David Attenborough
Biography
Born in Isleworth in 1926, David Attenborough is an English naturalist, broadcaster, and writer whose television career began when he hosted Zoo Quest in 1954. He spent the 1960s and 1970s as a senior BBC executive, serving as controller of BBC Two and as director of programming, and commissioning programs like Civilisation and Monty Python's Flying Circus. After returning to full-time filmmaking, he wrote and presented Life on Earth in 1979, which launched a benchmark series of natural history documentaries, followed by The Living Planet and The Trials of Life. His narration credits include Natural World, Wildlife on One, The Blue Planet, Planet Earth, and Frozen Planet. Later works took on environmental themes, among them Climate Change: The Facts (2019) and David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet (2020). He has won three Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Narrator, a Daytime Emmy, and BAFTA Awards from black-and-white through 4K.
100years old
Turns 101 on May 8in 207 days
- Born Isleworth
- Star sign: TaurusThe sign runs April 20 to May 20
- David Frederick Attenborough (birth name)Also credited as Sir David Attenborough and Sir David Frederick Attenborough
Movie Career
- Films
- 12
- Career span
- 41 years1985 to 2026
Genres
- Documentary92%, 11 films
- Drama17%, 2 films
- Comedy8%, 1 film
- History8%, 1 film
- Music8%, 1 film
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A role that slipped away
While running BBC Two, Attenborough rejected Terry Wogan's application for a presenter role there, explaining that no suitable vacancies existed. He later said two Irishmen presenting on the channel would have looked ridiculous.
A first
In 1986, Attenborough helped bring about the yellow tennis ball. He said the white balls used before could not be seen on a color television.
David Attenborough movies on Netflix
Best known for
The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.
Worked with
David Attenborough shares two films with Greta Thunberg, and one with each of the others. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.
Films together
Greta Thunberg's page
Pierce Brosnan's page
Michael Gambon's page
Joss Ackland's page
Barack Obama's page
Geoffrey Palmer's page
Keith ScholeyDirector, 2 films, 2020 to 2025
All films by Keith Scholey
Alastair FothergillDirector, 2 films, 2003 to 2020
All films by Alastair Fothergill
Awards
Twelve awards and honors from 2007 to 2022, three of them major.
| Year | Award | Film | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Emmy Awards | |||
| 2020 | Outstanding Narrator | Seven Worlds, One Planet | Won |
| 2019 | Outstanding Narrator | Our Planet | Won |
| 2018 | Outstanding Narrator | Blue Planet II | Won |
| Other honors | |||
| 2022 | Champions of the Earth | Won | |
| 2019 | Crystal Award | Won | |
| 2017 | Honorary Fellow of the Royal Entomological Society | Honorary | |
| 2015 | Bodley Medal | Won | |
| 2010 | Fonseca Prize | Won | |
| 2009 | Princess of Asturias Award for Social Sciences | Won | |
| 2008 | Corresponding Member of the Australian Academy of Science | Won | |
| 2007 | Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries | Won | |
| 2007 | Linnean Tercentenary Medal | Won | |
Online
Official profiles and reference pages.