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24/11/2000 Sir David Attenborough Sir David Attenborough is, by common consent, the world's foremost naturalist and broadcaster of wildlife programmes. His international bestselling books accompanying documentary series that are watched by millions around the globe have provided education, information and inspiration to thousands. Born in London in 1926 and educated at Cambridge, Sir David started making television documentaries in the 1950s. Although using equipment that would be deemed antiquated by today's standards - clockwork cameras which would permit less than 3 minutes of filming before the film had to be changed - his contagious enthusiasm for the natural world was carried over into his first series 'Zoo Quest' - making it hugely successful with viewers. The popularity of seeing such a gentle but informative broadcaster capturing intimate footage of rare wildlife in the previously unfilmed habitats of Sierra Leone, Borneo, Peru or Madagascar encouraged the BBC to widen the scope of its educational programming and paved the way for Sir David's subsequent award-winning series. In 1965 Sir David became controller of the BBC's new second television channel, BBC2, where he introduced other landmark educational series such as Kenneth (later Lord) Clark's 'Civilisation'. He was later made Director of Programming in 1969. Not bad for someone who was actually turned down for his first job in radio. In 1972 however Sir David resigned this post in order to return to writing, producing and narrating documentary series - perhaps the most well-known of these, 'Life on Earth', being broadcast in 1979. The next twenty years saw an unrivalled stream of television success with series such as 'The Living Planet, 'The First Eden' and 'The Life of Birds'. Sir David was knighted for his work in 1985 and made a Companion of Honour in 1996. In an interview with for the WWF magazine, on the eve of his seventieth birthday, Sir David revealed some of the inspiration behind his work. "The public will not care tuppence about wildlife unless they think that birds, butterflies and badgers are wonderful things that lift the heart and the spirit when you see them," he explained. This is the rationale that has prompted him to stand in rat-infested caves in Venezelua, to capture footage of lions and crocodiles wrestling - even to abseil down a tree in the rainforest in his late 60s during the filming of 'The Private Life of Plants'. But it is education rather than sensation that seems to drive this man who has inspired the curiosity and compassion of so many towards our natural heritage. "The basis of conservation is the comprehension of the natural world," he tells the WWF interviewer, and with characteristic modesty and the simplicity that make his wildlife narratives so compelling he adds "and that's my game." Sir David has been criticised by environmental campaigners for not speaking out in defence of the natural world. His reply has been that this would have interfered with the perception of the images of animals and plants that he was able to bring with such compelling vigour into the world's living rooms. He wanted people first to appreciate the wonderful planet on which we lived; others might then explain why it was under threat. At
the age of 74 Sir David has changed his mind. This alone is an indication
of the accelerating threat that faces the global environment and
in particular its bio-diversity.
©EuropaWorld 2000 - Copyright Policy
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