I originally wrote this back in March 2024 in preparation for the Memorial book we are preparing – that is still being worked on by Dad and I will update people when that is completed.
Matt was born 20th September 1978 and as my younger brother he has been a fundamental part of my life ever since then. If Matt has mentioned me to you, then you may already know that I originally trained as a scientist. I have always found science to be fascinating because it pursues the discovery of new facts and truths about ourselves and the wider world. In spite of what modern politicians would have you believe, a fact is something which is indisputable and based on quantifiable evidence. However, a truth is something entirely more elusive – it may be built upon a set of facts but it can also include a significant element of belief.
I specialised in genetics because it is essentially the study of the similarity and uniqueness caused by our nature and nurture. People often mistake genetics to be a deterministic field – that our nature is fixed and so biological destiny is already predestined and so it is inescapable, but that is simply not true – most complex traits in humans come from how our genes interact with our environment.
Here are some simple facts about Matt’s nature:
Exactly one half of his genes are identical to those of his Mother, Jenny.
Exactly one half of his genes are identical to those of his Father, Robin.
Roughly half of his genes are identical to mine.
Between a half and a quarter of his genes will be identical to those of his half-sister, Rowan and the same applies to his half-brother Elliot.
Roughly a quarter of his genes are identical to those of his niece (and my daughter), Ava.
Now that Matt has gone, always remember that a significant piece of his nature still lives on in all these family members. My first truth is that I like to think that the best parts of my nature are those which I shared in common with Matt.
Humans are social creatures and arguably the most important part of our environment is not heat, light, humidity or food, but rather how we are nurtured – the social interactions and bonds we form with our family and friends – how we share, empathise, love and laugh.
He had a varied and rich social and personal life. It is very hard to do him justice in so few words, but perhaps the best summary is his own beautifully concise Instagram handle: Librarian. Gay geek. London. Forever European.
Perhaps the most important fact about Matt’s nature is that he simply loved stories – it didn’t matter if the medium was art, books, comics, computer games, plays, movies, TV shows or role-playing games. He loved Grant Morrison’s metatextual comics, Jack Kirby’s art, Angela Carter’s subversion of genre fiction, the ambition of Babylon 5’s metaplot, David Lynch’s cinematic surrealism, the sci-fi utopianism of Dr. Who and Star Trek, the grit and florid language of Deadwood and the candy froth of Sex In The City to name but a few of his obsessions.
While he had struggles with depression and anxiety throughout his life, I was always impressed with Matt’s capacity to rebuild himself and always work towards self-improvement through journaling. He was always funny, introspective, reflective and empathic towards other people – always aimed to be a better person and constantly rewrote his own personal story.
Undoubtedly the love of family and friends contributed to him being such a unique and special person. My second and final truth about Matt is that an important part of his nurture still continues to live on in your memories of him and I hope to have the chance to meet with you all to share your stories about him.
Ben Fletcher
25th March 2024
How Is Matt? 