“I’ve been lucky enough to live through what well might be considered the golden age of natural history filmmaking.” – Sir David Attenborough
Now a world-famous veteran of wildlife presentation on television, Sir David Attenborough was eight years old in 1934 when he saw his first natural history film.
It featured the popular naturalist Cherry Kearton, one of the earliest pioneers of wildlife photography and filmmaking. “Kearton’s films captured my childish imagination,” says Attenborough. “It made me dream of traveling to far off places to film wild animals.”
Years later, those dreams became an illustrious reality. For over half a century, Attenborough has been at the forefront of natural history filmmaking, witnessing an unparalleled period of change in our planet’s history. His first-hand accounts offer a unique perspective on the natural world. To mark his 60th anniversary on television, Nature presents Attenborough’s Life Stories, a three-part retrospective of his life and work.
Episode one: Attenborough’s Life Stories: Life on Camera
Attenborough revisits key places and events in his career and shows how a succession of technical innovations in filmmaking led to remarkable revelations about our planet and the creatures that inhabit it.
Episode two: Attenborough’s Life Stories: Understanding the Natural World
Attenborough shares his memories of the scientists and the breakthroughs that helped shape his own career in translating these discoveries into film.
Episode three: Attenborough’s Life Stories: Our Fragile Planet
Attenborough reflects on the dramatic impact that we have had on the natural world during his lifetime.