Key points
- A body believed to be that of missing Michael Mosley has been found.
- The British doctor and journalist was on holiday with his wife on the remote Greek island of Symi.
- His disappearance had sparked an extensive rescue mission on the island.
TV presenter Michael Mosley has been found dead in a rocky area of Symi, days after he disappeared during a walk on the Greek island, local officials and police say.
The 67-year-old healthy living advocate, who had been a prominent face on TV in the United Kingdom for two decades, was found on Sunday morning, ending a four-day search that included aircraft, drones and sniffer dogs.
“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,” Mosley’s wife, Clare Bailey Mosley, said in a statement issued on her behalf.
Bailey Mosley thanked the “extraordinary” people on Symi who worked “tirelessly” to help find her husband, some working “from dawn till dusk unasked”.
Police spokeswoman Constantina Dimoglidou earlier said that the body of a person believed to be Mosley had been found in the area of Agia Marina, north of the village of Pedi and opposite the northeast beach of Agios Nikolaos where Mosley set out for his walk.
“It is certainly him,” said deputy mayor Nikitas Grillis, pending formal identification of the body, which was found on rocky terrain, close to the sea and near a beach bar.
‘Unclear if he had an accident’
The body was transferred to the neighbouring Dodecanese island of Rhodes for more tests after a police official said a coroner at the scene excluded any criminal act but could not determine the exact cause of death.
Symi Mayor Lefteris Papakalodoukas said the discovery was made after he and others, including state ERT TV journalists, were filming the area from a vessel.
“We analysed the recorded evidence and it was obvious that it was, unfortunately, Mosley,” Papakalodoukas said.
“He was found 10 metres away from the sea, 10-15 metres from his destination, the beach of Agia Marina, between a fence and a path.”
State TV ERT reported that he was found lying face up with his head on a rock.
“It is unclear if he had an accident or if he felt unwell,” Papakalodoukas said.
epa11396357 A view showing the path that leads from the beach of Agios Nikolaos to the settlement of Pedi, in Simi island, Greece, 07 June 2024. Search efforts are in full progress, including investigations into the disappearance of the well-known British broadcaster Michael Mosley, on the island of Symi, whose traces have been missing since noon of 05 June. Source: AAP / Damianidis Lefteris/EPA
The coastguard and fire fighters had been deployed to the scene, a Reuters witness said. A coroner was on his way to Symi in a coast guard vessel, said a police official, adding that the body would be transferred to the neighbouring island of Rhodes.
Mosley was on the island with his wife. His children arrived in Symi on Friday.
Symi is a 16km wide, sparsely populated rocky island home to 2,500 residents. The island is located on the eastern side of the Aegean Sea and about 6.5km from Türkiye.
Who was Michael Mosley?
Michael Mosley was a regular fixture on television and radio since graduating from medical school and joining the BBC in 1985.
He made several documentaries around diet, exercise and sleep, including the BBC series Trust Me, I’m a Doctor. He was also a columnist for the Daily Mail.
Mosley popularised the 5:2 diet, which involves intermittent fasting for two days a week to lose weight.
Michael Mosley was on holiday with his wife on the remote Greek island. Source: AAP / Supplied
The father of four is well known to Australian audiences, having recently opened up about his decades of insomnia as host of SBS’ Australia’s Sleep Revolution.
The program looked at a world-first sleep treatment program in Adelaide, with Mosley and 30 other people diagnosed with sleep disorders as they undertook the eight-week program.
Mosley also presented Australia’s Health Revolution alongside Indigenous exercise physiologist Ray Kelly. The series featured the pair taking on Australia’s fastest-growing chronic illness, type 2 diabetes, joining eight Australians to try and help them reverse their diabetes.
Mosley also made appearances on SBS programs The Cook Up and Insight.
