Michael Mosley's children were only 350 feet from his body when they went to retrace his steps during the heartbreaking five-day search.
The wife of TV doctor said it was "devastating" to have lost her "wonderful, funny, kind and brilliant husband" this afternoon as she confirmed he has been found dead on the Greek island of Symi. He had first been reported missing on Wednesday.
Michael's body was discovered on Sunday beneath a fence that runs around a bar on Agia Marina beach, which is surrounded by hilly, rocky terrain that runs down to the sea. The site was around a 30 minutes walk from the village of Pedi, where he was last seen on CCTV.
The sad news followed an extensive five-day search led by emergency workers and involving volunteers, the Red Cross and members of his family. Aerial drone cameras were also used. It is thought that search team had passed by his body several times over recent days.
Volunteers including members of Dr Mosley's family had taken part in the search (Tim Merry/Mirror Express)A group of volunteer searchers including his adult children will have been as close as 350ft from the place he was found as they attempted to retrace his steps, the MailOnline reported. Agia Marina bar manager Ilias Tsavaris, 38, first saw the body alongside reporters after the island's mayor "saw something" by the fence of the bar during a boat search and alerted staff. He said: "They saw it with the boat. The mayor came and saw something so that is when they called me and said 'Hey they saw something go and check there'."
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One tourist, Sindy Seenarine, who has been going to Symi for 14 years, said that the 40C temperatures Dr Mosley walked in on Wednesday were the "hottest it's ever been" on the island. Speaking to the PA news agency, she said: "The tragedy is he was so close to shelter, maybe he was desperately trying to get here? That's the tragedy to me, is he's so close to shelter. We've never experienced this heat in Symi in June."
The TV doctor's body was recovered on the Greek island today (Instagram)In a statement released today confirming his death, Dr Clare Bailey Mosley said: "I don't know quite where to begin with this. It's devastating to have lost Michael, my wonderful, funny, kind and brilliant husband. We had an incredibly lucky life together. We loved each other very much and were so happy together. I am incredibly proud of our children, their resilience and support over the past days.
"My family and I have been hugely comforted by the outpouring of love from people from around the world. It's clear that Michael meant a huge amount to so many of you. We're taking comfort in the fact that he so very nearly made it. He did an incredible climb, took the wrong route and collapsed where he couldn't be easily seen by the extensive search team.
Huge searches had been launched following his disappearance on Wednesday (Tim Merry/Mirror Express)"Michael was an adventurous man, it's part of what made him so special. We are so grateful to the extraordinary people on Symi who have worked tirelessly to help find him. Some of these people on the island, who hadn't even heard of Michael, worked from dawn till dusk unasked. We're also very grateful to The Press who have dealt with us with great respect. I feel so lucky to have our children and my amazing friends. Most of all, I feel so lucky to have had this life with Michael. Thank you all."
Tributes have also flooded in for Dr Mosley - famous for popularising the 5:2 diet and for his appearances on The One Show and This Morning - from his former TV colleagues. Jamie Oliver wrote on X (formerly Twitter): "Rest in peace Michael Mosley…. Absolutely devastating news about the sad loss of fellow TV presenter Michael Mosley today. What a wonderfully sweet, kind and gentle man he was. He did such a lot of good for public health with his TV shows and research. Charlotte Moore, Chief Content Officer at the BBC, meanwhile described him as a "brilliant science broadcaster and programme maker". "Our thoughts go out to his family and friends at this difficult time", she added.
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