This week at Bristol we welcomed Britain’s beloved wildlife film-maker Sir David Attenborough to the university!
Sir David was invited to the university to officially open the new £56.5 million Life Sciences building.
In honour of his visit, here’s some fun facts about the man himself:
- Born: May 8, 1926
- Horoscope: Taurus
- Fave smell: Frying bacon
- If he could go back in time: The Jurassic period (sensing some potential jealousy of Richard Attenborough’s role in Jurassic Park here)
- Greatest Achievement: Life on Earth… Here he is in action:
- Dislikes: Rats, calling them “the ultimate horrible thing”. Not ALL the animals are fascinating then.
- Achievements: He’s won a bafta in black and white, colour, HD and 3D. Nicely done.
- His achievements don’t stop there. Sir David also holds the most honorary degrees in the UK, currently totalling at 32.
- Though, his career wasn’t always on such a high – he was originally going to be taken off screen because his boss at the BBC thought his teeth were too big!
- Sir David writes all his own scripts, and this writing talent won him a major literary prize for The Life of Birds even before the show had aired.
- He’s not a diva – he flies economy class, only accepting an upgrade if the offer extends to his crew.
We’ll leave you with his inspiring address to the Life Sciences department:
“We in Britain have been leaders in understanding the Life Sciences and you will be the leaders of tomorrow.
“Nothing could be more important in the area of scholarship than this. Understanding the natural sciences and the processes that brought us here – these things bring joy and resonance and happiness to our lives.
“This great building will give you and its graduates pleasure for the rest of your lives. It will play an important role in tackling the great problems and difficulties that the world is going to face in your generation.”
Photo credits: Nick Smith/University of Bristol, http://www.infocobuild.com/books-and-films/nature/life-earth/Image_Life_…, http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01688/David-Attenborough_168…