24 March 2024 , 19:00
508
0
As Spencer Matthews embarks on his latest venture starring in The Great Celebrity Bake Off as part of Stand Up To Cancer, his larger than life character will be on full view as he aims to win over Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood.
But the 35 year old former reality TV star, who is married to TV personality Vogue Williams, hasn't always been full of beans. In 1999, Spencer's older brother Michael tragically died after he attempted to climb Mount Everest. And according to the former Made In Chelsea star, it took him a long time to get over the resentment and hatred he felt towards the expedition planners who climbed alongside his brother.
Michael had gone missing amid a snowstorm and was presumed dead. His body was never recovered. In a recent interview he admitted that he felt Michael's death could have been "avoided" but has since started the process of forgiveness - 24 years later.
Speaking about being in the depths of grief at the age of 11, as he struggled to come to terms with his brother's heartbreaking death, he explained to Radio Times: "I’d grown up with the thought that Michael’s death could definitely have been avoided, and [the expedition planners] were responsible [although a prosecution case failed for lack of evidence of negligence]."
Spencer Matthews filmed a documentary titled Finding Michael who tragically went missing and presumed dead in Mount Everest (Press Association Images)He added: "I grew up with this hatred towards them, and I was able to move through that. To me, that’s the first thing that sprung to my mind. I didn’t physically go and find these men and say, 'You’re forgiven', but it allowed me to move through it in my mind and not carry around the hatred. I feel above it now, which is nice, 24 years later."
Katie Price shows off results of 'painful' breast op as she unbandages boobs
Last year, the reality star turned documentary film maker, filmed a TV show on Disney+ called Finding Michael, that showed him in search of his brother's body with a team of expert guides. In 2017, a climber passed a body close to Mount Everest's South Summit and emailed a picture to Spencer's family. The location of the body had been close to where Michael had gone missing. In the documentary Spencer travels to Base Camp for four weeks, in the hope of finding his beloved brother.
In a separate interview with The Times, he revealed: "He [Michael] was a down-to-earth, almost reserved character, he wasn’t an attention-seeker like me. He wouldn’t have wanted recognition but, strangely, I want people to know about him and feel the feelings I have for him."
Spencer kick started his rise to fame when he appeared on Made In Chelsea and was known for being somewhat of a lothario. But in 2018, he met and married Vogue and the couple share three children together. The Great Celebrity Bake Off will also star former EastEnders actor Danny Dyer, Paloma Faith, Mel B and Oti Mabuse.