Creature Comforts

Kate Humble tells JAKE TAYLOR that the natural beauty of counties like Somerset holds the key to protecting the British countryside for future generations.

- Jake Taylor

IT’S HARD not to feel a sense of pride in Great Britain when you talk to Kate Humble. With her infectious enthusiasm for all things natural, backed up by an encyclopaedic knowledge of British wildlife, the former Springwatch presenter positively exudes a love for animals that has made her one of the nation’s most well-loved personalities.

But the aptly-named Humble is adamant that it was the animals, and not her presence, that made Springwatch and its plethora of seasonal spin-offs such a massive hit with viewers across the UK.

“Its secret, if there is one, is that it is British wildlife,” says the 48-year-old, who fronted the popular programme alongside Bill Oddie and Simon King for a decade. “As much as I love and will always love going to other parts of the world and filming and seeing and spending time with other wildlife, no one ever gets bored of a blue tit!

“I think the reason is that almost anybody – wherever they live – can look out of their window and see a blue tit or a squirrel, or one of the animals that might be the stars of that series that year. And what became very obvious over the years I did it was that people almost felt ownership of those creatures that we followed.”

This connection between humans and animals is also the pervading theme behind Humble’s latest literary venture. Her book – Friend for Life: The Extraordinary Partnership Between Humans and Dogs – has been a passion project for the presenter, not least because it begins with her ‘personal journey’ of taking responsibility for a Welsh sheepdog puppy called Teg, who has already captured the hearts of the nation in her own way.

“I did a series about our journey, and about the history of the Welsh Sheepdog,” explains Kate.