Sir David Attenborough's distinguished career in broadcasting now spans more than 50 years. It began in 1952 when he joined BBC Television Talks Department at Alexandra Palace. In 1954 he launched the first of his famous Zoo Quest series which, over the next 10 years, took him to the wilder parts of the world. In between times, his programmes included political broadcasts, archaeological quizzes, short stories, gardening and religious programmes.
In 1965, Sir David became Controller of BBC2 and was responsible for the introduction of colour television into Britain. In January 1969, he was appointed Director of Programmes with editorial responsibility for both of the BBC's television networks. Then, in 1973, he resigned to return to programme-making, claiming "I haven't even seen the Galapagos Islands". First came Eastwards with Attenborough, a natural history series set in South East Asia, then The Tribal Eye, examining tribal art.
An estimated 500 million people worldwide watched the 13-part series Life on Earth, written and presented by Sir David. At the time it was the most ambitious series ever produced by the BBC Natural History Unit. Its sequel, The Living Planet, came five years later in 1984 and in 1990 the final part of the trilogy, The Trials of Life was broadcast. He also wrote and presented two shorter series, The First Eden, on the long history of mankind's relationship with the natural world in the lands around the Mediterranean, and Lost Worlds, Vanished Lives, about fossils.
In 1993, Sir David presented the spectacular Life in the Freezer, a celebration of Antarctica and in 1995, he wrote and presented the epic The Private Life of Plants. In 1996, Attenborough in Paradise fulfilled a lifelong ambition to make a special film about the elusive but beautiful birds of paradise. In 1997, he narrated the award-winning Wildlife Specials, marking 40 years of the BBC Natural History Unit. In 1998, he completed an epic 10-part series for the BBC, The Life of Birds. In Autumn 2000 he presented State of the Planet and in Autumn 2001 he narrated The Blue Planet. In 2002 he worked on the innovative new BBC1 series, The Life of Mammals and in 2005 he fronted Life In The Undergrowth.
In 1985, Sir David was knighted, he was given the Order of Merit in 2005. Over the years he has received honorary degrees and a number of prestigious awards including Fellowship of The Royal Society. He is a Trustee of the British Museum, and the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and President of the Royal Society for Nature Conservation. [up dated from BBC 2nd Feb, 2009
Bibliography
1956 Zoo Quest to Guyana
1957 Zoo Quest for a Dragon
1959 Zoo Quest in Paraguay
1960 Quest in Paradise
1961 Zoo Quest to Madagascar
1963 Quest Under Capricorn
1976 The Tribal Eye
1979 Life on Earth
1984 The Living Planet
1987 The First Eden
1990 The Trials of Life
1994 The Private Life of Plants
1998 The Life of Birds
2002 The Life of Mammals
2002 Life on Air
2005 Life In The Undergrowth
Prizes and Awards
Society of Film and Television Arts Special Award
Royal Television Society Silver Medal
Zoological Society of London Silver Medal
Society of Film and Television Arts Desmond Davis Award
Royal Geographical Society Cherry Kearton Medal
UNESCO Kalinga Prize
Boston Museum of Science Washburn Award
Philadelphia Academy of Natural Science Hopper Day Medal
Royal Geographical Society Founder's Gold Medal
Encyclopedia Britannica Award
International Emmy Award
Royal Scottish Geographical Society Livingstone Medal
Royal Society of Arts Franklin Medal
Folden Kamera Award
If you are involved in this festival you can update or change details via the organisers page . Authors can list here.