Dr Michael Mosley death updates — Tributes flood in for BBC star as special airs & fans stunned by his past experiments
- Who are his children?
- Who is his wife Dr Clare Bailey?
- What happened to popular presenter?
TRIBUTES have flooded in for Dr Michael Mosley after the BBC aired a TV special reflecting on his broadcasting career.
Fans were left stunned as the show looked back on his past experiments, including the time he swallowed a tape worm.
Taking to X, one fan said: "Just watching the Saint Dr Michael Mosley ‘love in’ on the TV. Jeez, the guy was crazy. Filmed everything, inducing tape worms, gut cameras, fasting, filmed losing weight, sleep depravation and guys with Ulcers."
It comes as Dr Michael Mosley revealed what he believed to be the most important factor in living a good life.
The BBC this morning released the beloved doctor's final interview, recorded as part of the Hay Festival in May.
During the interview, Mosley said a person's "relationships with friends and loved ones" are the key factor in living the best life one can.
Read our live blog below for the latest news and updates...
Jeremy Vine hails 'amazing, modest intelligent' Michael Mosley
Jeremy Vine paid tribute to Michael Mosley following his tragic death.
Taking to X, he wrote: "What an amazing man was. Friendly, open, modest, highly intelligent but also a born communicator — so rare.
"An adult mind, a child's curiosity. He did everything with enthusiasm.
"We're all going to miss him so much ."
Dr Mosley's wife honours her 'brilliant' and 'wonderful' husband
Dr Michael Mosley’s wife Clare paid tribute to her “brilliant” and “wonderful” husband.
In a statement shared with The Sun, she 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.”
The timeline of events
WEDNESDAY JUNE 5
- 1.30pm: Dr Mosley decides to walk home alone to his holiday home in the town of Symi after going for a swim at a beach
- 1.50pm: The walk home is said to take around 20 minutes from Saint Nikolaos beach despite the doctor never making it back
- 1.52pm: CCTV catches Dr Mosley walking past a shop in Pedi
- Approx 2.20pm: Witnesses claim to have seen Dr Mosley talking to an elderly man in the town with one other person present
- 2.30pm-5pm: Doc was last seen on a house camera on a treacherous path heading towards the Agia Marina
- 7.30pm: Dr Mosley’s wife, Dr Clare Bailey, raises the alarm and calls cops
THURSDAY JUNE 6
- 10.30am: Police file missing person report and the search gets underway
- 11am: Police appeal for any information
- 2pm: Six firefighters, a vehicle and a drone team were all seen arriving in Symi from Rhodes
- 7pm: Helicopters deployed over the island
- 8pm: First day of the search called off for the night
FRIDAY JUNE 7
- 7am Extra police squadrons, coast guard officials, specially-trained sniffer dogs and military helicopters helped in the search
- 5pm The first CCTV images are released of Dr Mosley with his umbrella near the Blue Corner bar
SATURDAY JUNE 8
- 7am Police launch a search of a new area of around 7km as they step up the hunt
- 10.50am: New CCTV is released showing Mosley leaving Pedi and heading towards mountainous path
- 11am Symi’s mayor says ‘no chance’ search will be called off until he is found
- 12pm Mosley’s wife Clare says the family will ‘not lose hope‘ but confesses the last few days have been ‘unbearable’
- 3pm A helicopter joins the search effort in the mountains
SUNDAY JUNE 9
- 10.50am Body found in the search close to caves known as ‘The Abyss’
- 11am Police say they believe the body to be that of Dr Mosley
- 2.50pm Body removed by boat from Symi
- 3.30pm Dr Clare Bailey confirms her ‘wonderful’ husband’s death
Man who discovered body questions search
The man who found Dr Michael Mosley’s body has questioned how helicopters and drones missed it.
Bar manager Ilias Tsavaris, 38, told The Sun of the long search: “It’s unreal. The helicopters didn’t see him. Why?
“They walked through the whole island. Okay, maybe who is going to believe he is behind the wall. You can miss it.
“But from drones and helicopters? The whole day before the helicopter was here, over there and back. Come on.”
No indication of injuries
A coroner has concluded Dr Mosley sat down before losing consciousness.
The way he was positioned suggests he chose to lie down as his body was found with his legs raised on a rock without any sign of external injuries.
