 In 1924, Beetham, along with Somervell (who had already been on the 1922 British Mount Everest Expedition), was chosen by the Mount Everest Committee to be a member of the ill-fated 1924 British Mount Everest expedition, on which Mallory and Irvine were killed.Beetham suffered from dysentery and sciatica and never made it high on the mountain.In his 2012 book "Into the Silence", Wade Davis argues that Beetham – whom he considered an ill-advised selection for the expedition – prevented the most qualified and promising English climber of the period, Richard Graham, from joining.