Who are the hosts of Springwatch 2020?
SPRINGWATCH has returned to BBC Two and fans are thrilled to have the wildlife show back on the small screen. But who are the hosts of the nature show and what other projects have been part of? Let’s have a look… Who are the Springwatch 2020 presenters? Chris Packham, Gillian Burke, Michaela Strachan and Iolo Williams are […]
SPRINGWATCH has returned to BBC Two and fans are thrilled to have the wildlife show back on the small screen.
But who are the hosts of the nature show and what other projects have been part of? Let’s have a look…
Who are the Springwatch 2020 presenters?
Chris Packham, Gillian Burke, Michaela Strachan and Iolo Williams are hosting the show.
Chris Packham
Chris is a naturalist, nature photographer, television presenter and author.
He hosted The Really Wild Show from 1986 to 1995 and has presented Springwatch, including Autumnwatch and Winterwatch, since 2009.
Chris has also presented a string of other programmes, including a documentary called Inside the Animal Mind, a two-part series for the BBC, Cats v. Dogs: Which Is Best?, and he co-presented Earth Live on NatGeo Wild with Jane Lynch and Phil Keogan.
Packham was born in Southampton on 4 May 1961 – that makes him 56 – and lives in the New Forest with his pet poodle, Scratchy.
He’s dating Charlotte Corney, owner of the Isle of Wight Zoo – but the couple doesn’t live together.
Michaela Strachan
Like Packham, Michaela has also presented The Really Wild Show, joining the programme in 1993.
She has also co-presented two series of Orangutan Diary with Steve Leonard for BBC One, and the six-part series The Great Penguin Rescue on the Eden channel.
In January 2014, she took part in series 2 of ITV’S celebrity diving show Splash!
Strachan has also had a music career, bagging herself two UK hit singles – a cover of Edwin Starr’s “H.A.P.P.Y. Radio – which got to No. 62 in 1989 – and Take Good Care of My Heart – which got to No. 66 in 1990.
She was born in Ewell, Surrey, on 7 April 1966 – that makes her 51.
She raises son Oliver with partner Nick Chevallier, and she’s allergic to elephants.
Michaela, however, is in South Africa due to the lockdown and is unable to join in person.
To ensure she is still part of proceedings, Michaela will send messages of support to her viewers and the series will revisit some of her finest moments from the last few years.
Gillian Burke
Gillian was born just outside Nairobi, Kenya an lived what she describes as a “very happily feral” childhood, hunting barefoot for insects outside their house.
“I hated shoes,” she told the Radio Times, “and would kick them off as soon as I got home from school”.
She studied biology at Bristol University before working as a researcher for BBC’s Natural History Unit.
Gillian now lives in Cornwall with her two children.
Iolo Williams
Welsh wildlife expert Iolo Williams is an ornithologist, TV presenter and author.
He spent 14 years working for the RSPB, before media interest in his vast knowledge of Welsh bird life caused him to pursue a full-time TV career.
Iolo made an appearance on Springwatch before and was also featured in Winterwatch.
He has presented series such as Wild Wales, Rugged Wales, Great Welsh Parks, Visions of Snowdonia and Birdmanfor BBC Two and has co-presented several network series such as Nature’s Top 40 and Countryfile.
He is married with two sons, while he also own two rescue dogs that have previously made appearances on some of his TV shows.
Iolo has written several books, including Wild Places: Wales’ Top 40 Nature Sites, Red Kite Country: A Celebration of the Wildlife and Landscape of Mid Wales and Wild about the Wild.
Megan McCubbin
Megan is actually Chris Packham stepdaughter and is new to the series.
Her bio reads: “Megan is a passionate scientist with a particular interest in behaviour, evolution and the illegal wildlife trade. Her interest stems from a childhood growing up in and around the Isle of Wight Zoo, which specialises in the rescue and rehabilitation of ex-circus and pet trade animals.”
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When is Springwatch on TV?
Springwatch is on BBC Two TONIGHT (June 12) at 8pm.
You can watch any missed episodes on the iPlayer.