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Palgrave Macmillan

BBC Wildlife Documentaries in the Age of Attenborough

  • Book
  • © 2019

Overview

Authors:
  1. Jean-Baptiste Gouyon

    1. Department of Science and Technology Studies, University College London, London, UK

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  • Offers a unique look at ‘making of’ wildlife documentaries
  • Based on first-hand interviews conducted with David Attenborough
  • Tells the full story of BBC wildlife and David Attenborough

Part of the book series: Palgrave Studies in Science and Popular Culture (PSSPC)

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Table of contents (10 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-x
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  2. Introduction

    • Jean-Baptiste Gouyon
    Pages 1-14

  3. Live from Alexandra Palace, Wildlife Comes to Television

    • Jean-Baptiste Gouyon
    Pages 15-42

  4. David Attenborough: The Early Years—Fashioning Zoological Expertise On-Screen

    • Jean-Baptiste Gouyon
    Pages 43-68

  5. Wildlife Television, Empathy and the End of the British Empire

    • Jean-Baptiste Gouyon
    Pages 69-95

  6. Wildlife Television and Progressivism in 1960s Britain: Rise of the Professional Broadcaster and Downfall of the Amateur Naturalist Film-Maker

    • Jean-Baptiste Gouyon
    Pages 97-123

  7. Showcasing Science, Showcasing Nature on BBC2

    • Jean-Baptiste Gouyon
    Pages 125-152

  8. From Oxford to Bristol and Back: The Invention of Scientific Wildlife Television

    • Jean-Baptiste Gouyon
    Pages 153-177

  9. Oxford Scientific Films: From Field Craft to Film Craft

    • Jean-Baptiste Gouyon
    Pages 179-204

  10. Life on Earth and Beyond: Producing the Wildlife Blockbuster

    • Jean-Baptiste Gouyon
    Pages 205-245

  11. Afterword

    • Jean-Baptiste Gouyon
    Pages 247-253

  12. Back Matter

    Pages 255-261
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Keywords

About this book

This book explores the history of wildlife television in post-war Britain. It revolves around the role of David Attenborough, whose career as a broadcaster and natural history filmmaker has shaped British wildlife television. The book discusses aspects of Attenborough’s professional biography and also explores elements of the institutional history of the BBC—from the early 1960s, when it was at its most powerful, to the 2000s, when its future is uncertain. It focuses primarily on the wildlife ‘making-of’ documentary genre, which is used to trace how television progressively became a participant in the production of knowledge about nature. With the inclusion of analysis of television programmes, first-hand accounts, BBC archival material and, most notably, interviews with David Attenborough, this volume follows the development of the professional culture of wildlife broadcasting as it has been portrayed in public. It will be of interest to wildlife television amateurs, historians of British television and students in science communication. 

Authors and Affiliations

  • Department of Science and Technology Studies, University College London, London, UK

    Jean-Baptiste Gouyon

About the author

Jean-Baptiste Gouyon is Associate Professor in Science Communication at UCL Department of Science and Technology Studies, UK, and Research Associate of the Science Museum, in London, UK. A historian of science in visual media, his research is on science in films, on television, and in museums. He is a member of the editorial board of the journal Public Understanding of Science, where he edits the rubric “historical moments in public understanding of science”.

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