David Attenborough

Sir David Attenborough's distinguished career in broadcasting spans more than 50 years, during which time he has done more than anyone else to popularize natural history programming and has become one of the world's most respected authorities on wildlife. His combination of charm and enthusiasm, together with concern for conservation and the environment, has been profoundly influential on several generations of viewers. To people worldwide, Sir David is the face of BBC Natural History.

Born in London on 8 May 1926, Sir David is the younger brother of actor/director Sir Richard Attenborough. He was educated at Wyggeston Grammar School for Boys in Leicester, before studying Natural Sciences at Clare College, Cambridge. He served in the Royal Navy from 1947 to 1949, then worked for an educational publisher, before joining the BBC Television Talks Department at Alexandra Palace in 1952 as a trainee producer of documentary programs. In 1954, he became a presenter and launched his famous series, Zoo Quest, which over the next 10 years took him to the wilder parts of the world. In between times, his programs included political broadcasts, archaeological quizzes, short stories, gardening and religious programmes.

In 1965, Sir David took one of the top jobs in the BBC, Controller of BBC2, and was responsible for the introduction of color television into Britain. During this time, he began the long-running wildlife series World About Us. He was appointed Director of BBC Programmes four years later, with editorial responsibility for both of BBC's television networks. In 1973, he resigned to return to program-making. First came Eastwards with Attenborough, a natural history series set in South East Asia, then The Tribal Eye, examining tribal art. In 1979, he began his most acclaimed work. He wrote and presented the Life on Earth, at the time the most ambitious series ever produced by the BBC Natural History Unit and which broke new ground in wildlife film making. In 1984, came its sequel, The Living Planet, and in 1990, the final part of the trilogy, The Trials of Life. The Life trilogy was watched by 500 million people worldwide. This was followed by Life in the Freezer (1993), The Private Life of Plants (1995), The Life of Birds (1998), The Life of Mammals (2002) and Life in the Undergrowth (about insects - 2005), all of which have received international acclaim and many national and international awards. Sir David also wrote the books which accompany all these series. They were all major bestsellers and the video packs also topped the bestseller charts. His biography, Life On Air, was also a much-watched documentary and bestselling book. Most recently, he narrated the critically acclaimed Planet Earth.

During his long and distinguished career with the BBC, Sir David has narrated and/or presented hundreds of wildlife programs, including the strands Wildlife On One and The Natural World, and the mini series The First Eden, Lost Worlds, Vanished Lives and Attenborough in Paradise. In 1997, he began narrating the award-winning The BBC Wildlife Specials, marking 40 years of the BBC Natural History Unit. He also wrote and presented the highly acclaimed three-part series on the State of the Planet.

Over the years Sir David has received a fantastic number of prestigious awards and honorary degrees including Fellowship of BAFTA and the Royal Society in 1980, the 1999 Jackson Hole Lifetime Achievement Award and the Ottakar's Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2004 Annual British Book Awards, the publishing industry's equivalent of the BAFTAs celebrating Britain's favorite books, authors and publishers. He is a Trustee of the British Museum, and was also a Trustee of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and President of the Royal Society for Nature Conservation.,BR>
He received a CBE for his conservation work in 1974 and was knighted in the 1985 Birthday Honours List.