David Attenborough
David Attenborough
Sir David Frederick Attenborough OM CH CVO CBE FRS FLS FZS FSA is an English broadcaster and naturalist...
NationalityBritish
ProfessionTV Show Host
Date of Birth8 May 1926
CityIsleworth, England
mean breathing waste
Dealing with global warming doesn't mean we have all got to suddenly stop breathing. Dealing with global warming means that we have to stop waste, and if you travel for no reason whatsoever, that is a waste.
thinking had-enough would-be
If I can make programmes when I'm 95, that would be fine. But I would think I'll have had enough by then.
museums library world
London has fine museums, the British Library is one of the greatest library institutions in the world... It's got everything you want, really.
jobs adventure years
I had a huge advantage when I started 50 years ago - my job was secure. I didn't have to promote myself. These days there's far more pressure to make a mark, so the temptation is to make adventure television or personality shows. I hope the more didactic approach won't be lost.
clever thinking way
I don't think we are going to become extinct. We're very clever and extremely resourceful - and we will find ways of preserving ourselves, of that I'm sure. But whether our lives will be as rich as they are now is another question.
years environmental policy
All we can hope for is that the thing is going to slowly and imperceptibly shift. All I can say is that 50 years ago there were no such thing as environmental policies.
animal wonderful conservation
Steve Irwin did wonderful conservation work but I was uncomfortable about some of his stunts. Even if animals aren't aware that you are not treating them with respect, the viewers are.
nice thinking places-to-go
I've been to Nepal, but I'd like to go to Tibet. It must be a wonderful place to go. I don't think there's anything there, but it would be a nice place to visit.
giving people credit
I often get letters, quite frequently, from people who say how they like the programmes a lot, but I never give credit to the almighty power that created nature.
people steers courses
You have to steer a course between not appalling people, but at the same time not misleading them.
optimistic birth-rate giving
The climate, the economic situation, rising birth rates; none of these things give me a lot of hope or reason to be optimistic.
fables natural natural-history
Natural history is not about producing fables.
bird spiders monkeys
What I am interested in with birds, just as I am with spiders or monkeys, is what they do and why they do it.
animal people needs
The more you go on, the less you need people standing between you and the animal and the camera waving their arms about.