Spencer Matthews has paid a touching tribute to his ‘beautiful and brave’ late brother Michael as he marked 27 years since his tragic death.
Michael died on Mount Everest in 1999 aged 22, after becoming the youngest Briton to reach the summit. He disappeared during the descent in the dangerous ‘Death Zone’.
Taking to Instagram on Wednesday, Spencer, 37, who was just 10 years old when his brother died, shared a trio of throwback images as he honoured his older sibling.
He penned: ‘My brother Mike lost his life exactly 27 years ago today but his spirit will always be with me.
‘A beautiful brave boy, gone too soon. Would have loved to have grown old with him but instead will continue to be inspired by his kind nature and adventurous spirit.’
One image saw Michael wrap his arms around a young Spencer as they sat on some stairs.
Spencer Matthews has paid a touching tribute to his ‘beautiful and brave’ late brother Michael as he marked 27 years since his tragic death
Another saw the pair joined by their eldest brother James, 50, in a black and white snap, with the final photo showing Michael proudly posing on a mountain.
His sweet post was met with a plethora of supportive messages from his fans and pals, with fellow Made In Chelsea alumni Hugo Taylor commenting: ‘He’d be proud of you.’
Back in December, Spencer admitted he has never dealt with his brother Michael’s death and reflected on carrying ‘a lot of shame through his 20s’ in a candid interview.
The reality star spoke about the impact of losing his sibling as he appeared as a guest on Davina McCall’s podcast Begin Again.
Michael is likely to have passed away due to exhaustion, disorientation, or falling, with his body never recovered, with all of it being detailed in the documentary Finding Michael, where Spencer’s quests are well-documented.
‘I never dealt with it really, because I never truly believed it at the time, firstly. Because he was a huge hero to me. I was very young. I didn’t believe it when I first heard it,’ he said.
‘My parents told me he’s gone missing on the mountain, and then subsequently we probably won’t see him again. And I just thought, “what a load of rubbish”. I didn’t believe it for a second.’
During his raw chat with the presenter, 58, the former Made In Chelsea star described his milestone achievement of two Guinness World Records as his redemption for ‘regretting a lot’ of his past behaviour.
Michael [pictured] died on Mount Everest in 1999 aged 22, after becoming the youngest Briton to reach the summit. He disappeared during the descent in the dangerous ‘Death Zone’
Taking to Instagram on Wednesday, Spencer [centre] who was just 10 years old when his brother died [L], shared a trio of throwback images as he honoured his older sibling [eldest sibling James pictured right]
He penned: ‘My brother Mike lost his life exactly 27 years ago today but his spirit will always be with me. ‘A beautiful brave boy, gone too soon. Would have loved to have grown old with him’
Back in December, Spencer admitted he has never dealt with his brother Michael’s death and reflected on carrying ‘a lot of shame through his 20s’ in a candid interview
Spencer has done extreme endurance challenges, including running 30 marathons in 30 days in the Jordanian desert (most consecutive marathons on sand) for charity in 2024, and recently, two records for completing a seven-triathlon challenge across seven continents.
Breaking down what he called a ‘meaningful’ journey of progress, he said: ‘I feel much better than I thought I would. It’s not so much a physical feeling, but very proud.
‘And for me, that hasn’t always been a given. You know, I’ve carried a fair amount of shame through my 20s and, you know, regretted a lot of my behaviour.
‘And so for me to be able to express myself in this way is really meaningful, to me. It feels like real progress… And I’m just really proud of the team and what we did.’