While his pals claim that he’ll “never retire,” the actor himself made a depressing admission about his life as he turns 99 next week.
We’ve been lucky enough to have almost a century of Sir David Attenborough CBE. The nature expert was born on May 8, 1926, and will be turning 99 in just a week.
Sir David has been fascinated by nature since he was a child, and studied natural sciences at Cambridge University before going on to join the BBC. He first appeared on TV in 1954 after initially being told that his teeth were ‘too big’ for him to be a presenter. But now, after a stellar career spanning 60 years, Sir David has sadly told fans that he doesn’t expect to live for too much longer.
Speaking of the urgent need to look after our world, Sir David shared: “When I first saw the sea as a young boy, it was thought of as a vast wilderness to be tamed and mastered for the benefit of humanity. Now, as I approach the end of my life, we know the opposite is true.
After living on this planet for almost a hundred years, I now realize that the sea is where the most important place is. He came to the conclusion that if the sea was saved, the world was saved. Nothing is more significant than filming our planet, in my opinion.
Sir David has enjoyed great life for most of his health, but admitted he has concerns about one worrying illness. The star had a pacemaker fitted in the summer of 2013 and also had both knees replaced in 2015, and revealed that he’s had to make changes to his lifestyle to keep healthy.
He continued, “I have definitely changed my diet. Not particularly dramatic. However, I don’t believe I’ve had red meat in a while. I must admit that I also eat fish and cheese. However, over the past few years, I’ve grown much more vegetarian than I ever thought possible.
The move might just help him stay healthy for longer. Studies have consistently shown that plant-based diets can help extend life by staving off chronic diseases, while eating too much processed meat and red meat may increase your risk of bowel (colorectal) cancer, according to the NHS. Some meats are high in saturated fat, which can raise blood cholesterol levels and your risk of coronary heart disease.
However, despite having a pacemaker and dropping his red meat intake, it’s not heart issues that Sir David fears – instead, he has concerns about being hit by a mind-changing condition such as Alzheimer’s. In 2021, American TV host Anderson Cooper asked: “What are you most fearful of at this moment?” Sir David quickly admitted: “Becoming helpless and gaga.”
The broadcaster stated in a previous interview with The Telegraph that in the Jura Mountains in Switzerland, he became frustrated after losing all memory. He recalled that there were “these aching yellow fields,” and “I can’t remember their names.”
“I wanted to talk about it, but I was unable to.” I didn’t realize that I was getting close to Geneva until I realized that rapeseed oil was the only thing that I knew. He made the same assertion in the interview that he was “coming to terms” with the possibility that his mental health would decline as he ages.
He’s also shared his concern for the quality of his narration, after fans raised concerns for his voice in the show Asia. As he usually does when presenting a programme, Sir David provided the voiceover narration for the documentary. But some people claimed on social media that his voice “sounded different,” with a fan claiming it might have been “tweaked” in some way.
A BBC spokesperson told The Mirror: “No AI or auto tune has been used on Sir David’s voice, which was recorded in exactly the same way it has been for years.”
David previously stated that he “dreads” the thought of being unable to work and that he would only resume if his health prevented him from performing a good job. He claimed a few years ago that he spends a lot of time writing his scripts, and that he should “hope I would be able to recognize it before someone else discovered it.” That would put an end to my work if I believed I was producing subpar work.
However, those closest to him believe he is still in good health and won’t be leaving our screens any time soon. His long-term collaborator and creative director of the BBC’s Natural History Unit, Mike Gunton, doesn’t believe he’ll ever see Sir David leaving. He reaffirmed last year that “it’s never going to happen.”
