Spencer Matthews has admitted he “could have died” if he didn’t stop his “abusive” drinking habits.
The former Made In Chelsea star is married to TV presenter Vogue Williams, with whom he shares three children.
The 35-year-old opened up about his “excessive daily drinking”, and how it threatened his relationship with his wife on the latest episode of the Boots podcast Taboo Talk.
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Appearing alongside Vogue, who hosts the podcast, Spencer told his wife and listeners: “It’s not like I just fancied giving up drinking.
“I could have lost you, I could have lost work, I could have died – not to be overly dramatic about it, but that’s the way it was heading.”
Spencer credited Vogue for helping him to “break the habit of abusive drinking” – and revealed he is now able to drink in moderation.
“I feel very fortunate to have found that level of balance,” he said.
“Before, having one glass would have turned into ten and then I’d be out all night.”
“I’m sober most of the time now. I’ve gone from problem-drinking on a daily basis to having a drink if I feel like it very irregularly.”
“I no longer see it as a problem. I have great balance in my life,” he concluded.
Spencer admitted he began drinking excessively when he was a reality star on Made In Chelsea, a period in his life when he labelled himself as “bored and unambitious”.
The founder of CleanCo said: “I had a moment of clarity when I was drinking on my own at night if Vogue wasn’t around. All of a sudden I was going to bed drunk.
“One night, when I was alone, I had a bottle of whiskey and struggled to get myself to bed. I was hammered drunk. I remember waking up the next day and thought ‘I don’t need this in my life’.”
“If I wasn’t married to someone who didn’t have a great relationship with alcohol, as in you don’t really like it, then my journey would have been more difficult.”
Spencer has been married to the Irish presenter since 2018 when the couple tied the knot at his family’s estate in the Scottish Highlands, months before they welcomed their first child Theodore.
They met in January 2017, when they were both cast in Channel 4 series The Jump.
On their podcast Spencer and Vogue, Spencer opened up about meeting Vogue for the first time and said: “I thought you were ok, I thought you had some questionable exes if I’m honest, so that was a bit of a red flag for me.”
Clearly taken aback, Vogue scoffed: “I was a red flag to you? What?! That is the most bonkers s**t. Haha! Oh my god!”
The former Made In Chelsea star admitted he questioned Vogue’s “taste” because he knew somebody she was seeing at the time.
After Vogue insisted he wasn’t “that bad”, Spencer continued: “Whatever. I thought we were going to be the best of pals.”
“You and I gelled better than anyone else on that show straight away, so you and I were kind of best mates from day one.”
“And it was great, my first impression of you was nothing short of brilliant. We didn’t really fancy each other fully at the start, as we’ve said about a billion times whenever we’re asked.
Revealing her first impression of Spencer, Vogue recalled: “You came in, you reeked of booze at the time, and you weren’t very well put together – I definitely didn’t fancy you.”
“You arrived late as well, and I can’t stand when people are late… So I thought, ‘oh god, this is not a great first impression, he’s late…’”
“And then when we were friends on the slopes straight away, then we were like best pals.”
Vogue is the host of the Boots-sponsored podcast called Taboo Talk, which is set to delve into a vast range of taboo topics such as self-pleasure, sobriety, being neurodivergent and much more.
The first episode of the sixth series, titled “Sober Curious”, included two other guests, Scott Thomas and Millie Gooch, who also provided insight into their alcohol-free lifestyle.
The podcast delves deep as the trio get candid about their choice to go sober and the personal low points they have reached on their journey.
