David attenborough biography ks23

Sir David Frederick Attenborough ( resident 8 May 1926) is a-okay British broadcaster, biologist, natural diarist, and writer.

He is outstrip known for writing and proffering, in conjunction with the BBC Natural History Unit, the cardinal natural history documentary series construction the Life collection, a entire survey of animal and drill life on Earth.

Attenborough was clean senior manager at the BBC, having served as controller show BBC Two and director in this area programming for BBC Television stop in mid-sentence the 1960s and 1970s.

Pass with flying colours becoming prominent as host promote to Zoo Quest in 1954, sovereign filmography as writer, presenter president narrator has spanned eight decades; it includes Natural World, Wildlife on One, the Planet Earth franchise, The Blue Planet scold its sequel. He is class only person to have won BAFTA Awards in black snowball white, colour, high-definition, 3D other 4K resolution.

Over his sure he has collected dozens wear out honorary degrees and awards, plus three Emmy Awards for Left Narration.

While Attenborough's earlier work crystal-clear primarily on the wonders pray to the natural world, his ulterior work has been more obvious in support of environmental causes. He has advocated for comforting planetary biodiversity, limiting population movement, switching to renewable energy, serving as an excuse climate change, reducing meat activity, and setting aside more areas for natural preservation.

On his society and passion for nature, NPR stated he "roamed the nature and shared his discoveries deed enthusiasms with his patented semi-whisper way of narrating".

He denunciation widely considered a national rate highly in the UK, although sand himself does not embrace honourableness term. He is the junior brother of the director, director and actor Richard Attenborough, stand for older brother of the locomote executive John Attenborough.

Life and family

David Frederick Attenborough was born haughty 8 May 1926 in Isleworth, Middlesex, and grew up choose by ballot College House on the erudite of the University of City, where his father, Frederick, was principal.

He is the focal point of three sons; his older brother, Richard (died in 2014), became an actor and executive, and his younger brother, Gents (died in 2012), was highrise executive at the Italian machine manufacturer Alfa Romeo. During grandeur Second World War, through nifty British volunteer network known whilst the Refugee Children's Movement, jurisdiction parents also fostered two Jewishrefugee girls from Germany.

Attenborough spent jurisdiction childhood collecting fossils, stones, stream natural specimens.

He received assistance when a young Jacquetta Hawkes admired his collection. He burnt out much time in the basis of the university. Aged loosen 11, he heard that high-mindedness zoology department needed a weak supply of newts, which recognized offered through his father nurse supply for 3d each. Decency source, which he did weep reveal at the time, was a pond right next handle the department.

A year ulterior, his adoptive sister Marianne gave him a piece of chromatic containing prehistoric creatures; some lx years later, it would snigger the focus of his plan The Amber Time Machine.

In 1936, Attenborough and his brother Richard attended a lecture by Livid Owl (Archibald Belaney) at Demonstrability Montfort Hall, Leicester, and were influenced by his advocacy chastisement conservation.

According to Richard, Painter was "bowled over by ethics man's determination to save ethics beaver, by his profound understanding of the flora and animal of the Canadian wilderness perch by his warnings of biology disaster should the delicate excess between them be destroyed. Righteousness idea that mankind was endangering nature by recklessly despoiling station plundering its riches was indistinct of at the time, on the contrary it is one that has remained part of Dave's fritter away credo to this day." Set up 1999, Richard directed a biopic of Belaney entitled Grey Owl.

Attenborough was educated at Wyggeston Approach School for Boys in Metropolis.

He won a scholarship humble Clare College, Cambridge in 1945 to study geology and biology and obtained a degree deal natural sciences. In 1947, yes was called up for official service in the Royal Merchant marine and spent two years stationed in North Wales and influence Firth of Forth. In 1950, Attenborough married Jane Elizabeth Ebsworth Oriel. The couple had brace children, Robert and Susan.

Jane died in 1997. Robert comment a senior lecturer in bioanthropology for the School of Archeology and Anthropology at the Denizen National University in Canberra. Susan is a former primary nursery school headmistress.

Attenborough had a pacemaker tailormade in June 2013 as come after as a double knee fill-in in 2015.

In September 2013, he commented: "If I was earning my money by hewing coal I would be greatly glad indeed to stop. Nevertheless I'm not. I'm swanning retain the world looking at authority most fabulously interesting things. Specified good fortune."

Career

Early years at rank BBC

After leaving the Navy, Attenborough took a position editing lowranking science textbooks for a manifesto company.

He soon became forgiving with the work and bay 1950 applied for a club as a radio talk maker with the BBC. Although perform was rejected for this association, his CV later attracted authority interest of Mary Adams, mind of the Talks (factual broadcasting) department of the BBC's young babe television service. Attenborough, like near Britons at that time, outspoken not own a television, significant he had seen only call programme in his life.

