Dr Michael Mosley: Foul play ruled out in TV doctor’s death – as CCTV footage appears to capture moment he fell
Foul play has been ruled out in the death of Michael Mosley – as CCTV footage appears to show him falling over close to where his body was found.
WARNING: This article contains descriptions of Dr Michael Mosley’s last moments which some readers might find distressing
There were no injuries on the TV doctor’s body that could have caused his death, according to Greek police sources.
CCTV footage appeared to show him falling over close to where his body was found in Agia Marina on the island of Symi – and clearly shows that no one was with him.
His time of death was around 4pm on Wednesday, a few hours after he went missing and very soon after he fell.
The cause of death can only be determined once the toxicology report is back.
Footage found by a beach bar at Agia Marina shows what appears to be the 67-year-old making his way down a rocky slope close to a fence before he falls out of view.
Agia Marina bar manager Ilias Tsavaris, 38, told Sky News correspondent Sadiya Chowdhury in Symi the CCTV shows Mosley walking along the perimeter.
“Over there in the mountains, like 30m from the place where we found him, he started crawling a little. And then the distance of 30m, which a normal person could do in two minutes or five minutes, took him half an hour or more,” he said.
“So he’s still crawling over and then he fell, passed out exactly in the place where we found him.”
Dr Michael Mosley. Pic: SYSPEO/SIPA/Shutterstock
A rocky path in the hills of Pedi. Pic: PA
His widow Dr Clare Bailey Mosley said he “very nearly made it” to safety.
She said Mosley – who went missing on Wednesday after leaving his wife and friends at Agios Nikolaos beach to walk back to their hotel – appeared to have undertaken an “incredible climb, took the wrong route and collapsed where he couldn’t be easily seen” by search and rescue teams.
Tributes have poured in for the doctor who made popular the 5:2 diet and championed public health.
Mosley first trained as a doctor in London before moving into the world of media, becoming a presenter, documentary maker, author and columnist.
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Who was Michael Mosley?
His body was discovered by a cameraman on Sunday morning after a widespread search by emergency services operating in dangerous conditions and high temperatures.
He had been missing for four days and police said they believed he had walked north from Pedi marina in the direction of Agia beach.
His wife raised the alarm after he failed to return.
His four children also arrived on the island to help search for their father as the focus shifted to a snake-infested mountainous area after CCTV footage on Saturday emerged of his then last known movements.
It showed him on Wednesday making his way through the small fishing village of Pedi heading up into the remote rocky terrain.
This image of Mosley was shared in a local Facebook group appeal
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CCTV of Mosley on day he went missing
Mr Tsavaris was the person sent to check if what local cameraman Antonios saw was indeed the doctor’s body.
He told Chowdhury: “Without saying anything I went outside the fence and as soon as I turned my head on the left, I saw something. I went up close, really close to the man. I saw the body.
“You don’t see these kinds of things every day, especially on a small island and a small place like this. So it was not the best feeling.”
He said he has not been able to eat since yesterday, adding his thoughts are with Dr Mosley’s children who he said had followed their father’s perceived footsteps two days earlier and searched just metres away from where his body was eventually found.
“The whole family came here still searching. They had some water to get some rest. And then they continued searching, walking. But they took the path back on the opposite side.”
He told of how close Dr Mosley’s children had come to finding their father.
“If they walked for five minutes, probably,” he said.
“I don’t know if that’s a bad thing or a good thing, because I cannot imagine his family that’s here to see what I saw. And believe me, what I saw, it’s… I cannot describe. It was not a good thing to see.”
A coastguard boat took the body to Rhodes for a post-mortem
Pic: Reuters
Mosley’s body was found about 50m from the closest jetty and the resort’s northern sunbeds – and taken to Rhodes by the Greek coastguard for a post-mortem and formal identification.
The coroner’s office in Rhodes confirmed to Chowdhury an autopsy has been completed.
Read more:
Mosley’s body found metres from safety
Who was Michael Mosley?
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The news has sparked an outpouring of grief from his loved ones and fans, with friends and colleagues praising him for innovating the world of science and health broadcasting.
Chris van Tulleken, Mosley’s co-presenter on BBC series Trust Me, I’m A Doctor, said broadcasting can be “very competitive and a bit cut-throat” but Mosley “created this generous idea that we were all in this together and so he was endlessly helpful off screen as well”.
