Made In Chelsea's Spencer Matthews reveals how he became alcoholic after bizarre office initiation ceremony

Spencer Matthews has revealed how taking part in a work initiation that saw him drink six cans of Stella led him into a battle with alcoholism.

The former Made In Chelsea star, who has since been sober for six years, said he began struggling with the disease after developing bad habits due to the stress of working as a banker.

The TV personality, 35, worked as a broker for years before finding fame on the Channel 4 reality show.

The star, who quit drinking for the sake of his marriage with Vogue Williams, also founded his own non-alcoholic spirits company called CleanCo.

Speaking on the Daily Mail's Everything I Know About Me podcast, the father-of-three recalled feeling 'forced' to take part in an office challenge which saw him race colleagues to eat ‘Big Macs, a six-pack of Stella, and four large chocolate muffins.’

Reflecting in his experience as a banker he said: “Every single day we'd go out and drink excessive pints of Guinness. It's certainly where the brunt of alcoholism probably came in.

"Because you know, you're entertaining clients late into the night, you're back at work the following day, that first drink creeps up earlier and earlier, until all of a sudden you're pi**ed, a lot of the time.”

The star added that at one point he was going out ‘five nights a week’ leading to him gaining weight and looking unhealthy.

He detailed how he was ‘grey in colour’ with ‘huge, puffy eyes’ and felt ‘exhausted all of the time’ due his excessive drinking.

Spencer’s issues with alcohol only got worse when he landed his role on Made In Chelsea, as the star became a socialite known for attending the top booze-fuelled parties.

The star reflected on juggling his day job with the show after joining the original series in 2011. He told the Mail how he filmed the entire first season while still working as a banker, meaning he often had to juggle ‘entertaining clients’ into the early hours while also showing up for long filming days on set.

Eventually, he decided to quit his job and focus on Made in Chelsea, appearing on the programme until he left in season 10 in 2015.

Spencer has been candid about his recovery from alcoholism, opening up about it several times in recent years.

Posting on Instagram in 2019, he wrote: "Sobriety is a lifestyle choice I made a few months before becoming a dad. 'Drinking lead me to make poor decisions and achieving my full potential was slipping away."