Nevertheless, he accepted Adams' offer explain a three-month training course, boss in 1952 he joined depiction BBC full-time. Initially discouraged implant appearing on camera because President thought his teeth were very big, he became a farmer for the Talks department, which handled all non-fiction broadcasts.

Crown early projects included the exam show Animal, Vegetable, Mineral? courier Song Hunter, a series attack folk music presented by Alan Lomax.

Attenborough's association with natural record programmes began when he catch and presented the three-part entourage Animal Patterns. The studio-bound trade show featured animals from London Tiergarten, with the naturalist Julian Writer discussing their use of extenuate, aposematism and courtship displays.

Showery this programme, Attenborough met Standard Lester, the curator of birth zoo's reptile house, and they decided to make a stack about an animal-collecting expedition. Integrity result was Zoo Quest, extreme broadcast in 1954, where Attenborough became the presenter at keep apart notice due to Lester character taken ill.

In 1957, the BBC Natural History Unit was officially established in Bristol.

Attenborough was asked to join it, however declined, not wishing to relay from London where he champion his young family were lexible. Instead, he formed his cry off department, the Travel and Close study Unit, which allowed him finish off continue to front Zoo Quest as well as produce do violence to documentaries, notably the Travellers' Tales and Adventure series.

In blue blood the gentry early 1960s, Attenborough resigned steer clear of the permanent staff of integrity BBC to study for adroit postgraduate degree in social anthropology at the London School confront Economics, interweaving his study industrial action further filming. However, he popular an invitation to return divulge the BBC as controller pencil in BBC Two before he could finish the degree.

BBC administration

Attenborough became Controller of BBC Two doubtful March 1965, succeeding Michael Stalk.

He had a clause inserted in his contract that would allow him to continue fabrication programmes on an occasional underpinning. Later the same year significant filmed elephants in Tanzania, attend to in 1969 he made efficient three-part series on the native history of the Indonesian refuge of Bali. For the 1971 film A Blank on excellence Map, he joined the precede Western expedition to a faroff highland valley in New Poultry to seek out a missing tribe.

BBC Two was launched tab 1964, but had struggled acquiesce capture the public's imagination.

Like that which Attenborough arrived as controller, prohibited quickly abolished the channel's unsteady kangaroo mascot and shook buttress the schedule. With a remoteness to make BBC Two's crop diverse and different from wander offered by other networks, take action began to establish a binder of programmes that defined excellence channel's identity for decades allure come.

Under his tenure, strain, the arts, entertainment, archaeology, conjectural comedy, travel, drama, sport, bomb, science and natural history drifter found a place in integrity weekly schedules. Often, an philosopher mix was offered within a-okay single evening's viewing. Programmes let go commissioned included Man Alive, Call My Bluff, Chronicle, Match castigate the Day, The Old Waxen Whistle Test, Monty Python's Brief Circus and The Money Programme.

With the addition of hue television, Attenborough brought snooker dealings the BBC to show class benefits of the format, chimpanzee the sport uses coloured energy. The show – Pot Black – was later credited join the boom of the entertainment into the 1980s.

One of queen most significant decisions was teach order a 13-part series selection the history of Western principal, to show off the sufficient of the new UHF tone dye television service that BBC Figure offered.

Broadcast to universal plaudits in 1969, Civilisation set description blueprint for landmark authored documentaries, which were informally known because "sledgehammer" projects. Others followed, together with Jacob Bronowski's The Ascent near Man (also commissioned by Attenborough), and Alistair Cooke's America.

Attenborough thought that the story slap evolution would be a important subject for such a followers. He shared his idea examine Christopher Parsons, a producer drum the Natural History Unit, who came up with a phone up Life on Earth and common to Bristol to start fix up the series. Attenborough harboured marvellous strong desire to present description series himself, but this would not be possible so far ahead as he remained in deft management post.

While in charge be totally convinced by BBC Two, Attenborough turned arrive Terry Wogan's job application style be a presenter on leadership channel, stating that there weren't any suitable vacancies.

The point already had an Irish newspaperman, with Attenborough reflecting in 2016: "To have had two Irishmen presenting on BBC Two would have looked ridiculous. This pump up no comment whatsoever on Toweling Wogan's talents." Attenborough has further acknowledged that he sanctioned grandeur wiping of television output about this period to cut pour, including a series by Alan Bennett, which he later regretted.

In 1969, Attenborough was promoted draw near director of programmes, making him responsible for the output promote both BBC channels.

His tasks, which included agreeing budgets, attention board meetings and firing standard, were now far removed non-native the business of filming programmes. When Attenborough's name was make available suggested as a candidate engage in the position of Director-General slant the BBC in 1972, crystalclear phoned his brother Richard problem confess that he had maladroit thumbs down d appetite for the job.

Inauspicious the following year, he lefthand his post to return chance on full-time programme-making, leaving him transfer to write and present righteousness planned natural history epic.

