Chris Packham chats to Yours
Conservationist and Autumnwatch presenter CHRIS PACKHAM, tells Yours about family ties, the dogs healing his grief and why it’s important to talk
Dogs are a joy
The love for a dog is unconstrained, and I want to give my dogs the best life they can possibly have. I lost my dog Itchy in 2016, and then this May, his brother Scratchy, who was almost 16. I have been grieving terribly but in July, my partner Charlotte and Megan (his stepdaughter from a previous relationship) persuaded me to get miniature poodle puppies, Sid and Nancy. They are helping to put a smile back on my face, but they have big paws to fill.
■ Talking is therapy
I’m glad I made my BBC documentary in 2017, My Asperger’s and Me. I felt because I can articulate what it’s like to have Asperger’s, and some people with the condition can’t, I wanted to raise awareness and give young people hope. For me, having Asperger’s as a child was difficult and as an 18-year-old it was appalling.
But now, there is better understanding and support.
■ Embrace the unexpected
I’d have loved a career in music, but I wasn’t good enough. I got into punk rock when I was 16 and I did my best with a guitar but I eventually sold it and used the money to buy a camera, which led to a career in wildlife photography and television.
■ Filming can be unpredictable
It was so cold filming Springwatch earlier this year that while the rest of Britain was enjoying a heatwave, Michaela Strachan (his co-presenter) and I were in thermals and three puffa jackets! For the new series of Autumnwatch this year, we’re back in the Cairngorms in the Highlands where we’re engaging with the broadest range of life possible, from hedgehogs and squirrels to slugs, bugs and flies.
■ Being a stepdad is a gift
I have a great relationship with my stepdaughter Megan, (24) who I met when she was toddler. Although I split with her mum 16 years ago, we have remained close. My ambition was to be her best friend for as long as I could and she’s turned into a brilliant young woman, the likes of which I could never have aspired to thinking I could have something to do with.
■ Nothing heals like nature
I try to get into some green space every day as it has really helped since I lost my dog Scratchy. If I’m at home, I never miss walking near my house in the New Forest – especially first thing in the morning as it gets me grounded for the day. This autumn, during my walks I have been picking up acorns and hundreds of conkers in the wood which I am now planting in a little tree nursery at home.
■ Chris is presenting Autumnwatch, the new series of which starts Tuesday, October 29 on BBC2
■ He was talking to Jane Oddy