08/05/1926
Most know him as the be-all and end-all of the documenters of small furry animals. What a lot of people don’t know is that Attenborough was one of the first people to understand the value of colour television, which was rolled out to United Kingdom under his reign as head of BBC2.
With more awards and titles to his name than most 3rd-world Dictators, Attenborough has become a driving force among the naturalist movement.
I should stress, for those of you who aren’t clear on such things – NATURIST is the one where they run around in the forest with no clothes on. NATURALIST is the one where they keep their clothes on and talk about nature.
While I respect David Attenborough quite possibly more than any other celebrity alive today, I really have no urge to see him get his tackle out before presenting a bit to camera about ring-tailed lemurs.
His documentaries have provided some of the most terrifying, depressing, uplifting, and exciting television ever to grace our screens… from the villainous pack-hunting snakes of the Galapagos to the enigmatic Magdalena River hippos of South America… from the penguins of Antarctica, to the lowly back-yard sparrow.
Even if Sir David’s beginnings were a little less… politically correct… than today… his first show was called Zoo Quest in the 1950s, and was about touring the world and finding and capturing zoo animals for London Zoo. A smidge cringey now… but this was the 1950s we’re talking about here. I think we can probably all agree that he’s done more than enough to make up for it since.
Sir David Attenborough – at age 98 – is a global treasure, and the world would be a lesser place without him. Happy Birthday!
(And yes, I’m aware he’s not a villain. I’m just a fan.)
Villainy 