Michael Mosley’s affection for his wife shone clearly as the BBC broadcast his last ever interview – on how to live a good life.
The Mail health guru’s moving final program was recorded in front of an audience at the Hay Festival, just two weeks before the beloved health expert’s tragic death in Greece.
Time and again Dr Mosley mentioned his wife Dr Clare Bailey with whom he has four children and worked closely on all his projects.
Before Radio 4 listeners heard him speak for the last time, his friend and fellow TV doctor and presenter Chris van Tulleken paid tribute to him as ‘one of the most important broadcasters of recent decades’, adding: ‘ Before Michael, doctors in white coasts told you how to live from their ivory towers.
“Michael’s genius was to make himself a patient and a guinea pig. We will never forget that he infected himself with a tapeworm and placed a camera in his back hallway – all for our benefit. He’s the reason so many programs on radio and television have adopted this style – he’s the reason I’ve adopted this style.”
Michael Mosley’s (pictured) moving final program was recorded in front of an audience at the Hay Festival, just two weeks before the beloved health expert’s tragic death in Greece.
Dr. Mosley (pictured in the BBC Blood and Guts program) said he sought pain and pleasure by taking cold showers, and joked that he masked the discomfort by singing loudly ‘what my wife really hates’
Referring to Dr. Mosley’s critically acclaimed Just One Thing series to improve our health, said Dr. Van Tulleken says his legacy ‘lives on in our memories every time we brush our teeth while standing on one leg, fast a little longer between meals or do squats’.
The nutritionist, 67, died last week while on holiday with his wife on the Greek island of Symi.
He apparently got lost while walking in bright 40 degree Celsius sunshine and collapsed just meters from rescue at a beach resort.
His final broadcast was filmed at the Hay Festival on May 25, in which Dr. Mosley interviewed professor Paul Bloom, an expert on pain and pleasure, and asked him his five tips for living a good life.
Dr. Mosley said, “I have long been obsessed with how to live a good life.”
He said he sought pain and pleasure by taking cold showers, and joked that he masked the discomfort by singing loudly “which my wife really hates.”
Fellow TV doctor and presenter Chris van Tulleken paid tribute to Dr. Mosley, claiming that it was “his genius to make himself a patient and a guinea pig.” He said viewers will never forget when Mosley (pictured on BBC Infested! Living with Parasites) infected himself with a tapeworm
Michael Mosley’s affection for his wife shone clearly as the BBC broadcast his last ever interview – on how to live a good life. Time and again Dr Mosley mentioned his wife Dr Clare Bailey (pictured with her husband at their home in 2013) with whom he has four children and worked closely on all his projects.
Michael Mosley is seen with his wife Clare and others, including a camera crew, in Colwyn Bay, North Wales, on May 10, just weeks before his disappearance in Symi, Greece
He also drew laughs from the audience when he revealed that when he built IKEA shelves poorly, “my wife says ‘why on earth didn’t you go and buy it’, but the joy of DIY is a tip for a good life.”
Another tip on the special program – an expanded version of Just One Thing for an upcoming series on deeper health advice – was ‘losing yourself’, with the pair discussing getting out and doing something different to give their minds a break. .
Dr. Van Tulleken told listeners of the tribute program There’s Only One Michael Mosley: ‘You can hear how happy Michael is with this meeting, how fascinated he was by the research and how he also gave it meaning for the audience, while ensuring that everyone had a good time.
“How to live a good life, something he certainly did.”