Disney+ is gearing up to drop a brand-new documentary fronted by reality TV star Spencer Matthews. The feature-length doc follows the former Made in Chelsea star as he travels to Mount Everest to search for his brother Michael, who disappeared there more than 20 years ago.
Executive produced by Bear Grylls, Finding Michael will see Spencer head to Nepal with Nims Purja – the world record holder for climbing all 14 mountains over 8,000 metres the fastest – to lead a team and search Everest’s ‘Death Zone’. Once at an extreme altitude of over 8000m, the team relies on a 10-man search crew, armed with drones and the skillset to go off the summit lines.
While on the mountain, Spencer and the crew come up against extreme weather, and with time against them, they face a series of unexpected challenges. Announcing the documentary on Instagram, Spencer described it as “an emotional story about tragic loss and brotherly love.”
What happened to Michael Matthews?
In 1999, Michael Matthews became the youngest Briton to climb Mount Everest at the age of 22. An experienced climber, Michael had already scaled the Swiss Alps, the Pyrenees and Kilimanjaro before he made his bid to reach the peak of the world’s highest mountain.
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But while making his descent, he and the group of climbers and guides were hit with heavy snow and strong gales on the mountain’s Notorious Death Zone, more than 8,000 metres above sea level. Three hours after reaching the summit, Michael became separated from the pack and disappeared, presumed dead.
As reported in The Guardian, a climber who reached the summit days after Michael reported seeing an ice axe some distance from the correct route, close to the edge of a steep drop. Other Everest guides believe an exhausted Michael likely became disoriented and stepped through a cornice – an overhanging mass of hard snow – or was blown from the ridge.
Was Michael Mattews’ body ever found?
Michael Matthews became the 162nd person to die on Everest and his body was never found. Spencer, aged just 10 when his brother went missing, always struggled to accept his death.
23 years later, Spencer received a photo of a body on the mountain that he believed could be Michael. Finding Michael will show Spencer’s journey to retrace his brother’s steps in an attempt to find him and finally bring his body home.
Promoting the documentary earlier this month, Spencer said: “It has been a difficult journey to document, both physically and emotionally but I’m hoping that it will give my brave brother the legacy that he deserves.”
When is Finding Michael coming out on Disney Plus?
The documentary is set to drop on Disney+ on Friday, March 3.
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