Survivor UK winner and Huddersfield Town fan Matthew Haywood says a life like his 'possible' for young men
More than two years have passed since Matthew Haywood won BBC One’s Survivor UK, but his appetite for adventure is undimmed. And he wants to show young men that they, too, can have a life beyond what they expect.
In becoming the show’s youngest winner at 21 in 2023, Matthew acquired the £100,000 prize after beating 17 other contestants who were marooned on a tropical island and split into groups of two before voting each other off one by one, the separate tribes having merged.
While raised in Workington, Cumbria, Matthew says he feels “very Yorkshire” as he is a lifelong Huddersfield Town FC fan – a passion passed down from his late grandmother Bernadette, a proud resident of the town who died aged 78 in 2020 during lockdown, after being diagnosed with cancer.
“Growing up, we were going to Huddersfield all the time, even some Christmas mornings. We'd wake up on Christmas Day, we wouldn’t open presents at all, and then we’d drive two hours to Huddersfield and spend Christmas there,” says Matthew, 23.
"When my grandma was alive, she introduced me to the football team and I always did think it was really cool to have a grandma that was into football, because I didn't know anyone else that did.”
Matthew says that throughout his life, whenever there was “anything adventurous, I'd give it a go” – so when the opportunity to compete on Survivor UK, which was filmed in the Dominican Republic, he jumped at the chance even though it meant dropping out of university in Manchester.
"I actually live with no regrets,” he says. “I know it's so easy to say that, but I actually do. I think you just gotta try things, like, why not? When would an opportunity come around like that again?”
The gamble paid off and he ended up with the prize money, but he says “I'm not a big spender,” with the cash allowing him to explore places like America and Europe.
"I just want experiences. I don't have any expensive possessions,” he says, adding: "I've been skydiving, bungee jumping, I've travelled.”
Having always been a bit of a performer, Matthew has since been seen in skits on CBBC’s Saturday Mash-Up! Live, appearing alongside naturalist and explorer Steve Backshall.
He is running the London Marathon 2026 for the Marie Curie charity and recently took part in a 12-hour live ‘Talkathon’ for Andy’s Man Club.
After building up a big social media following since being on television, he wants to show young men what they can do with their lives.
“If I can inspire young men and boys in my town and my area, people who watch me, then I would love to be that role model for them.
"I do think that people get maybe get told ‘this isn't possible, this can't happen’, and hopefully I'm showing that it can happen, and people can create this for themselves. You need a bit of luck and you need the passion, I think, to go and do something but it is possible.”