When Spencer Matthews crossed the finish line of his 30th marathon in the Jordanian desert in 2024, he didn’t just complete a physical feat—he reclaimed a life alcohol had stolen. The 36-year-old former star of Made in Chelsea, now a father of three and endurance athlete, revealed in a November 20, 2025 interview with The Independent that his years of heavy drinking left him unable to run a kilometer without gasping for air. "I’d sweat tying up my shoelaces," he said. "Walking up one flight of stairs? I was panting like I’d just sprinted." What followed wasn’t a dramatic intervention or a rehab stint—it was a challenge from a friend that changed everything.
The Turning Point: A Challenge That Stuck
It wasn’t rock bottom that moved Matthews. It was a punch in the gut from someone who saw through his persona. "He said to me, I don’t want you to drink alcohol for the next seven days," Matthews recounted in a April 9, 2025 RTÉ documentary, Hooked. "He made me feel like s*** and then he challenged me. I left and thought, ‘I’ll show him.’" That seven-day bet turned into three years of total abstinence. And what started as defiance became a revelation."The body you have when you’re drinking isn’t yours," he told The Independent. "It’s a prison." The weight dropped. The fog lifted. His skin glowed. He could breathe. He started running—not because he had to, but because he wanted to. "I developed a greater desire to be outdoors," he said. "I felt alive for the first time in years."
From Addiction to Entrepreneurship: The Birth of CleanCo
But sobriety came with isolation. "When I decided to go sober for a few years, I felt completely alone in social settings," Matthews explained. "Everyone was drinking. I was the guy holding a soda water with lime like it was a trophy." That loneliness became the seed for CleanCo, the London-based alcohol-free spirit brand he launched in 2019. "I wanted to make something that didn’t feel like a compromise," he said. "Something that tasted good, looked good, and didn’t make you feel like you were missing out."Today, CleanCo is stocked in over 200 UK retailers and has gained traction in the U.S. and Australia. It’s not just a business—it’s a movement. Matthews didn’t set out to be an advocate for sobriety. He just wanted to stop feeling ashamed.
The Ghost of Everest: Michael’s Shadow and His Own Silence
Matthews carries a deeper wound—one he rarely speaks of. When he was 10, his older brother, Michael Matthews, vanished on Mount Everest after becoming the youngest Briton to summit at age 22. For decades, the silence around Michael’s death echoed louder than any party noise. In 2023, Matthews produced and starred in the Disney+ documentary Finding Michael, retracing his brother’s final steps on the mountain. "I needed to know where he was," he said. "Not just physically, but emotionally."Yet he refuses to use his brother’s death as an excuse. "You could say it had an impact on my drinking," he told RTÉ. "But I’ve never felt comfortable blaming Mike’s death on my behaviour." That distinction matters. It’s not trauma that defined him—it was his own choices. And his own courage to change them.
"I’m Not in Recovery"
Today, Matthews doesn’t call himself sober. He doesn’t call himself in recovery. "I don’t think I’m in recovery, to be honest," he said. "If I felt like having a drink, I would have a drink. It doesn’t frighten me anymore." He drinks occasionally—rarely, mind you—but the power is gone. The compulsion? Gone too. "I have a balanced relationship with it now. That’s the difference."He still sees a therapist every so often. "He says there’s all kinds of ways to unlock things," Matthews said. "But I’m not bothered. I don’t think it’s that important that I’d be crying all the time. I’m quite hardened in that sense. And sometimes I wish I wasn’t."
He doesn’t cry at the birth of his children. He doesn’t cry when he talks about his brother. But he cries when he talks about the man he became after giving up alcohol. "A belief in myself was born from giving up alcohol," he said. "That’s the real miracle."
What This Means for the Rest of Us
Matthews’ story isn’t about quitting drinking. It’s about reclaiming agency. He didn’t need a 12-step program. He didn’t need to hit rock bottom. He needed someone to call him out—and then give him a challenge worth rising to.His journey shows that transformation doesn’t always look like a tearful confession or a public plea for help. Sometimes, it looks like a man walking into a desert, one marathon at a time, proving to himself that he’s more than his habits.
Frequently Asked Questions
How did Spencer Matthews’ sobriety lead to his athletic achievements?
After three years without alcohol, Matthews experienced dramatic physical improvements: he lost excess weight, gained stamina, and developed mental clarity that allowed him to complete 30 marathons in 30 days across Jordan’s desert in 2024. His body, previously weakened by daily drinking, became capable of extreme endurance—something he credits directly to his decision to stop drinking.
Why did Spencer Matthews start CleanCo?
While sober, Matthews felt socially isolated in drinking environments. He noticed a lack of appealing, high-quality non-alcoholic alternatives and founded CleanCo in 2019 to create drinks that tasted sophisticated and didn’t make sobriety feel like a punishment. The brand now sells in over 200 UK retailers and internationally.
Did his brother’s death on Everest cause his alcohol addiction?
Matthews acknowledges his brother Michael’s death in 1999 had an emotional impact, but he refuses to use it as an excuse. In interviews, he explicitly states he never felt comfortable blaming his drinking on Mike’s death, choosing instead to take personal responsibility for his choices during his 20s.
Does Spencer Matthews consider himself in recovery?
No. Matthews says he doesn’t identify as being "in recovery." He believes he has a balanced, controlled relationship with alcohol now and would drink if he wanted to—without fear or compulsion. His focus is on autonomy, not abstinence as a lifelong label.
What physical changes did Spencer Matthews notice after quitting alcohol?
He dropped significant weight from alcohol-related bloat, gained the ability to run without panting, noticed improved skin tone ("you look less tired and more naturally glowy"), and experienced mental clarity. He also described feeling more energetic and motivated to exercise outdoors—changes he says were immediate and profound after just weeks without alcohol.
Why doesn’t Spencer Matthews cry, even at emotional moments?
Matthews admits he physically struggles to cry, even at the births of his children or when reflecting on his brother’s death. He doesn’t see this as weakness, but as part of his emotional makeup. He’s had therapy but doesn’t feel pressured to change how he expresses emotion, saying he’s "hardened in that sense," and sometimes wishes he weren’t.
