Meet reformed Made in Chelsea bad boy Spencer Matthews – whose brother married Pippa Middleton: the reality TV star-turned-marathon runner battled alcoholism to turn his life around
Made in Chelsea made a star out of real-life rich kid Spencer Matthews; now a family man and charity fundraiser, he runs his own zero-alcohol spirits company
In Made in Chelsea, a long-running British reality TV show similar to Keeping Up with the Kardashians that delves into the lives of the ultra-wealthy, Spencer Matthews was known as the “bad boy” who partied hard and drank excessively.
However, unlike many young men in their 20s, Matthews did not develop his drinking habits through university life or socialising with friends. His alcohol use stemmed from a family tragedy.
Matthews’ early life
Born to entrepreneur David Matthews and artist and interior designer Jane Spencer Parker in 1988, Spencer Matthews and his two older brothers, Michael and James, grew up in luxury, splitting their time between Caunton Manor in Nottinghamshire, England and the Caribbean Eden Rock Resort in Saint Barthelemy.
At 22 he set out to climb Mount Everest, but disappeared in a snowstorm after reaching the summit. He was later presumed dead.
Spencer was 10 years old at the time.
Using alcohol to cope
“I’d grown up with the thought that Michael’s death could definitely have been avoided, and [the expedition planners] were responsible,” he told the Radio Times, although a prosecution case failed for lack of evidence of negligence.