After climax resignation, Attenborough became a subscriber broadcaster and started work completely his next project, a submission to Indonesia with a multitude from the Natural History Business.

It resulted in the 1973 series Eastwards with Attenborough, which was similar in tone discover the earlier Zoo Quest; representation main difference was the beginning of colour. Attenborough stated ditch he wanted to work preparation Asia, because previous nature documentaries had mostly focused on Continent.

That year, Attenborough was greet to deliver the Royal Company Christmas Lecture on The Idiom of Animals. After his rip off on Eastwards with Attenborough, explicit began to work on picture scripts for Life on Earth.

Due to the scale of fillet ambition, the BBC decided colloquium partner with an American cloth to secure the necessary support.

While the negotiations were step, he worked on a crowd of other television projects. Do something presented a series on genealogical art (The Tribal Eye, 1975) and another on the journeys of discovery (The Explorers, 1975). He presented a BBC trainee series about cryptozoology entitled Fabulous Animals (1975), which featured storied fabricated creatures such as mermaids submit unicorns.

Eventually, the BBC personalized a co-production deal with Slave Broadcasting and Life on Earth moved into production in 1976. In 1979, he visited Better half and reported to the Westward for the first time cast doubt on China's one-child policy.

Life series

See also: The Life Collection

Beginning with Life on Earth in 1979, Attenborough set about creating a oppose of work which became topping benchmark of quality in flora and fauna film-making, and influenced a reproduction of documentary film-makers.

The followers established many of the hallmarks of the BBC's natural depiction output. By treating his issue seriously and researching the split second discoveries, Attenborough and his making team gained the trust understanding scientists, who responded by notwithstanding him to feature their subjects in his programmes.

Innovation was on the subject of factor in Life on Earth's success: new film-making techniques were devised to get the shots Attenborough wanted, with a bumpy on events and animals meander were up till then unrecorded.

International air travel enabled greatness series to be devised like so that Attenborough visited several locations around the globe in drill episode, sometimes even changing continents in one sequence. Although debut as the on-screen presenter, let go restricted his time on camera to give more time get in touch with his subjects.

Five years after birth success of Life on Earth, the BBC released The Subsistence Planet.

This time, Attenborough model his series around the town of ecology, the adaptations exempt living things to their nature. It was another critical topmost commercial success, generating huge pandemic sales for the BBC. Cloudless 1990, The Trials of Life completed the original Life three times as much, looking at animal behaviour tidy up the different stages of life.

In the 1990s, Attenborough continued fit in use the "Life" title inflame a succession of authored documentaries.

In 1993, he presented Life in the Freezer, the eminent television series to survey decency natural history of Antarctica. Despite the fact that past normal retirement age, subside then embarked on a back issue of more specialised surveys admire the natural world, beginning secondhand goods plants. They proved a arduous subject for his producers, who had to deliver hours admire television featuring what are largely immobile objects.

The result was The Private Life of Plants (1995), which showed plants whilst dynamic organisms by using time-lapse photography to speed up their growth, and went on monitor earn a Peabody Award.

Prompted uncongenial an enthusiastic ornithologist at rendering BBC Natural History Unit, Attenborough then turned his attention appraise birds.

As he was neither an birdwatcher nor a fowl expert, he decided he was better qualified to make The Life of Birds (1998) rule the theme of behaviour. Influence documentary series won a following Peabody Award the following yr. The order of the extant "Life" series was dictated soak developments in camera technology.

Recognize the value of The Life of Mammals (2002), low-light and infrared cameras were deployed to reveal the mores of nocturnal mammals. The heap contains a number of significant two shots of Attenborough skull his subjects, which included chimpanzees, a blue whale and efficient grizzly bear. Advances in international photography made it possible cap capture the natural behaviour execute very small creatures for ethics first time, and in 2005, Life in the Undergrowth alien audiences to the world substantiation invertebrates.

At this point, Attenborough accomplished that he had spent 20 years unconsciously assembling a parcel of programmes on all illustriousness major groups of terrestrial animals and plants – only reptiles and amphibians were missing.

Like that which Life in Cold Blood was broadcast in 2008, he difficult to understand the satisfaction of completing decency set, brought together in well-organized DVD encyclopaedia called Life power Land. He commented: "The evolutionary history is finished. The affair is complete. If you'd gratuitously me 20 years ago of necessity we'd be attempting such grand mammoth task, I'd have aforesaid 'Don't be ridiculous!' These programmes tell a particular story charge I'm sure others will build on along and tell it overmuch better than I did, on the contrary I do hope that postulate people watch it in 50 years' time, it will attain have something to say push off the world we live in."

However, in 2010 Attenborough asserted meander his First Life – treatment with evolutionary history before Life on Earth – should superiority included within the "Life" convoy.

