OG Made in Chelsea star Spencer Matthews has long left his reality roots behind, and now the 35 year old is best known as a broadcaster and an entrepreneur, having founded his non-alcoholic spirits company CleanCo in 2019. He tied the knot with his presenter wife (and podcast co-host) Vogue Williams in 2018, after telling her he was going to marry her the very first time he met her on celebrity skiing show The Jump the previous year. The couple are parents to Theodore, five, Gigi, three, and Otto, one.
IRL, Spencer is very posh, very handsome and very funny. He has the casual confidence of someone who has been very well-educated, but apparently not even Eton can teach you that Jesus isn’t basically the same as Santa Claus. “Seriously, I had no idea,” he laughs. We chatted to him as he geared up to star on both The Great Celebrity Bake Off for SU2C and the latest series of Pilgrimage, which saw him embark on a spiritual trek around Wales with six fellow celebs. How’s that for eclectic?
Did you enjoy taking part in Bake Off?
It was phenomenal. The honour of standing in the tent was almost too much. I’ve always been a huge fan of the show and I’m just particularly delighted to be involved in the Stand Up To Cancer version. Meeting Paul [Hollywood] and Prue [Leith] was obviously a huge highlight, and now I bake most days at home.
Seriously?
No, I’m kidding. I have done a bit of baking since, but it’s mostly been Vogue doing it, I have to admit. She bakes with the kids, but now I’ve been on Bake Off, I kind of sit back and offer advice when it’s not needed.
She must love that…
No, she doesn’t. Any interference with Vogue’s cooking tends to not be appreciated. We both cook and mix it up a bit. It usually depends on who’s had the most full-on day. There is a bit of Deliveroo going on, especially with three kids.
What’s your food delivery of choice?
I’m a huge pizza guy. I would have pizza at least twice a week if I could. I’ll sometimes have it as a snack. I’ll order two pizzas and I’ll pan-fry the second one the next day and have it for lunch. I’ll add spices and I’ll dunk the crispy bits of pizza in houmous and Siracha sauce. If you haven’t done that before, it’s delicious. That should be the biggest takeaway from this interview.
Which of the other contestants did you get on best with?
I think we’re very, very fortunate with our group. I loved Munya [Chawawa, actor and comedian]. He’s absolutely phenomenal and so funny. We were next to each other, so we battled throughout. We had general levels of animosity to each other during the bakes, and then we were friendly afterwards. I really enjoyed everyone’s company. Paloma Faith was brilliant, too. She had this fascination with me going to public school that she wasn’t quite able to drop throughout filming.
What was the most difficult thing about taking part in the show?
I guess it’s not knowing what the technical bake is. When they sprung that on us, it was quite a big surprise and I instantly thought, “Oh dear”. It was tricky, to say the least. I made fresh jam and now I know how much sugar is in it, it’s not something I’ve eaten since. If you like jam, maybe go to the bathroom during that bit of the programme if you don’t want to be put off for life.
Pizza aside, you lead a pretty healthy lifestyle. What’s the weirdest wellness thing you do?
I don’t consider any of my wellness habits to be particularly weird. I’ve heard of people who insist on getting to the park first thing in the morning barefoot, so that they can connect to the ground and stare at the sun. I haven’t taken it that far yet. I say yet because there’s plenty of room for stuff like that. I love early morning ice baths and I’d imagine they’re considered weird by my neighbour. Most mornings at about 6.30am, I do a stint at 0.1 degrees. There’s often a thick layer of ice on top and I’m completely submerged from the chin down.
Chilly! You’re also in the new series of Pilgrimage. What was that experience like?
It’s actually very funny. It combines very serious religious matters with loads of jokes. It’s a very easy watch, but I think it’s also pretty educational. It’s a heart-warming show, too. The other people on it were fantastic and the whole process was awesome. I actually didn’t think it would be as good as it was.
Did it change your opinions?
Yes. Did you know that Jesus was a real person? I know for a fact that a lot of people are going to be very shocked when they watch episode one. It was a shock for me to be told there is no doubt he existed. I had him in the Santa Claus and Easter Bunny bracket, but he was a real human being. I’m telling you, Jesus was real.
What made you think he wasn’t?
I was getting my Old Testament and New Testament confused. When I would hear about Moses parting the Red Sea or Noah whacking animals two by two on Arks as a young kid, I thought, “No, I’m not buying any of that”. To me, Noah and Moses were nonsense. I thought Jesus was kind of an extension of that because he came along and turned water into wine and walked on water and stuff. I was like, “Either Jesus was a phenomenal magician or he didn’t exist”. I thought given that magic wasn’t particularly evolved at the time, the chances of him existing were probably quite slim. Then I thought he was basically like the David Blaine of his day. But magic aside, he was a normal bloke and the stories about him were wildly elaborated on so that they’ve stood the test of time.
Did you go into the show with an open mind?
I was the most curious cat in the whole show. I went in with absolutely no expectations of anything, I wanted to learn as much as possible about all different religions and spiritual and moral pillars. I came out as a more rounded, knowledgeable individual.
Did your family notice a change in you?
They thought I was very different for about two weeks after I finished the show. I was kind of calm, quiet, and a bit more considered. It made me question what had previously been noise in my head, and it helped me realise priorities and think a bit more broadly about life. We were on pilgrimage for two full weeks and we spent the majority of our time speaking about things like what we think happens after death, and religion. Basically, you spend an awfully long time talking about subjects that you wouldn’t ordinarily talk about. It was refreshing and nice to be around completely non-judgmental people, who were able to share interesting views.
How is CleanCo going?
It’s great, thanks for asking. It’s climbing the ladder as one of the largest independent non-alcoholic drinks companies in the world. It’s doing very well. We’re focusing on two main markets, the UK and the US, but the appetite for the product is growing enormously with time. We were probably a little bit early with it a few years ago, but now I feel like there’s plenty of public support for this kind of product and the company is going from strength to strength.
There is an increasing trend for people either not drinking or drinking less…
I think there’s more access to information nowadays, through podcasts and social media. I think the younger generation wants to put their best foot forward because most things are publicised through socials. I suppose there’s less room for being drunk. Alcohol appears to be treading a similar path to cigarettes and, ultimately, I think that people are spending more time considering their general health and wellbeing. Without sounding completely boring, because I’m not anti-alcohol, there are no positive attributes to alcohol because it’s a neurotoxin – it does very little for your brain and your body. I think people are generally more aware of that now.
You told Vogue you were going to marry her the day you met her. How did she react?
She thought I was full of shit. But I was right!
How is it working on your Spencer & Vogue podcast together?
It’s fun. Obviously, we try not to argue too much when we’re recording live as the arguments tend to follow us home. I love working with my wife and I’m very fortunate to be in a position to do that.
There was a photo of you recently with her name tattooed on your chest…
No, I don’t have a tattoo. One of my kids wrote it on my chest with a ballpoint pen, but it didn’t stop people widely reporting that I’d had a tattoo done. It must have been a slow news day.
Is it also true you and the family have moved to Dublin?
Again, no. Everyone keeps saying that to me. We still live in London, we haven’t sold the house and there’s been no move of any kind. My brother called me and said, “You’ve moved to Dublin?” and I was like, “I would’ve let you know!”
The Great Celebrity Bake Off for SU2C is available to watch on Channel 4 now. Pilgrimage: The Road Through North Wales, is on Fridays at 9pm, on BBC Two and iPlayer.