Page 47 - Great Elizabethans

WILDLIFE WATCH
Chris learned all about kestrels, shrews and badgers as a teenager, and carried on doing so at Southampton University, where he studied zoology – the science of animals and how they live. As well as studying
creatures, Chris was a punk rocker, playing in a band called The Titanic Survivors. To Chris, the creative, rule-breaking punk spirit went hand in hand with fighting for human and animal rights.
After he finished studying, Chris wanted to do something more creative, so he began taking photos of wildlife. He took a job as a wildlife cameraman to help pay for the equipment he
needed. Soon, though, he was in front of the camera himself, presenting programmes like The Really Wild Show on CBBC from 1986 to 1995, which taught children about wildlife in different countries, and The Great British Birdwatch. With his own company, Head over
Heels, Chris also made shows for the Discovery Channel and National Geographic.
Then, in 2009, he began presenting Springwatch, a hugely popular BBC programme which shows
the movement and change of wildlife in the spring, as young creatures are born. He also presents the shows Autumnwatch and Winterwatch.
Chris has travelled all around the world, visiting places from the Everest mountain range to deserts and rainforests, as well as diving deep into the ocean. He’s presented shows like Nature’s Weirdest Events and
World’s Sneakiest Animals, giving his viewers a glimpse into the strangest and most fascinating corners of the animal kingdom – as well as filming things closer to home, like Cats v. Dogs!
Since the 1990s, Chris has suffered from Ménière's disease, which affects the inner ear and can make people feel dizzy, as well as affecting their hearing. He has also suffered from depression, especially after losing his dog Fish.
ACTION AGAINST ANIMAL CRUELTY
Chris believes strongly in taking action to stop the abuse of animals and to educate people about it. In 2014, he used his own money to take a film crew to Malta, where they shot footage of migrating and endangered birds being killed in
huge numbers by hunters. While filming there, Chris was arrested and held
for three hours – but after he was released, his footage helped raise thousands of euros for charities trying to end the hunting of birds.
Chris now lives in the New Forest, still writing, campaigning and presenting nature shows, sometimes even alongside his step-daughter, Megan McCubbin! Although there are enormous challenges facing animal lovers and conservationists today, he believes that we can rise up to meet and overcome them, and that we owe it to the world to do so.
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