Sir David Attenborough says ‘the whole nation is bereaved’ as he pays tribute to his fellow 96-year-old the Queen
- Environmentalist Sir David Attenborough was knighted by the Queen in 1985
- They shared a strong rapport and appeared on The Queen’s Green Planet in 2018
- He produced the Queen’s televised Christmas Day address for more than 5 years
- Queen Elizabeth II death: Follow for latest updates as Buckingham Palace announces first day of royal mourning
Sir David Attenborough paid tribute to his fellow 96-year-old the Queen by saying ‘the whole nation is bereaved’.
He has joined other influential figures in paying his respects following the monarch’s death yesterday at Balmoral Estate, saying she had an ‘extraordinary ability to put you at your ease’.
The environmentalist and broadcaster, who was first knighted by the Queen in 1985, has a long history and relationship with the royal family.
He shared a strong rapport with the Queen, appearing on The Queen’s Green Planet together in 2018 and producing her televised Christmas Day address for various years in the 1980s and 1990s.
In a statement to PA news agency, Sir David said: ‘If there was a technical hitch, she wanted to know what it was, and if it had a funny side, she was quick to see the joke.
Sir David Attenborough paid tribute to his fellow 96-year-old the Queen by saying ‘the whole nation is bereaved’
Sir David and the Queen knew each other for many years, with the broadcaster producing the Queen’s televised Christmas Day address for more than five years in the 1980s and 1990s (pictured during filming for the 1986 Christmas broadcast)
‘Yet not for one second could you forget that you were in the presence of someone who had willingly accepted enormous responsibility and dedicated her life to serving the nation – that you were, in short, in the presence of royalty.
‘The whole nation is bereaved.’
Sir David and the Queen were born just weeks apart: his birthday is May 8, 1926 – almost a month after the Queen’s on April 21 that year.
The 96-year-old appeared with the monarch in ITV’s The Queen’s Green Planet in 2018 – a documentary programme that followed the progress of the Queen’s Commonwealth Canopy project.
The project created a network of protected Commonwealth forests around the globe in tribute to the Queen’s service to the family of nations.
The programme featured a unique and informal conversation between the head of state and the veteran presenter, filmed in the gardens of Buckingham Palace.
The 96-year-old appeared with the monarch in ITV’s The Queen’s Green Planet in 2018 (pictured together in the gardens of Buckingham Palace for the show in April 2018)
Sir David and the Queen knew each other for many years, with the broadcaster producing the Queen’s televised Christmas Day address for more than five years in the 1980s and 1990s.
With a career spanning seven decades, Sir David is a member of the Earthshot Prize council, an initiative launched by the Duke of Cornwall and Cambridge to find solutions to environmental issues.
The veteran broadcaster also featured in a segment of the BBC’s Platinum Party at the Palace earlier this year to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
In 2020, Sir David was appointed a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael And St George for services to television broadcasting and to conservation in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list.
The TV figure and the Queen celebrated their 90th birthdays just weeks apart in 2016.
The environmentalist and broadcaster, who was first knighted by the Queen in 1985, has a long history and relationship with the royal family. The Queen presents Sir David with the Insignia of the Order of Merit, a personal award from the Queen
Sir David said: ‘If there was a technical hitch, she wanted to know what it was, and if it had a funny side, she was quick to see the joke’. Pictured together in 2019 when the Queen presented him with the Chatham House Prize
Sir David’s milestone was marked with a special BBC One programme, Attenborough At 90, which included a tribute from William, who said at the time: ‘There is something very calming and sort of warm about his programmes.
‘There is something very reassuring about seeing David Attenborough on BBC One doing his documentaries. It is part of the national psyche now.
‘He’s a national treasure and it is very fitting that he is having his 90th birthday only a few weeks after the Queen.
‘They are two incredible national treasures who have done so much over the years.’
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