There is no indication that he was hit in the head or that he collapsed while walking, police sources said.
What do we know of Dr Mosley’s early life?
Michael Mosley was born in Calcutta (Kolkata), India, and was the son of a banker, Bill Mosley, and his wife, Joan.
At the age of seven, he was sent to boarding school in Britain.
Mosley said in an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald that his mother was heartbroken to send him away to school.
He added that his father, who worked in Hong Kong and the Philippines, wanted Michael and his other son, John, to become bankers as he had, and that sending children to boarding school back in Britain was part of the culture of that time.
'My thoughts are with his bereaved family'
Historian and TV host Alice Roberts has paid tribute to the late Dr Michael Mosley.
Taking to X, she wrote: “The fragility of life is so shocking. I’ve known Michael Mosley for many years – as a tv producer specialising in science and medicine.
“He was the executive producer of my 2009 series Human Journey. When he started presenting as well as producing, we made several science programmes together.
“And we met up at Hay Festival just 2 weeks ago. I can’t believe he’s gone. My thoughts are with his bereaved family.”
Inside Dr Michael Mosley’s marriage
It is widely reported that Dr Claire Bailey and Dr Michael Mosley met on his very first day at UCL Medical School.
He had previously studied philosophy, politics and economics at New College, Oxford.
However, the year that the couple met has not been reported.
The couple have been married since 1987.
How Dr Mosley became a household name
The popular presenter became a household name for diet books promoting calorie reduction and fasting, including The Fast Diet (2013), written with the journalist Mimi Spencer.
His work gained in popularity from his self-experimentation, which included swallowing tapeworms, magic mushrooms, internal cameras and – most famously – fasting to cure his own type 2 diabetes diagnosed in 2012.
Saleyha Ahsan says Michael Mosley ‘was an inspiration’
Michael Mosley’s former co-presenter Saleyha Ahsan says the TV doctor “was an inspiration”.
“He lived and breathed his work. He was an inspiration. I hate even saying was – is an inspiration,” she told Sky News.
“He really expanded medicine. He made it accessible to so many and so doable and really in reach and touchable,” she added.
This Morning star pays tribute
Former This Morning panelist and TALK presenter Julia Hartley Brewer was one of the first to pay tribute to Dr Michael Mosley following his death.
She wrote: “This is very sad news.”
Before adding: “I interviewed Michael Mosley a few times about his Fast800 diet and he was an absolutely lovely man. My condolences to his family.”
What had Michael said about his new series?
Michael wrote to fans on X, formerly Twitter, in April: "I’ve just begun filming a new series for BBC Two based on my popular podcast series Just One Thing.
"It is surprisingly challenging going from a radio format into a TV one, but so far it’s looking good…"
Dr Mosley was set to take part in Strictly Come Dancing
Dr Michael Mosley was set to take part in the BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing prior to his death, according to reports.
“He told me just the week before last he’d been invited to do Strictly,” a friend of Dr Mosley told the Daily Mail.
Dr Mosley had long praised dancing as a great way to keep fit.
Future of unfinished show revealed
It's been revealed that as a tribute to the star, the BBC is planning to release his unfinished TV programme, Just One Thing.
The series, which is based on a radio show that airs on Thursdays on BBC Radio 4, investigates what viewers can do to improve their health and wellbeing.
Recent radio episodes saw Michael discussing the benefits of yoga on stress levels, and how eating slowly can improve digestion.
Only three episodes of the audio series had been broadcast before it was revealed Michael had tragically passed away.
Although the TV series wasn’t complete, execs want to air what he’d done as a tribute to him and as a celebration of his work.
A source said: “This was Michael doing what he did best - trying to help people in an entertaining and engaging way that other experts might struggle to do.
“The BBC are now considering how usable the footage they have is and will of course consult with his family."
Dr Michael Mosley hailed the benefits of dancing
Speaking in 2022, Dr Michael Mosley praised the importance of dancing for one’s physical and mental health.
Dr Mosley said: “Dancing undoubtedly improves your fitness. It has been shown to support your mental health and it can even boost your memory.
“It can be used effectively for depression and it’s good for social connection.
“Dance has also been shown to help manage the symptoms of a number of conditions, including Parkinson’s disease and dementia.
