Naturalist, explorer and host Steve Backshall, 48, on what makes him cry, Sir David Attenborough, and why he’s not afraid of sharks.
What can people expect from Seven Worlds, One Planet Live In Concert?
I’m not the narrator so it will still have Sir David Attenborough’s glorious dulcet tones on it. I will be providing the connections as a live storyteller.
It’s in the O2 on a giant screen and it’s the best wildlife footage that’s ever been made, accompanied by live music from an 80-piece orchestra and a choir. There is a very strong chance I might cry on stage.
Have you become more emotional since becoming a dad?
Definitely. But probably some of that is sleeplessness — we slept about two hours last night because the kids were up. But I’m an emotional person anyway.
I get very swelled by music, particularly orchestral music. And obviously wildlife is the thing that’s driven me through my entire life. So those two things combined is a pretty intoxicating combination.
Do you know Sir David Attenborough well?
I’d love to say I know him well but it’d be taking things too far. I’ve been lucky enough to work with him on several occasions and everyone looks up to him with good reason. He’s the greatest storyteller I’ve ever met.
I was at the centennial anniversary of the Wildlife Trust in the Natural History Museum, and myself and other naturalists spoke with our collections of slides and films, all highly practised to within an inch of its life.
Sir David came on stage without any notes and talked for an hour completely off the top of his head. Several hundred hardened conservationists sat enraptured. Nobody wanted to go for a wee.
Do you watch his shows with your children?
We try not to watch too much television because they’re still young but what we do watch usually has an educational element to it. Some of the very first TV Logan watched was Sir David’s work and the rest is mostly mine! He really likes Deadly 60.
Amazingly, the twins really like it as well. Bo, our little girl, will wander around the house going ‘Deadly 60, Daddy!’ They’re really into it. I’m sure that won’t last.
Aren’t they confused about you being on the telly?
They get confused if we’re out in public and somebody wants a photo taken with me. But they have seen both Helen [Glover, Steve’s Olympic rower wife] and me on telly from the first time they watched one so they probably think everybody’s mum and dad are.
Has having children affected you going away so much?
We had rules that we were intending on sticking to but then the pandemic hit. I’d said I wasn’t going to do anything more than two-week trips then be home for two weeks but you don’t get to make those decisions now.
How did Covid-19 affect you?
I did lots of filming from home during the first lockdown. But then things started again and travelling during the peak of the pandemic was stressful.
The alternative was that we shut down the production company we work for so we all clubbed together and threw ourselves into it.
I did six expeditions to Saudi Arabia, Gabon, Mexico, all over the place, plus a full series on sharks travelling all over the globe. There were some hairy moments.
In what sense hairy?
When we were in Gabon there was a curfew imposed and the capital city was closed off from the rest of the country while we were out in the sticks filming gorillas.
We had to get out of the country to do the next expedition so we drove at top speed 10 hours across the country to find the city barricaded in. We had to find a way down side streets with a police guard, which was so scary.
Then, in Saudi Arabia, we were on the plane to fly home for Christmas when the country shut down and stayed shut down for three months. If we’d left two hours later, we’d have been stuck in an airport hotel for that time.
How did you feel when you heard about the latest great white shark attack in Australia?
It needs to be put in context. It was the first fatal shark attack in the Sydney area in 60 years. Obviously something as dramatic, gruesome and macabre as that is going to capture our attention and my heart goes out to the family. But the 10 people that died on Sydney roads that day didn’t make it to the UK news.
There are approximately 10 fatal shark attacks a year on a planet of almost eight billion people. Sharks are statistically far less dangerous to us than cows, puppies and bees. I’ve spent well over a thousand hours underwater with sharks and not had so much as a scratch.
I’ve never had a notable injury from any animal and rarely been scared. Quite often we work in the rainforest for weeks with scorpions, spiders and snakes, and nobody gets harmed at all.
Then you come back to a big city and get held up at gunpoint. People have always been more frightening to me.
is at London’s O2 Arena tomorrow.
