FOR AN HOUR A NIGHT, FOUR nights a week and for three weeks from the end of May, the BAFTA-winning Springwatch will again see the nation glued to BBC Two. Since the series fledged in 2005, presenters like Bill Oddie, Kate Humble, Simon King and Martin Hughes-Games, plus today's crop of Gillian Burke, Chris Packham, Michaela Strachan and Iolo Williams, have engaged a primetime audience with the wonders of the British countryside. In spring 2022, BBC Wildlife spent a day on location at Wild Ken Hill, Norfolk, with Chris and Michaela to see how the programme comes together.
10AM The first call of the day is the editorial meeting. The presenters join via Zoom from their respective locations – Iolo on Mull, Chris and Michaela in Norfolk, and Megan McCubbin in Northumberland.
Talk is of the weather forecast. Will the rain hold? The weather on Mull is rotten and Iolo is sheltering from the storm, while in Norfolk the sun is beating down.
In Norfolk, Chris and Michaela are in the Green Room (actually the living room of the estate manager’s charming old red-brick cottage). The windows offer idyllic views across glorious red poppy fields.
Beyond the garden wall is a barn, where a mass of cabling spaghettis around giant trailers and makeshift workstations. A bank of screens shows the live feed from cameras tucked away in boxes, barns and boltholes.
The main purpose of the editorial meeting is to run through this evening’s show. Every item is detailed and discussed, albeit at breakneck speed.
This story is from the June 2023 edition of BBC Wildlife.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the June 2023 edition of BBC Wildlife.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Flightless birds
Our pick of 10 curious birds that have lost the ability to fly
ALL YOU EVER NEEDED TO KNOW ABOUT THE Shoebill
THIS PREHISTORIC-LOOKING BIRD IS affectionately known by some as 'king of the marshes' as it is huge (up to 1.5m tall with a 2.4m wingspan) and resides in the freshwater marshes and swamps of East Africa.
Slime: protector, lubricant and glue
GOO, GUNGE, GUNK... WHILE THERE are many names for the stuff that makes things slippery or sticky, slime isn't a single material but a label for a variety of substances with similar physical properties. Those qualities are desirable to many living things, which is why slime is made by such a wide range of organisms.
How do parrots learn to swear?
THERE ARE FEW THINGS AS GLORIOUSLY entertaining as the effing and blinding of a potty-mouthed parrot.
Why are walruses so chubby?
AS A GENERAL RULE, TERRESTRIAL mammals are furry, while aquatic ones are fat. It doesn't work across the board: sea otters rarely leave the water but have the densest fur of any mammal.
What is the lotus effect?
WHEN YOU FIND YOURSELF WATCHING the clock on the wall of a dentist's waiting room, you can always pass a bit of time with a rummage through the bowl of fragrant botanical wonders next to the leaflets about expensive cosmetic work.
Are there any plants in Antarctica?
CONTINENTS DON'T COME ANY MORE inhospitable than Antarctica, where life must contend with the longest, darkest, coldest winters and a year-round blanket of snow and ice.
LANDLORD OF THE WILD
The humble aardvark is seldom praised for its work digging out homes for other animals
CRACK DOWN
As the new Amazon drama Poacher hits our screens, we take a look at the fight to end ivory poaching in India
Wild words
Spending time observing and writing about the natural world can be transformational