The billionaire businessman said he felt there was 'definitely a friendly star above our family' as they had to scramble behind large boulders during the dramatic incident.

He told the Press Association the team of climbers were picked up by a helicopter after reaching the summit as they agreed the path back down was not worth the risk.

The 68-year-old, along with Sam and his nephew Noah Devereux reached the top of the mountain on Saturday afternoon after completing the 33-day Virgin Strive Challenge - a 2,000km trek across Western Europe.