A very sad post, Professor David Bellamy OBE
"Britain's best known botanist" with over 40 books, 80+ scientific
papers on ecology and the environment to his name, dozens of television
programmes conservationist and friend has died aged 86.
Even if you weren’t partially nature inclined, if you are
of certain age and from the UK you will know exactly who David Bellamy was, with
his instantly recognizable voice, bushy beard and infectious enthusiasm for plants.
Late 1970’s and early to mid 80’s especially, he seemed
to be on everything- he could be discussing seeds and propagation or greenhouse
gasses on Blue Peter on one channel and then be promoting Heinz Baked Beans on
the other (in some cases it wasn’t even him! but an imposter as he was often imitated
by impressionists “Sphagnum Moss” etc.) His life was certainly one that had
been lived, I will refrain from writing a lengthy biography (I highly recommend
that you read his autobiography- Jolly
Green Giant) instead concentrating on the man I ‘grew up with’ as I was always fascinated
by him, and what with being a child especially interested in nature he was a
big part of my childhood and I would always make the time to hear what he had
to say.
I was especially a regular viewer of Belamy’s Bugle on Children’s ITV which aired between 1986 -1988 which had David sporting a woolly jumper with
the title of the series knitted on the front joined by various children from schools
around the country discussing environmental subjects with his talking super computer
Smart Alice (voiced by Kate Lee) and that image of David sitting in his study chatting
to a talking computer has always remained with me, in fact I often say it’s a
shame it is not more widely discussed these days as it was almost certainly a precursor
for the countless other environmental themed children’s TV shows that sprang up
during the supposedly more environmentally aware 90’s.
TV aside his name could be found on almost anything,
comics, magazines, board games, records and I fondly remember receiving his
microscope kit for Christmas in 1987 which holds an integral position in my collection
of David Bellamy related paraphernalia that I have collected over the years (a
collection that is long overdue for display and certainly deserves a blog post
of its own) which reminds us how especially important his contribution was to
inspiring children to take an interest in the planet. Then there were of course
his books, always looking out for books on nature I would frequently get them
from the library (and even if he hadn’t written the book he would have almost
certainly written the forward for it!) and I remember being delighted during a
visit to Chester Zoo to discover that having grown up with my father’s old
I-SPY spotters' guides that they had released new ones and that David was now the
Big Chief! I never plucked up the courage to send in my spotters guide and receive
my order of merit and badge from him- something that long bothered me, but I
was able to alleviate somewhat in 2013 when he very kindly endorsed an idea
that I had instead, the Bellamy Eco-Postage Label, a free label bearing his likeness
that encouraged regular users of eBay and Amazon to save money and the
environment by reusing old envelopes postal packaging.
I was especially a regular viewer of Belamy’s Bugle on Children’s ITV which aired between 1986 -1988 which had David sporting a woolly jumper with
the title of the series knitted on the front joined by various children from schools
around the country discussing environmental subjects with his talking super computer
Smart Alice (voiced by Kate Lee) and that image of David sitting in his study chatting
to a talking computer has always remained with me, in fact I often say it’s a
shame it is not more widely discussed these days as it was almost certainly a precursor
for the countless other environmental themed children’s TV shows that sprang up
during the supposedly more environmentally aware 90’s.
I followed that idea with a direct tribute to him in 2015
when I painted a portrait of him entitled, The Green Man: A tribute toProfessor David Bellamy OBE and presenting it in a ‘living’ frame made up of
branches, moss and plants that was displayed in the woods along the River Ogwen
during the Sculpture Circle’s annual ‘Gwyl Ogwen’ art festival.
Then in 2016 a project that I had not got round to documenting
on this blog, having decided that I needed a plant in the studio and opting for
a Ficus Benjamina I decided to make it a little more special than just running
to a garden centre to get one and so David, no stranger to tree planting
ceremonies having planted thousands of trees for various conservation groups
and charities over the years through the David Bellamy Conservation Award
Scheme performed (quite possibly) the first ever-commemorative indoor tree
planting ceremony, at his home in County Durham. The Bellamy tree as we now
call it stands in the studio along with a commemorative plaque which reads,
“This tree was planted by Professor David Bellamy OBE on the 8th of November
2016" and it now serves extra poignancy, as it not only provides some much
needed greenery in the studio, it also celebrates those early, precious
childhood memories filled with inspiration and wonder but also the memories gained
in later years when I had the pleasure of meeting this wonderful, kind and
gentleman- Thank you David.
© Arfon Jones 2019. All images are copyrighted throughout
the world.
No comments:
Post a Comment