‘A human guinea pig’: how Michael Mosley turned health into a TV and radio hit
Michael Mosley popularized health by turning himself into a guinea pig for self-experimentation on TV and radio. He swallowed tapeworms for a documentary and then swallowed a camera to examine them in his stomach. Likewise, he tried vaping, magic mushrooms, leeches and snake venom, all in the name of TV science.
After being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in 2012, Mosley, who trained as a doctor, cured himself of the condition through intermittent fasting and captured it all on camera.
Mimi Spencer, who co-wrote a book on diet with Mosley, said his approach helped simplify difficult topics. “His methodology was to take complex ideas and make them much more available and accessible,” she told BBC Radio 4’s World This Weekend. She added: “He used himself as a human guinea pig. He did it because he was fascinated by science. But he was also very interested in conveying a story to people.”
It worked. Fast Diet, the book he co-wrote with Spencer, sold 1.4 million copies. His current book, Four Weeks to Better Sleep, is high on the bestseller lists. And his radio and podcast series Just One Thing on health and wellbeing tips has had more than 25 million listeners, making it the BBC’s most popular podcast.
Mosley took a circuitous route into writing and broadcasting about health. He was born in Calcutta, India, in 1957 and went on to study PPE at Oxford. His contemporaries there included Theresa May and Damian Green. After university he went into banking but then retrained as a doctor, where he met his future wife, Clare Bailey.
She became a GP, but Mosley thought he might be better suited to a career at the BBC. He worked as a producer on science shows including Tomorrow’s World and Horizon. But his real success came after he appeared in front of the camera.
More recently, Mosley and Bailey have collaborated on books about food and done stage shows together. They have four children.
Prof. Andrew Steptoe, head of behavioral sciences and health at University College London, who has performed in a number of Mosley’s programmes, said: “He has done a fantastic job in popularizing health promotion and preventing ill health. He was very focused on encouraging people to do things that would increase their well-being and reduce their risk of disease before it starts.”
When Mosley was asked about the success of Just One Thing last month, he told Radio Wales: “It has completely surprised me how popular it is. But I really enjoy talking to the experts and trying things out. And I try them all. And some stick around. Some of them don’t. I still do most of them, but I tend to alternate them.”
The show started during the Covid lockdown when Mosley converted a room in his Buckinghamshire home into a makeshift sound studio by muffling the sound with clothes from his wife’s wardrobe. Since then, the show has explored more than 90 health tips in 15-minute programs. Topics covered include the latest health trends: green tea, flaxseed, olive oil, skipping, planking and turmeric.
But they also reflect Mosley’s interest in mental health. There have been episodes about volunteering, reading poetry, playing a musical instrument, being kind and laughing.
When asked about his favorite Just One Thing tip, Mosley said: “I would probably say slow, deep breathing because it has really changed my life. For the past 30 years I have really had trouble sleeping. I have found that by breathing deeply, I usually fall back asleep within a few minutes.”
The success of the series prompted the BBC to commission a TV version, which, before Mosley’s death, was due to air in the autumn. Mosley said he had filmed episodes about dancing in Blackpool and walking with Nordic poles in the Lake District.
Steptoe said: “He viewed health in a holistic way – not just about actions such as exercise and diet, but also about how to support people’s morale and psychological well-being. In the last long interview I did with him last fall, we talked about the crucial role of social relationships and of actively participating in goal-oriented activities. He spoke very warmly about his wife and family, and I am deeply sorry for their loss.”
Spencer added: “What happened is unbearably sad. My heart goes out to Claire and the family. He told me endless stories about what his children were doing. They were extremely important to him and I know they are going through hell right now and my heart is with them today.”