British TV doctor Michael Mosley missing in Greece after lone ...

Well-known British TV doctor and journalist Michael Mosley has been reported missing after going on a coastal walk alone on the Greek island of Symi, police officials say.

Mosley was last seen at 1:30pm local time on Wednesday when he set out on a short stroll along a path between Agios Nikolaos beach to the village of Pedi, one of the officials said.

His wife reported him missing on Thursday morning local time. 

A search operation was launched by police, the coast guard and the fire brigade on the small island in the eastern Aegean Sea near Turkey, another official said. 

Mosley, 67, is a broadcaster well known in the UK for programmes including the BBC series Trust Me, I'm a Doctor. 

He also appeared on BBC's The One Show and ITV's This Morning.

Mosley popularised the 5:2 diet which endorses intermittent fasting and is an advocate of The Fast 800 diet. 

A fire brigade team had been deployed from the nearby island of Rhodes and was using drones. 

Police have also requested a helicopter, one official said.

Symi is a sparsely populated rocky island about 10 miles long with around 2,500 residents. 

Reuters