George Cansdale

George Soper Cansdale (29 November 1909 – 24 August 1993) was a British zoologist, writer and television personality. He was Superintendent of the Zoological Society of London, and one of the best-known presenters of wildlife programmes and items on British television between the 1950s and 1980s.

Life and career He was born in 1909 in Brentwood, Essex and attended Brentwood School before studying for a degree in forestry at St Edmund Hall, Oxford. He then joined the Colonial Service, and in 1934 was appointed as Forestry Officer for the Gold Coast (now Ghana), where he started collecting animals for a friend who worked at Paignton Zoo. He used local children to help him collect specimens, and as a result discovered several new species. He began supplying animals for several zoos, including London Zoo.

In 1947 he was recruited by the Zoological Society of London as their Superintendent, a post which he held until 1953. During that period he began to broadcast for the BBC, on early wildlife programmes such as Heads, Tails and Feet, Looking at Animals and All About Animals, the latter two of which won the Royal Television Society's silver medal in 1952. He also made regular appearances on Children's Hour on BBC radio. David Attenborough paid tribute to Cansdale in 1992, saying that, thanks to Cansdale's bringing animals to the television studios, "a great many people, young and old, acquired their first insights into taxonomy and comparative anatomy from what he said. He spoke good natural science."

George also featured on the BBC Home Service's Desert Island Discs in January 1957. His music choices included Mozart, Bach, Beethoven and Handel. His luxury item was a pair of field glasses.