“One of its most fascinating benefits is the fast and significant impact of dancing on your brain chemistry.
“Dancing can greatly increase the brain’s hippocampus – an area which plays an important role in learning, memory and navigation in space.”.
Dr Michael Mosley followed advice to avoid fainting
It appears that Dr Michael Mosley, who had walked for more than two hours and was found in a shaded spot by the wall having taken off his rucksack, was following routine medical advice used to prevent fainting.
The NHS website encourages individuals who are feeling faint to lie down with their legs raised if they are ever feeling faint.
Agia Marina, a beach resort where he was found, was said to be one of the hottest areas in the region.
Symi mayor Lefteris Papakaloudoukas said the island was " in complete shock", adding: "We are saddened and in complete shock.
"Everyone wanted to find him alive. It's been hard, very hard and no one ever thought we'd ever find him where we did, so near to the beach."
Channel 5 faces decision over Michael Mosley show
Dr Michael Mosley had recently filmed a Channel 5 series, Wonders of the Human Body - but it is not known whether the programme will air.
The three part series was completed before the TV star left for his ill-fated trip to Greece.
Channel 5 now faces a decision as to whether they will air the show.
Where was Michael Mosley’s body found?
Michael’s body was tragically discovered only a short distance from a bar on the Greek island of Symi.
He vanished after waving goodbye to his wife on the beach of Saint Nikolas – before taking a wrong turn and ending up on an unforgiving two-hour trek in scorching heat.
His body was found five agonising days later lying behind a fence next to a beach bar at the Agia Marina on the other side of the small island in Greece.
No indication of injuries
A coroner has concluded Dr Mosley sat down before losing consciousness.
The way he was positioned suggests he chose to lie down as his body was found with his legs raised on a rock without any sign of external injuries.
There is no indication that he was hit in the head or that he collapsed while walking, police sources said.
Michael Mosley wanted to keep working
This year, Michael Mosley spoke of avoiding retirement due to his love of work.
The health wizz told the Telegraph he refused to retire as many of his friends had done, choosing instead to continue working in the medical field.
He said: “I’m 67 and a lot of my mates are now retired.
“I am quite happy to go on writing and giving public speeches and making telly and podcasts.”
Local cameraman describes moment he spotted the body
A local cameraman, who was part of a crew that was filming search and rescue teams looking for Dr Michael Mosley, has described the moment he spotted the body.
“When we went up to Agia Marina beach, I noticed outside of the fence at the end of the beach something black. I wasn’t sure so I took a close up with the camera as far as I could zoom, it was about 300m away,” camerman Antonios told Sky News.
“I saw something and I wasn’t sure… We went a little bit closer, about 200m. I took the shot again but through the camera, it’s too small, I wasn’t sure, so we decided that once we came back to the cafe again we would play back the footage.
“So we took a photo of the screen with an iPhone, we zoomed in and you can clearly see there is a man, lying down.”
Antonios got emotional as he added: “The description is exactly as the guy we are looking for. I’m really sorry for the family. I’m sorry that I’m the one who found him. I wish we had better news.”
BBC to air special in honour of Dr Michael Mosely
The BBC will air a special honouring the life of Dr Michael Mosley.
Michael Mosley – The Doctor Who Changed Britain will look at the 67-year-old’s four-decade career in broadcasting.
It’s set to air this Friday at 8pm.
Carol Vorderman 'sad' and 'shocked' as star passes away
Carol Vorderman took to X/Twitter to remember Dr Michael Mosley following his death.
She wrote: "Extremely sad and shocking news about the death of Dr Michael Mosley.
"He worked so hard to introduce the modern science behind health and wellness and was extremely successful communicating it.
"My thoughts right now are with his family and friends."
Dr Mosley's wife honours her 'brilliant' and 'wonderful' husband
Dr Michael Mosley’s wife Clare paid tribute to her “brilliant” and “wonderful” husband.
In a statement shared with The Sun, she 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.”
Jeremy Vine hails 'amazing, modest intelligent' Michael Mosley
Jeremy Vine paid tribute to Michael Mosley following his tragic death.
Taking to X, he wrote: "What an amazing man was. Friendly, open, modest, highly intelligent but also a born communicator — so rare.
"An adult mind, a child's curiosity. He did everything with enthusiasm.
"We're all going to miss him so much ."