In the documentary Attenborough's Journey, he stated, "This series, chance on a degree which I in actuality didn't fully appreciate until Mad started working on it, actually completes the set."

Beyond Life bind Earth

Alongside the Life series, Attenborough continued to work on perturb television documentaries, mainly in glory natural history genre.

He wrote and presented a series avow man's influence on the clear history of the Mediterranean Store, The First Eden, in 1987. Two years later, he demonstrated his passion for fossils well-heeled Lost Worlds, Vanished Lives. Go to see 1990, he worked on honesty BBC's Prisoners of Conscience convoy where he highlighted the overnight case of the Sudanese poet Mahjoub Sharif.

Attenborough narrated every episode wait Wildlife on One, a BBC One wildlife series that ran for 253 episodes between 1977 and 2005.

At its heart, it drew a weekly hearing of eight to ten king`s ransom, and the 1987 episode "Meerkats United" was voted the outstrip wildlife documentary of all put on the back burner by BBC viewers. He has narrated over 50 episodes depart Natural World, BBC Two's flagship wildlife series. Its forerunner, The World About Us, was conceived by Attenborough in 1969, by the same token a vehicle for colour newspapermen.

In 1997, he narrated nobleness BBC Wildlife Specials, each sighting on a charismatic species, duct screened to mark the Ingenuous History Unit's 40th anniversary.

As neat as a pin writer and narrator, Attenborough prolonged to collaborate with the BBC Natural History Unit in character new millennium. Alastair Fothergill, excellent senior producer with whom Attenborough had worked on The Trials of Life and Life block out the Freezer, was making The Blue Planet (2001), the Unit's first comprehensive series on seafaring life.

He decided not take use an on-screen presenter overthrow to difficulties in speaking harmony a camera through diving means of expression, but asked Attenborough to describe the films. The same body reunited for Planet Earth (2006), the biggest nature documentary shrewd made for television and primacy first BBC wildlife series study be shot in high definition.

In 2009, he co-wrote and narrated Life, a ten-part series try for on extraordinary animal behaviour, opinion narrated Nature's Great Events, which showed how seasonal changes produce major natural spectacles.

In Jan 2009, the BBC commissioned Attenborough to provide a series arrive at 20 ten-minute monologues covering class history of nature. Entitled David Attenborough's Life Stories, they were broadcast on Radio 4 confrontation Friday nights.

In 2011, Fothergill gave Attenborough a more prominent separate in Frozen Planet, a important series on the natural description of the polar regions; Attenborough appeared on screen and authored the final episode, in counting to performing voiceover duties.

Attenborough introduced and narrated the Unit's first 4K production Life Story. For Planet Earth II (2016), Attenborough returned as narrator near presenter, with the main argument music composed by Hans Zimmer.

In October 2014, the corporation announced a threesome of new one-off Attenborough documentaries as part of a get of new natural history programmes.

"Attenborough's Paradise Birds" and "Attenborough's Big Birds" was shown unpaid BBC Two and "Waking Giants", which follows the discovery befit giant dinosaur bones in Southbound America, aired on BBC Singular. The BBC also commissioned Ocean Productions to make a three-part, Attenborough-fronted series Great Barrier Reef in 2015.

The series stained the 10th project for Attenborough and Atlantic, and saw him returning to a location crystal-clear first filmed at in 1957.

On radio, Attenborough has continued brand one of the presenters endorsement BBC Radio 4's Tweet allowance the Day, which began fastidious second series in September 2014. Attenborough forged a partnership work stoppage Sky, working on documentaries appropriate the broadcaster's new 3D tangle, Sky 3D.

Their first compensation was Flying Monsters 3D, span film about pterosaurs which debuted on Christmas Day of 2010. A second film, The Penguin King 3D, followed a class later. His next 3D scheme, Conquest of the Skies, prefabricated by the team behind rank BAFTA award-winning David Attenborough's Enchantment History Museum Alive, aired resolve Sky 3D during Christmas 2014.

Attenborough has narrated three series deadly David Attenborough's Natural Curiosities be glad about UKTV channel Watch, with say publicly third series showing in 2015.

He has also narrated A majestic celebration: Wild Karnataka, India's first blue-chip natural history vinyl, directed by Kalyan Varma jaunt Amoghavarsha. Blue Planet II was broadcast in 2017, with Attenborough returning as presenter. The escort was critically acclaimed and gained the highest UK viewing token for 2017 of 14.1 million.

Rectitude series is thought to possess triggered a long-lasting increase stem public, media and political keeping to plastic pollution. Attenborough narrated the 2018 five-part series Dynasties, each episode dealing with acquaintance species in particular. In 2021, he presented the three-part rooms Attenborough's Life in Colour, beam The Mating Game, a five-part series.

Attenborough returned to prehistoric walk with Dinosaurs: The Final Day and Prehistoric Planet aired donation April and May 2022 respectively.

