Quotes from Andrew Flintoff

I'm gradually getting rid of all the things I don't need.

I do sometimes like a bit of cheese, like MC Hammer.

I was just 17 when I made my debut for Lancashire against Hampshire at Portsmouth. I got seven and a duck. I didn't get a wicket, either. Funnily enough, it was more nerve-wracking than playing for England.

I've thrived on people writing me off. Because if you write me off, I'll shut you up.

I can lose my temper from time to time, but I try not to lose it on the pitch because it can't help.

I have a Harley and a Bourget, which I enjoy taking into the countryside.

I want to be the world's number one one-day player; I want to win a World Cup, win the championship with Lancashire - those are my motivations.

I always listen to music before I go out to bat. Any track, really, just whatever I feel like at the time.

I am not a big fan of hockey.

I've been to a lot of places to play cricket, but cricket and training get in the way! In India, all you see is the hotel and the cricket ground.

If you're in a helicopter, and you hover, why does the Earth not come to you if it's round?

I grew up watching 'Corrie,' and I still watch it whenever I can. It's got everything - drama, humour, and great characters. I used to watch it even when I was living in Dubai.

It was two different worlds: my world - cricket, the dressing room and the lads. And then family. Even when they travelled with me, it wasn't always easy to bridge the gap.

I've seen material competitiveness destroy relationships in dressing rooms. People end up worrying about what someone else is earning and whether they're missing out.

It was an old cricket coach who started calling me Fred - as in Flintstone. There are far worse things to be called in the dressing room.

I've tired of looking into the future, imagining all the things I want to have.

Captaincy is something you get better at through experience. You've got to trust your instincts.

I remember, when Paul Collingwood first came into the dressing room, we did everything together. We practised together, trained together, had dinner together; we batted together and did well in games together - we were thick as thieves. When he got established, he just binned me.

I'll be fine, and suddenly I'll feel the depression coming on. It can start with the smallest thing.

Throughout my career, in cricket and beyond, I've been incredibly lucky with my marriage. I met Rachael in 2002, and that was the year my England career kicked on. Everything started to click.

My school was pretty tough, and I played football there so I would be accepted, to save myself a kicking.

I would try monoskiing, but the problem is my dodgy knee's on my right side, and my bad ankle's on my left, so I can't really use either.

My father, Colin, and my brother, Chris, who is four years older than me, were a great help to me when I was younger.

I like being out on the cricket field and performing and playing in front of a crowd. I find it quite tricky when there are press photographers outside my house. It's all very bizarre.