CULTURE EDITION
TALK CLOSE ENCOUNTERS Filmmaker Gordon Buchanan shares tales of wild bears and big cats H ailed as Scotland’s answer to David Attenborough, wildlife filmmaker Gordon “There was no thermal imaging, no drones. But now we can explore the deepest oceans and scale the highest mountains; there’s not a living creature we can’t capture on film.” Inevitably, climate change and
Buchanan spends most of his days trying to get as close as possible to creatures that could easily kill him. “I’m very spoiled, getting to see lions, tigers and bears in the wild,” he says. “They really are the animal kingdom’s most iconic creatures.” Gordon’s new UK tour shares details about how he gets his exciting wildlife footage at close range and the urgent need to protect these precious creatures in the wild. One of his most famous on-screen encounters was with a polar bear, as it sniffed around the edges of the Perspex box he was filming from. “Survival mode definitely flicked on!” he says. “I was completely awestruck, but terrified at the same time. There wasn’t much I could do other than let it play out.” Over the last 30+ years of his career, making TV series such as Big Cat Diary , filmmaking has changed massively. “Wildlife documentaries used to be about just pointing the camera at a lion and saying ‘that’s a lion’,” he says. “Now, they’re about observing their behaviour – how they live and interact in a modern world. “When I started, we could only film during the day,” he says.
population growth have taken a toll on our wild spaces. “In the early 90s, I remember flying over the Brazilian rainforest for hour after hour. I did the same journey a few years later and that forest was all gone. In today’s world, it’s hard to find places that still feel truly wild. But I do a job that takes me to the heart of these places; I’m so fortunate and grateful for that.” Lions and Tigers and Bears with Gordon Buchanan is at Cambridge Corn Exchange on 16 March
A new classical concert series will begin in Cambridge on 28 March, organised by Jersey-based charity Music in Action, in support of children’s musical education. The concert, at Trinity College Chapel, will be performed by the English Chamber Orchestra, featuring international solo violinist Harriet Mackenzie playing concertos by Bach, Vivaldi and Amy Beach. “We’re delighted to be launching such a prestigious concert series with the perennial favourite Vivaldi’s Four Seasons ,” says chairman James Mews. “We’re including newer work too; Romance by composer Amy Beach.” New concert series coming to Trinity MUSIC
22 MARCH 2025 CAMBSEDITION.CO.UK
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