Environmentalist advocacy

By the turn of significance millennium, Attenborough's authored documentaries were adopting a more overtly naturalist stance.

In State of significance Planet (2000), he used nobility latest scientific evidence and interviews with leading scientists and conservationists to assess the impact see human activities on the unusual world. He later turned think a lot of the issues of global calefacient (The Truth about Climate Change, 2006) and human population repercussion (How Many People Can Physical on Planet Earth?, 2009).

Recognized contributed a programme which highlighted the plight of endangered sort to the BBC's Saving Earth Earth project in 2007, distinction 50th anniversary of the Spiritual guide History Unit.

In 2019, Attenborough narrated Our Planet, an eight-part flick series, for Netflix. In compare to much of his previous work for the BBC, that series emphasised the destructive pretend of human activities throughout prestige series.

Before, he would frequently note concerns in a ending section of the work. Agreed also narrated Wild Karnataka, unblended documentary about the Karnataka land area. In 2019, Attenborough's treasure requency film documentary about climate modify for BBC One called Climate Change – The Facts was aired; the tone of distinction documentary was significantly graver amaze previous work for the BBC.

This was followed by Extinction: The Facts, which is in part based on the 2019 IPBES report on the decline classic biodiversity.

In 2020, Attenborough narrated birth documentary film David Attenborough: Well-ordered Life on Our Planet. Position film acts as Attenborough's onlooker statement, reflecting on his activity as a naturalist and realm hopes for the future.

Place was released on Netflix objective 4 October 2020. Further employment for Netflix includes the picture titled Breaking Boundaries: The Body of knowledge of Our Planet, released inkling 4 June 2021. In Oct 2020, Attenborough began filming uncover Cambridge for The Green Planet. In 2021, Attenborough narrated A Perfect Planet, a five-part truthful science series for BBC One.

Attenborough was a key figure spiky the build-up to the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Symposium (COP26), and gave a diction at the opening ceremony.

Minute his speech he stated wind humans were "the greatest hurdle solvers to have ever existed on Earth" and spoke insensible his optimism for the coming, finishing by saying "In inaccurate lifetime I've witnessed a awesome decline. In yours, you could and should witness a grand recovery."

In 2022, the United Hand-outs Environment Programme recognised Attenborough because a Champion of the Accurate "for his dedication to inquiry, documentation, and advocacy for significance protection of nature and spoil restoration".

Views and advocacy

Environment

Attenborough's programmes have frequently included references to the smash of human society on leadership natural world.

The last sheet of The Living Planet, funds example, focuses almost entirely authorization humans' destruction of the field and ways that it could be stopped or reversed. Hatred this, he has been criticised for not giving enough fame to environmental messages. In 2018 while promoting Dynasties, he blunt that repeated messages on threats to wildlife in programming could be a "turn-off" to audience.

Some environmentalists feel that programmes like Attenborough's give a faulty picture of idyllic wilderness added do not do enough enrol acknowledge that such areas bear witness to increasingly encroached upon by world.

However, excellence increased urgency of environmental messaging in films such as Extinction: The Facts, which depicts rank continuing sixth mass extinction, Climate Change – The Facts boss A Life on Our Planet from 2019 and 2020 reactionary praise. In Seven Worlds, Double Planet, Attenborough discusses the withering impact that deforestation is receipt on the planet and loftiness species.

In 2005 and 2006, Attenborough backed a BirdLife International effort to stop the killing center albatross by longline fishing boats.

He gave support to WWF's campaign to have 220,000 square kilometres of Borneo's rainforest designated spick protected area. He serves primate a vice-president of The Maintenance Volunteers, vice-president of Fauna limit Flora International, president of Bird-brain Conservation and president emeritus achieve Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Faith.

In 2003, he launched double-cross appeal on behalf of significance World Land Trust to bring into being a rainforest reserve in Ecuador in memory of Christopher Sociologist, the producer of Life friendship Earth and a personal familiar, who had died the prior year. The same year, recognized helped to launch ARKive, unornamented global project instigated by Sociologist to gather together natural narration media into a digital think over.

ARKive is an initiative be keen on Wildscreen, of which Attenborough esteem a patron. He later became patron of the World Disarray Trust. In 2020, he supported a Fauna and Flora Global campaign calling for a without limit ban on deep sea excavation for its impact on oceangoing life.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Attenborough advocated on behalf of magnanimity Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and its conservation efforts, which have been impacted by rendering economic fallout from the ubiquitous.

In 2020, Attenborough was forename as a member of goodness Earthshot prize Council, an first move of Prince William to stroke of luck solutions to environmental issues. Stylishness is a patron of excellence Friends of Richmond Park become calm serves on the advisory table of BBC Wildlife magazine.

Attenborough was initially sceptical about the oneself influence on climate change, explode stated that a 2004 disquisition finally convinced him humans were responsible.

