David Attenborough - Life on Air
Memoirs of a Broadcaster
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Buy Now for £16.99
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Narrated by:
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David Attenborough
About this listen
David Attenborough reads his own bestselling memoir
David Attenborough is the acknowledged voice of nature, loved and revered worldwide for his groundbreaking wildlife documentaries. Over the course of his long BBC career, David has risen from trainee producer to award-winning film-maker, and in Life on Air, he tells the extraordinary stories of the people and animals he has met along the way.
We hear of his earliest days in television; his stint as Controller of BBC2, during which he introduced colour TV to Britain; and his encounters with luminaries such as Montgomery, Anthony Eden, Benjamin Britten and the Queen. Here, too, are tales of his travels to some of the most far-flung corners of the globe, including New Guinea, Borneo, Paraguay and the Australian outback, and the rare creatures he captures on film: from the exotic birds of paradise and the elusive Indri lemurs to the endangered Komodo dragon.
Featuring behind-the-scenes accounts of the making of his landmark natural history series, beginning with the pioneering Zoo Quest and concluding with Life in Cold Blood, this wonderful memoir - read by David Attenborough himself - recounts the highlights of a remarkable life in broadcasting.
Production credits
Read by David Attenborough
©2010 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2010 BBC Studios Distribution LtdCritic reviews
'An enthralling autobiography from one of the linchpins of television' Good Book Guide
Utter wonderful. Download; you won't regret it.
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I didnt want it to end
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Fantastic
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He was there, telling how it was in the very early days of BBC television, where thick white makeup was mandatory, the lighting had to be blindingly bright, and the huge immovable cameras were only inches from your face. ascending to become controller of BBC2, as the first colour TV channel and finally "controller of programmes". It was DA who commissioned greats such as "The Ascent of Man", "Civilization" and "Cosmos", before getting bored of management and going off to create his own fantastic mega-series such as "Life on Earth", "The Living Planet", "The Life of Plants" and the whole cannon of his natural history and anthropological works.
As part of his pioneering work in the BBC, he ventured to wild and far-flung places, to live among aboriginal tribes, traversing the outback or hacking through dense jungles to study rare and exotic species, some of which are now extinct. Who can forget his exchanging glances with a Silverback Gorrilla in the jungle! His courageous adventures into dangerous terrains show there is much more steel to his character than the urbane, gently spoken persona might lead us to believe.
I feared I would not enjoy this book, as it covers very little of his formative years, and such adult autobiographies can become lists of names to be credited. Not a bit of it - while giving full credit to those he worked with, his narration is delightful and enchanting, full of wonderful anecdotes and never for a moment dull. I cannot give it less than 5 stars!
What a life! Fantastic.
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Would you listen to David Attenborough - Life on Air: Memoirs of a Broadcaster again? Why?
This is a gentle reminiss of the start of his broadcasting career and with many anecdotes of how he encouraged the BBC to employ him in the roles that he wantedWhich character – as performed by David Attenborough – was your favourite?
David AttenboroughWas this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
No, it is really good to dip into at different times thoughA True raconteur
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