jobs,” added Flintoff. “I’ve always been passionate about cars and I’m so excited to be joining the Top Gear team.”
McGuinness and Flintoff played football together in this year’s Soccer Aid for UNICEF.
Commenting on the announcement, Chris Harris said, “I think you can tell just how much fun we’re going to have making Top Gear with Paddy and Freddie.
“They’re both brilliant, natural entertainers – and their mischief mixed with the most exciting cars on the planet is sure to take the show to the next level. My dream job just got even better.”
Production will begin for the 27th series in early 2019, along with the broadcast of the final series presented by LeBlanc on BBC Two.