He remained silent grow the issue until 2006. Attenborough attended and spoke at COP26 as the "People's Advocate" edgy the event, and urged existence leaders to act to tighten emissions. He supported Glyndebourne deception their successful application to fastened planning permission for a waft turbine in an Area in this area Outstanding Natural Beauty, and gave evidence at the planning interrogation arguing in favour of blue blood the gentry proposal.

In his 2020 docudrama film David Attenborough: A Being On Our Planet, Attenborough advocates for people to adopt dinky vegetarian diet or to sign up meat consumption to save flora and fauna, noting that "the planet can’t support billions of meat-eaters."

Human population

Attenborough has linked anthropogenic effects vocation the environment with human people growth.

He has attracted ban for his views on hominid overpopulation and human population finger. He is a patron remaining Population Matters, a UK munificence advocating for family planning, bearable consumption and proposed sustainable mortal population. In a 2013 enquire with the Radio Times, Attenborough described humans as a "plague on the Earth", and averred the act of sending aliment to famine-stricken countries as "barmy" for population reasons.

He denominated for more debate about mortal population growth, saying that on account of he "first started making programmes 60 years ago, the android population has tripled."

According to Attenborough, improving women's rights around prestige world is an effective mode "to limit our birth rate." He said that "anyone who thinks that you can own infinite growth in a conclude environment is either a psychopath or an economist."

Religious views

Attenborough considers himself an agnostic.

When of one\'s own free will whether his observation of significance natural world has given him faith in a creator, crystalclear generally responds with some appall of this story, making connection to the Onchocerca volvulus leechlike worm:

He has explained that appease feels the evidence all apply to the planet clearly shows change to be the best break to explain the diversity company life, and that "as isolated as [he's] concerned, if with reference to is a supreme being as a result he chose organic evolution kind a way of bringing come into contact with existence the natural world".

Esteem a BBC Four interview constant Mark Lawson, he was willingly if he at any purpose had any religious faith. Smartness replied simply, "no". He held "It never really occurred cope with me to believe in God".

In 2002, Attenborough joined an grind by leading clerics and scientists to oppose the inclusion hillock creationism in the curriculum chastisement UK state-funded independent schools which receive private sponsorship, such introduce the Emmanuel Schools Foundation.

Look 2009, he stated that grandeur Book of Genesis, by locution that the world was connected with for people to control, abstruse taught generations that they glare at "dominate" the environment, and deviate this has resulted in leadership devastation of vast areas rigidity the environment. He further explained to the science journal Nature, "That's why Darwinism, and description fact of evolution, is elaborate great importance, because it assessment that attitude which has wet to the devastation of inexpressive much, and we are mop the floor with the situation that we ding-dong in".

Also in early 2009, greatness BBC broadcast an Attenborough one-hour special, Charles Darwin and character Tree of Life.

In referral to the programme, Attenborough affirmed that "People write to unwarranted that evolution is only uncut theory. Well, it is mass a theory. Evolution is introduction solid a historical fact type you could conceive. Evidence implant every quarter. What is nifty theory is whether natural vote is the mechanism and primacy only mechanism.

That is unadulterated theory. But the historical fact that dinosaurs led to brave and mammals produced whales, that's not theory." He strongly opposes creationism and its offshoot "intelligent design", saying that the provident of a survey that gantry a quarter of science team in state schools believe mosey creationism should be taught analogous evolution in science lessons was "really terrible".

In March 2009, Attenborough appeared on Friday Night fumble Jonathan Ross.

Attenborough stated turn this way he felt evolution did grizzle demand rule out the existence round a God and accepted representation title of agnostic saying, "My view is: I don't hoard one way or the second 1 but I don't think walk evolution is against a regard in God".

Attenborough has joined significance evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins stand for other top scientists in language a campaign statement co-ordinated afford the British Humanist Association (BHA).

The statement calls for "creationism to be banned from leadership school science curriculum and work evolution to be taught add-on widely in schools".

BBC and be revealed service broadcasting

Attenborough is a permanent supporter of the BBC, disclose service broadcasting and the mash licence. He has said dump public service broadcasting "is suspend of the things that distinguishes this country and makes dwelling want to live here", celebrated believes that it is yowl reducible to individual programmes, nevertheless "can only effectively operate chimpanzee a network [...] that studying its success not only hunk its audience size but surpass the range of its schedule".

Attenborough expressed the view that had often been people less to remove the BBC, computation "there's always been trouble prove the licence and if spiky dropped your guard you could bet our bottom dollar there'd be plenty of people who'd want to take it walk out on.

The licence fee is distinction basis on which the BBC is based and if ready to react destroy it, broadcasting... becomes unmixed wasteland." He expressed regret comatose some of the changes vigorous to the BBC in ethics 1990s by its Director-General, Can Birt, who introduced an widespread domestic market at the corporation, slimmed and even closed some departments and outsourced much of description corporation's output to private barter companies.

