The legendary British broadcaster David Attenborough recently celebrated a huge milestone birthday as he turned 97 this week.
The much loved natural historian is known for his passion for the environment and his iconic documentaries on the planet. The 97-year-old has devoted his entire life and career to nature and educating others on the importance of protecting our world for future generations to come.
However, not much is known about Sir David's life outside of the limelight as he continues to drive himself to work with Wild Isles, his latest five part series having just been recently released in March.
In honour of the iconic BBC broadcaster's milestone birthday, we take a look back at some of the more personal parts of his life.
Fascinating career
David Attenborough holds the Guinness world record for the longest serving TV presenter between the years of September 1953 and April 2023.
The much loved British broadcaster has been making programmes for over eight decades but despite recently making it to the grand age of 97, it seems he has no plans to end his career yet.
The father-of-two first joined the BBC in 1952 as a trainee and hosted Zoo Quest which was a live studio presentation that showed viewers dangerous animals such as pythons for the first time.
The young biologist was an instant hit with viewers for his clear passion for nature and his calming voice, which we all know and love.
Some of Attenborough's most notable work was during the BBC series Wildlife on One which ran from 1977 to 2005. Sir David narrated all 253 episodes of the popular wildlife show.
In 2022, the environmentalist was dubbed as a Champion of the Earth by the United Nations Environment Programme.
Tragic loss
The BBC broadcaster tied the knot with his wife Jane Oriel in 1950 and was happily married to her for almost half a century before she sadly passed away in 1997.
Jane fell into a coma and suffered a brain haemorrhage while David was working in New Zealand on his documentary 'The Life of the Birds in New Zealand'.
The biologist rushed home to be by his wife's side, but sadly, Jane did not survive and passed away while Sir David held her hand and she reportedly squeezed it in return.
The nature enthusiast was left feeling "lost" by his life long partner's tragic death and reflected on his grief in his memoir Life on Air. He heartbreakingly recalled the day she passed as he wrote: "The focus of my life, the anchor had gone… now I was lost."
The now 97-year-old has never remarried after he and Jane wed when they were both in their early twenties.
Speaking about his solitude home life, he told Radio Times that you learn to "deal with things" but admitted that an empty house is "not what I enjoy", despite living alone for so long.
He previously told the Daily Mail that "I would rather have people around" but it has never occurred to him to leave their home in Richmond Upon Thames, London which he shared with Jane.
He explained: "This house is all bound up with her. I feel her here as much as anywhere.'"
Speaking of his loneliness, he added: 'The thing is, when you go around the house, you know that, no matter how many doors you open there is not going to be anybody there, and that's a pity."
The couple also brought up their two children, Robert and Susan in the same home which is of great "sentimental" value to the broadcaster.
He told Radio Times that his daughter Susan, who is now in her 50s, is there for him in moments of "deep grief" but added that "the only consolation you can find is in the natural world".
David admitted that he used work as a coping mechanism to deal with his wife's death as he expressed how thankful he was that he had a project to keep himself busy with and credited his daughter for helping him through.
Although the iconic broadcaster is very passionate about his work, he confessed to Louis Theroux in 2017 that one of his only "regrets" in life is not spending more "irreplaceable" time with his children when they were younger as he spent months away from home.
Relationship with the royals
Sir David Attenborough has a good relationship with the royals and was a close friend of the late Queen Elizabeth before her death in September last year.
The broadcaster and the former monarch featured together in The Queen's Green Planet in 2018 where the pair were seen strolling through the gardens of Buckingham Palace.
According to the Telegraph, It's said that Attenborough was the inspiration behind the palace banning plastic straws in 2018 and generally "reducing its environmental impact" after they worked together on the environmental project.
However, their relationship goes back decades, the environmentalist was officially given a knighthood by the Queen in 1985 in recognition of his services to television.
He was also awarded an Order of Merit in 2005 which symbolises a personal appreciation that was specifically selected by the Queen herself as well as the 2019 Chatham House Prize.
David is also well respected by King Charles who first met the broadcaster when he was just a young boy and recently honoured him with his second knighthood last year for his services to television broadcasting and conservation.
Attenborough was introduced to Charles and Anne when they were children in 1958 while they toured the BBC Television Studios at Lime Grove where he introduced them to his three-year-old cockatoo named "Cocky."
He has also spent some time with the Cambridge family as he attended an outdoor screening of one of his films David Attenborough: A Life On Our Planet at Kensington Palace in 2020.
The 97-year-old met all three of Kate and William's children for the first time and sweetly presented Prince George with a very special gift - the tooth of an enormous shark that lived 23 million years ago.
The Prince of Wales paid tribute to the legendary nature enthusiast in a 2016 BBC programme tied to Attenborough's 90th birthday where he referred to him as a "national treasure".
Speaking of the impact Sir David had on his environmental consciousness, he dubbed him as "the single most important impact in my conservation thinking", adding "when I was a young boy, used to love turning on the television and watching David's programs".
Attenborough's latest five-part series Wild Isles was released on March 12 2023 and is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
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