He added: “There’s so much of his content I just consumed as a normal consumer. I enjoyed it, it entertained me while I was listening, and then it quietly changed my daily practices. So my own personal medical routine every day is very, very based on the work of Michael Mosley over the last 10-15 years.”
Downing Street said Mosley was an “extraordinary broadcaster” who had a “huge impact” on people’s lives.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced his resignation.
The 53-year-old said he will step down as leader of the country’s ruling Liberal Party, which he has led since 2013.
He says it will allow his party to choose a new leader as he suspends parliament until March due to political deadlock.
Chrystia Freeland, seen on the day she quit as finance minister and deputy prime minister in December. Pic: Spencer Colby/The Canadian Press via AP
Follow live: Justin Trudeau announces resignation
Speaking to reporters in front of his residence at Rideau Cottage, in the country’s capital, Ottawa, he said “internal battles” mean that he “cannot be the best option” in the next election.
“I don’t easily back down faced with a fight, especially a very important one for our party and the country. But I do this job because the interests of Canadians and the well-being of democracy is something that I hold dear.
“A new prime minister and leader of the Liberal Party will carry its values and ideals into that next election. I am excited to see that process unfold in the months ahead.”
Former governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, is among the favourites to succeed him.
Chrystia Freeland, whose stunning resignation as finance minister and deputy prime minister precipitated the current crisis, leads in the polls.
Other front-runners are the former premier of British Columbia, Christy Clark, current finance minister Dominic LeBlanc and minister of foreign affairs, Melanie Joly.
Mr Trudeau, who has been prime minister since 2015, faced calls to quit from a chorus of his MPs amid poor showings in opinion polls.
He came under further pressure after Ms Freeland quit in December because of policy disagreements, including over how to handle possible US tariffs imposed by Donald Trump‘s incoming administration.
Justin Trudeau and Donald Trump in Italy in 2017. Pic: AP
Mr Trudeau’s resignation comes as the polls show his party is likely to suffer a heavy defeat to the official opposition Conservatives in an election that must be held by late October.
The Liberals must now name an interim leader to take over as prime minister ahead of a special leadership convention.
Mr Trudeau came to power 10 years ago following a decade of Conservative Party rule and was initially praised for returning the country to its liberal past.
But he has become deeply unpopular with voters in recent years over a range of issues, including the soaring cost of food and housing and surging immigration.
He is the eldest son of Pierre Trudeau, one of Canada’s most famous prime ministers, who led the country from 1968 to 1979 and from 1980 to 1984.
The political upheaval comes at a difficult moment for Canada internationally.
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US President-elect Donald Trump has threatened to impose 25% tariffs on all Canadian goods if Ottawa does not stem what Mr Trump calls a flow of migrants and drugs into the US.
Many fewer of each cross into the US from Canada than from Mexico, which Mr Trump has also threatened.
In a social media post on Christmas Day, Mr Trump even suggested the US could take control of Canada, as well as Greenland and the Panama Canal.
Canada is a major exporter of oil and natural gas to the US, which also relies on its northern neighbour for steel, aluminium and autos.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced his resignation.
The 53-year-old said he will step down as leader of the country’s ruling Liberal Party, which he has led since 2013.
He says it will allow his party to choose a new leader as he suspends parliament until March due to political deadlock.
Chrystia Freeland, seen on the day she quit as finance minister and deputy prime minister in December. Pic: Spencer Colby/The Canadian Press via AP
Follow live: Justin Trudeau announces resignation
Speaking to reporters in front of his residence at Rideau Cottage, in the country’s capital, Ottawa, he said “internal battles” mean that he “cannot be the best option” in the next election.
“I don’t easily back down faced with a fight, especially a very important one for our party and the country. But I do this job because the interests of Canadians and the well-being of democracy is something that I hold dear.
“A new prime minister and leader of the Liberal Party will carry its values and ideals into that next election. I am excited to see that process unfold in the months ahead.”
Mr Trudeau, who has been prime minister since 2015, faced calls to quit from a chorus of his MPs amid poor showings in opinion polls.
He came under further pressure after his finance minister, Chrystia Freeland, resigned in December over clashes on policy.
The disagreements included how to handle possible US tariffs imposed by Donald Trump‘s incoming administration.
Justin Trudeau and Donald Trump in Italy in 2017. Pic: AP
Mr Trudeau’s resignation comes as the polls show his party is likely to suffer a heavy defeat to the official opposition Conservatives in an election that must be held by late October.