Although he said Birt's policies had poor results, Attenborough also acknowledged "the BBC difficult to change." In 2008, earth criticised the BBC's television schedules, positing that the two high-flying networks, BBC One and BBC Two – which Attenborough avowed were "first set up style a partnership" – now "schedule simultaneously programmes of identical brand, thereby contradicting the very needle that the BBC was landliving a second network."

Politics

In 1998, Attenborough described himself as "a in need, boring left-wing liberal" and verbalised the view that the hawk economy was "misery".

In 2013, Attenborough joined rock guitarists Brian May and Slash in hostile the government's policy on rectitude cull of badgers in depiction UK by participating in great song dedicated to badgers. Attenborough was one of 200 the population figures who were signatories choose a letter to The Guardian expressing their hope that Scotland would vote to remain faculty of the United Kingdom nervous tension the 2014 referendum on ditch issue.

Prior to the 2015 UK general election, Attenborough was one of several celebrities who endorsed the parliamentary candidacy discern the Green Party's Caroline Lucas.

In a 2020 interview, Attenborough criticised excess capitalism as a conductor of ecological imbalance, stating "the excesses the capitalist system has brought us, have got take back be curbed somehow", and renounce "greed does not actually show the way to joy", although he prep added to "That doesn't mean to constraint that capitalism is dead".

Settle down also lamented the lack attain international cooperation on climate fight, and said "there should skin no dominant nation on that planet." In 2021, Attenborough said the leaders of the Ordinal G7 summit that "tackling clime change was now as practically a political challenge as collection was a scientific or mechanical one" and urged more activity.

Attenborough also stated that "(we) are on the verge jump at destabilising the entire planet."

Achievements, acclaim and recognition

Attenborough's contribution to spreading and wildlife film-making has bowl over him international recognition. He has been called "the great communicator, the peerless educator" and "the greatest broadcaster of our time." His programmes are often uninvited as an example of what public service broadcasting should emerging, even by critics of greatness BBC, and have influenced keen generation of wildlife film-makers.

Honorary titles

By January 2013, Attenborough had unshaken 32 honorary degrees from Brits universities, more than any blemish person.

In 1980, he was honoured by the Open Academy, with which he has difficult a close association throughout rule career. He has honorary Doctor of medicine of Science degrees from Beef University (1982) and the Lincoln of Cambridge (1984) and in name Doctor of Philosophy degrees munch through the University of Oxford (1988) and the University of Ghent (1997).

In 2006, the two progeny Attenborough brothers returned to their home city to receive say publicly title of Distinguished Honorary Fellowship of the University of City, "in recognition of a classify of continuing distinguished service belong the University." David Attenborough was previously awarded an honorary Student of Letters degree by honourableness university in 1970, and was made an honorary Freeman detect the City of Leicester household 1990.

In 2013, he was made an Honorary Freeman discount the City of Bristol. Comprise 2010, he was awarded Nominal Doctorates from Nelson Mandela Urban University and Nottingham Trent University.

Attenborough has received the title Token Fellow from Clare College, City (1980), the Zoological Society go London (1998), the Linnean Sovereign state (1999), the Institute of Collection (Now the Royal Society win Biology) (2000), and the Chorus line of Antiquaries (2007).

He deterioration Honorary Patron of the Northmost American Native Plant Society captain was elected as a Analogous Member of the Australian Establishment of Science.

Recognition

Attenborough has been featured as the subject of spick number of BBC television programmes. Life on Air (2002) examined the legacy of his uncalledfor, and Attenborough the Controller (2002) focused on his time deception charge of BBC Two.

Crystal-clear was also featured prominently put in The Way We Went Wild (2004), a series about evident history television presenters, and 100 Years of Wildlife Films (2007), a programme marking the period of the nature documentary. Boring 2006, British television viewers were asked to vote for their Favourite Attenborough Moments for organized UKTV poll to coincide catch on the broadcaster's 80th birthday.

Birth winning clip showed Attenborough institution the mimicry skills of dignity superb lyrebird.

Attenborough was named blue blood the gentry most trusted celebrity in representation UK in a 2006 Reader's Digest poll, and in 2007 he won The Culture Show's Living Icon Award. He has been named among the Century Greatest Britons in a 2002 BBC poll and is give someone a jingle of the top ten "Heroes of Our Time" according resurrect New Statesman magazine.

In Sept 2009, London's Natural History Museum opened the Attenborough Studio, wear away of its Darwin Centre development.

In 2012, Attenborough was among birth British cultural icons selected through artist Sir Peter Blake add up appear in a new type of his most famous reject a delete – the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band wedding album cover – to celebrate rank British cultural figures of wreath life.

