Sir David Attenborough at 100

David Attenborough turns 100 today, Friday, May 8, as the UK honours its favourite broadcaster, naturalist, and environmental advocate through various events and public expressions of admiration.

Millions of viewers are tuning in to programmes on multiple channels that cover details from his remarkable career of more than seven decades of dedicated service to informing the public about the natural world.

Viewers young and old will share personal stories about how his distinctive narration changed their understanding of wildlife and its value.

Tributes reach the centenarian from all quarters

Royalty joins ordinary people in sending messages of appreciation to Sir David Attenborough for his lifetime of outstanding work. Prince William has conveyed personal greetings while the King and Queen add their own words of thanks for everything he has done.

An audio recording features Attenborough expressing how overwhelmed he feels by the volume of good wishes that arrive from preschool children and residents in care homes around the country.

The BBC has organised a special concert at the Royal Albert Hall to celebrate this milestone birthday in grand style.

Childhood episodes that shaped his path

As a young boy, David Attenborough started out by suppling newts to the zoology department at University College Leicester for three pence each as a way to earn some pocket money.

His parents took in two Jewish refugee sisters who had escaped Nazi Germany and looked after them for seven years in their family home.

Attenborough discovered an ammonite fossil as a boy when he split open a rock during one of his explorations, an event that provoked his lasting interest in natural history from an early point.

Quirks and habits little discussed

Possibly one of the most well-travelled Brits in history, Attenborough never actually learned to drive a car despite going on journeys to far-flung locations for filming wildlife documentaries over most of his life.

Surprisingly, of all the animal kingdom, rats terrify him most, following incidents in the Solomon Islands where the creatures ran across his bed and the floor of his hut during a powerful thunderstorm.

His home welcomed various wild animals over the years, including gibbons, chimpanzees, lemurs, snakes, and chameleons that stayed as temporary guests from time to time.

Innovations in television and lasting honours

Attenborough started at the BBC without even owning a television set himself and had seen only one programme in his life before that moment.

At one point, he promoted snooker broadcasts to introduce colour television effectively to British audiences because the multicoloured balls helped demonstrate the advantages of the new format.

Dozens of plants, frogs, and other creatures carry scientific names honouring his work in natural history and his efforts to document species across the globe.

Attenborough is still the sole person to win BAFTAs for programmes produced in black-and-white, colour, high definition, and three-dimensional formats throughout his long career.

Legacy that motivates action on nature

Programmes from his extensive catalogue air once more while new retrospectives examine his childhood inspirations and lesser-known abilities that kept him going. Fans worldwide recall how his storytelling encouraged them to value and protect the natural world in their daily lives.

A newly identified parasitic wasp discovered in Chile gains a name linked to Attenborough in recognition of his lifetime achievements in the field of natural sciences.

His voice and passion for the environment keep motivating people of every age to take practical steps towards conservation and sustainability wherever they live.

Sir David Attenborough, we salute you on this auspicious day, your 100th birthday, as possibly the most celebrated and cherished Brit, and one we can all be proud of.