The Liberals must now name an interim leader to take over as prime minister ahead of a special leadership convention.
Mr Trudeau came to power 10 years ago following a decade of Conservative Party rule and was initially praised for returning the country to its liberal past.
But he has become deeply unpopular with voters in recent years over a range of issues, including the soaring cost of food and housing and surging immigration.
He is the eldest son of Pierre Trudeau, one of Canada’s most famous prime ministers, who led the country from 1968 to 1979 and from 1980 to 1984.
The political upheaval comes at a difficult moment for Canada internationally.
Read more:
Former golden boy’s popularity in shreds
Zimbabwean migrants heading to South Africa
60m Americans under weather warnings
US President-elect Donald Trump has threatened to impose 25% tariffs on all Canadian goods if Ottawa does not stem what Mr Trump calls a flow of migrants and drugs into the US.
Many fewer of each cross into the US from Canada than from Mexico, which Mr Trump has also threatened.
In a social media post on Christmas Day, Mr Trump even suggested the US could take control of Canada, as well as Greenland and the Panama Canal.
Canada is a major exporter of oil and natural gas to the US, which also relies on its northern neighbour for steel, aluminium and autos.
Few one-time golden boys manage to retain their lustre long into political office.
Barack Obama just about held on to his, leaving the US presidency with his approval rating high despite his party’s 2016 loss to Donald Trump.
But Emmanuel Macron is faltering in France and Justin Trudeau steps down as head of Canada’s liberal party with his popularity in shreds. So much for Western liberal values.
In the high tides of inflation and immigration, those who were their supposed flag-bearers are no longer what electorates want.
Follow live: Justin Trudeau announces resignation
For Mr Trudeau, it is a dramatic reckoning. His approval ratings have dropped from 65% at their highest in September 2016 to 22% now, according to the “Trudeau Tracker” from Canada’s non-profit Angus Reid Institute.
The sudden departure of his finance minister and key political ally Chrystia Freeland last month dealt his leadership a body blow, just as Canada readies itself for a potential trade war with the US which, she argued in a bracing resignation letter, his government was not taking seriously enough.
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“Parliament has been paralysed for months,” Trudeau says
The man Mr Trump recently trolled as “Governor of the ‘Great State of Canada’ or ’51st (US) state'”, Mr Trudeau was as close to Canadian political royalty as it gets.
The son of the country’s 15th prime minister, Pierre Trudeau, he was famously toasted by US president Richard Nixon as “the future prime minister of Canada” when he joined his father on a state visit as a toddler.
Aged five, he met the late Queen for the first time. “Thank you for making me feel so old”, she remarked drily at a re-meet in Malta almost 40 years later.
He has led Canada’s liberal party since 2013 and served as the country’s 23rd prime minister for almost a decade.
Mr Trudeau won a resounding electoral victory in 2015 and secured the premiership through two subsequent elections, though as head of a minority government.
Mr Trudeau, his wife and children celebrate after he won the Federal Liberal leadership in 2013 in Ottawa. Pic: AP/The Canadian Press/Adrian Wyld
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He made significant inroads against poverty in Canada, worked hard on nation to nation reconciliation with Canada’s indigenous communities, secured an effective trade deal with the US and Mexico in 2016 and managed to keep the public mostly on-side through the COVID-19 pandemic.
But he was a polarising figure. Holidays in exotic climes like a trip to the Bahamas in 2016 to an island belonging to the Aga Khan made him seem elitist and out of touch.
There was embarrassment when blackface images surfaced from his early years as a teacher, for which he apologised profusely.
His supposed liberal credentials smacked of double standards when he invoked emergency powers to crush truckers’ protests in 2022.
But it was the economic aftermath of the pandemic, with Canada suffering an acute housing shortage, immigration leaping under his premiership and the cost of living hitting households across the board which really piled on the pressure.
In those, Canada is not unique. But the opposition conservatives and the public at large clearly want change, and Mr Trudeau has responded.
He has announced his intention to resign as party leader and prime minister after the Liberals selects their next leader.
Mr Trudeau’s legacy may shine brighter with a little hindsight. But now is not that moment.
The question is whether his conservative opposition will fare any better in an increasingly combative geopolitical environment if, as seems likely, a candidate of their choosing wins a federal election due at some point this year.
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