Wild life - Simon King (First edition)

'Every trip, every brush with new or familiar creatures has enriched my life, often with amusing, sometimes moving and occasionally alarming encounters.'

Even as a very young child, Simon King was passionate about the natural world. Being savaged by a rabid cheetah, charged at by rhinos and elephants and defecated upon by a long list of birds may sound like hell to some. But his experiences alongside all things furry, scaly, slimy and feathery have provided him with a rich bank of tales to relive and retell.

For programmes from Planet Earth and Blue Planet to Springwatch and Big Cat Diary, Simon has travelled to every continent and lived in extreme conditions from the remote desert to Arctic and Antarctic wilderness.

Simon weaves his animal stories amongst encounters with extraordinary people (from the San Bushmen to David Attenborough), and astonishing places, to give us a memoir of characteristic honesty and charm.

Simon King was born in Nairobi, but moved to the UK in 1964 and has been working as a natural history film-maker for almost thirty years. He has worked on programmes such as Blue Planet and Big Cat Diary and presents Springwatch and Autumnwatch. He is an expert in his field, and has received EMMY, BAFTA and RTS awards for his work.