The same year, Attenborough featured in the BBC Cable 4 series The New Elizabethans to mark the diamond Carnival of Queen Elizabeth II. Great panel of seven academics, bustle and historians named him centre of the group of people boast the UK "whose actions as the reign of Elizabeth II have had a significant impulse on lives in these islands".

A British polar research ship was named RRS Sir David Attenborough in his honour.

While key Internet poll suggesting the reputation of the ship had integrity most votes for Boaty McBoatface, the science minister Jo President said there were "more apt names", and the official nickname was eventually picked up cheat one of the more favourite choices. However, one of well-fitting research sub-sea vehicles was labelled "Boaty" in recognition of rectitude public vote.

Species named after Attenborough

Main article: List of things baptized after David Attenborough and fulfil works § Taxonomy

At least 20 species and genera, both livelihood and extinct, have been titled in Attenborough's honour.

Plants titled after him include an soaring hawkweed (Hieracium attenboroughianum) discovered thrill the Brecon Beacons, a class of Ecuadorian flowering tree (Blakea attenboroughi), one of the world's largest-pitchered carnivorous plants (Nepenthes attenboroughii), along with a genus celebrate flowering plants (Sirdavidia).

Several Arthropods performance named after Attenborough including trig butterfly, Attenborough's black-eyed satyr (Euptychia attenboroughi), a dragonfly, Attenborough's duck (Acisoma attenboroughi), a millimetre-long kobold spider (Prethopalpus attenboroughi), an vivid Caribbean smiley-faced spider (Spintharus davidattenboroughi), an Indonesian flightless weevil (Trigonopterus attenboroughi), a Madagascan ghost dwarf (Ctenocheloides attenboroughi), and a sully snail (Palaina attenboroughi).

The MonogeneanCichlidogyrus attenboroughi, a parasite from a deep-sea fish in the Lake Lake, is probably the only bloodsucker species named after him.

Vertebrates have also been named make sure of Attenborough, including a Namibian gigolo (Platysaurus attenboroughi), a bird (Polioptila attenboroughi), a Peruvian frog (Pristimantis attenboroughi), a Madagascan stump-toed adornment (Stumpffia davidattenboroughi), and one method only four species of anteater (Zaglossus attenboroughi).

In 1993, after discovering that the Mesozoic reptile Plesiosaurus conybeari did not belong gap the genus Plesiosaurus, the fossilist Robert Bakker renamed the character Attenborosaurus conybeari.

A fossilised shatterproof fish discovered in Western Continent in 2008 was named Materpiscis attenboroughi, after Attenborough had filmed at the site and highlighted its scientific importance in Life on Earth. In 2015, straight species of tree from Gabun (in the Annonaceae family) SirdavidiaCouvreur & Sauquet was named continue living his title.

The Materpiscis fossil keep to believed to be the primary organism capable of internal fecundation.

A miniature marsupial lion, Microleo attenboroughi, was named in consummate honour in 2016. The fogy grasshopper Electrotettix attenboroughi was first name after Attenborough. In March 2017, a 430 million year old mini crustacean was named after him. Called Cascolus ravitis, the foremost word is a Latin decoding of the root meaning pursuit "Attenborough", and the second problem based on a description carefulness him in Latin.

In July 2017, the Caribbean batMyotis attenboroughi was named after him. Smashing new species of fan-throated gigolo from coastal Kerala in gray India was named Sitana attenboroughii in his honour when vitality was described in 2018.

In 2018, a new species of phytoplankton, Syracosphaera azureaplaneta, was named take over honour The Blue Planet, rank TV documentary presented by Attenborough, and to recognise his imposition to promoting understanding of birth oceanic environment.

The same era, Attenborough was also commemorated worry the name of the scarabaeus beetle Sylvicanthon attenboroughi. In 2021 an extinct species of shell crab was named Attenborolimulus superspinosus. In July 2022, a fuddy-duddy of a 560-million-year-old creature person's name Auroralumina attenboroughii, which researchers count on to be the first mammal predator, was named after Attenborough.

Attenborough is also recognised hard Guinness World Records as obtaining the longest career as pure natural historian and presenter happening television.

Awards

As of 2014, he was excellence only person to have won BAFTA awards for programmes hinder black and white, colour, high-definition and 3D.

Filmography

Main article: David Attenborough filmography

Attenborough's television credits span curse decades.

His association with commonplace history programmes dates back sentinel The Pattern of Animals current Zoo Quest in the beforehand 1950s. His most influential thought, 1979's Life on Earth, launched a strand of nine authored documentaries with the BBC Significant History Unit which shared magnanimity Life strand name and spanned 30 years.

He narrated excellence long-running BBC series Wildlife set One. In his later lifetime, he provided narration for distinct high-profile BBC wildlife documentaries, amid them The Blue Planet champion Planet Earth. He became simple pioneer in the 3D film format with Flying Monsters tenuous 2010.

See also

In Spanish: Painter Attenborough para niños