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David Attenborough Paid Tribute to His Longtime Friend, The Queen

Photo credit: YUI MOK - Getty Images
Photo credit: YUI MOK - Getty Images

Given his stature worldwide—and particularly in Britain—it's not at all surprising that the royals would show support for David Attenborough's work. But the royal family's history with the veteran broadcaster goes back much longer. Follwing the news of the death of his longtime friend Queen Elizabeth II, Attenborough spoke out in tribute to the late monarch.

"The whole nation is bereaved," he said in a statement.

The broadcaster also spoke about working with the Queen, saying "If there was a technical hitch, she wanted to know what it was, and if it had a funny side, she was quick to see the joke." He added, "Yet not for one second could you forget that you were in the presence of someone who had willingly accepted enormous responsibility and dedicated her life to serving the nation – that you were, in short, in the presence of royalty."

In an interview with ITV, he expanded on the idea, saying "She was an expert at getting people to relax. When you met her you were well-aware that you were in the presence of someone who was extremely important to our society and yet she made it seem that you were meeting another human being with exactly the same conditions that all human beings have." And though he called Her Majesty, "incomparably professional" he also noted that "if there was something funny she laughed in a genuine way. ... She wasn’t putting it on and that made it very easy."

Here, we've assembled a brief timeline of his friendship with Queen Elizabeth, King Charles, and other royals.

David Attenborough and Queen Elizabeth were born just weeks apart in 1926.

The Queen was born on April 21, and Attenborough followed soon after on May 8. Both were born in London.

Attenborough met Prince Charles and Princess Anne in 1958.

Back when Charles and Anne were just kids, they toured the BBC Television Studios at Lime Grove. One stop featured Attenborough, who introduced them to his three-year-old cockatoo named "Cocky."

Photo credit: Hulton Archive - Getty Images
Photo credit: Hulton Archive - Getty Images

In 1969, he fretted that a documentary would "kill" the monarchy.

The royal family famously let the public get a look behind the curtain the the 1969 BBC documentary, titled simply, The Royal Family. Attenborough was a BBC controller at the time, and extremely upset about the prospect of broadcasting the film. According to royal biographer Ingrid Seward (as reported by Express), Attenborough told the BBC director, "You’re killing the monarchy, you know, with this film you’re making."

He then reportedly wrote a letter explaining his concern. "The whole institution depends on ­mystique and the tribal chief in his hut," it read, per Express. "If any member of the tribe ever sees inside the hut, then the whole system of the tribal chiefdom is damaged and the tribe eventually disintegrates."

The documentary did not ruin the monarchy—although many believe it paved the way for the extreme press scrutiny and public attention that would evolve over the following decades.

In 1985, Attenborough was knighted.

In recognition of his services to television, the environmentalist and broadcaster was honored by the Queen with a knighthood in 1985. (Hence why he's often referred to as Sir David, especially in the U.K. press.)

Between 1986 and 1991, Attenborough produced the Queen's Christmas address.

For one particularly memorable broadcast, Attenborough even picked out her dress. The Queen had reportedly selected an acid green garment, which he swapped for a brown look. Apparently, she wasn't very happy about the whole thing.

"There is no pleasing you people from the media," she said, per Hello!. "I am told by one lot that I have to wear something colorful so I can be seen in a crowd—and then you come along and tell me I have to wear something pale and nondescript."

Photo credit: PA Images - Getty Images
Photo credit: PA Images - Getty Images

The Queen gave Attenborough an Order of Merit in 2005.

Three decades after knighting him, the British monarch upped the ante, awarding him an Order of Merit. It seems that he felt immensely honored. Per the BBC, he told the Queen right afterwards, "How could anyone believe they actually deserved something like this?"

Photo credit: Anwar Hussein Collection - Getty Images
Photo credit: Anwar Hussein Collection - Getty Images

In 2016, Attenborough spoke at a St. Paul's service celebrating the Queen's 90th birthday.

The broadcaster read a passage by Michael Bond, the author of the Paddington Bear books. "Like me, author Michael Bond, the creator of Paddington Bear among other characters, also celebrated his 90th birthday this year," Attenborough began, per the Daily Mail. "He reflects on the 1926 vintage and the passing of the years," he continued, before beginning the reading.

Later that year, Attenborough and the Queen were spotted sharing a laugh.

At an event centered around the Queen's Commonwealth Canopy, a charity dedicated to protecting forests launched in 2015, the Queen and Attenborough were seen enjoying each other's company.

In a speech that night, Attenborough expressed his admiration for the Queen's new initiative. "We are fortunate that you are still thinking about the future and how to make this a better world."

Photo credit: WPA Pool - Getty Images
Photo credit: WPA Pool - Getty Images

The Queen's Green Planet aired in 2017.

Attenborough showed further support for the project in 2017, when he appeared alongside the Queen in a documentary titled The Queen's Green Planet. The pair is seen strolling in the Buckingham Palace gardens, pausing to chuckle every now and then.

At one point, the Queen came upon a particularly strange looking plant. She noted that it "does not seem to be doing very well," joking that "somebody sat on it I think at a garden party." Attenborough chuckled amiably at her little quip, per the Times.

In 2018, Buckingham Palace banned plastic straws—a move thought to be inspired by Attenborough.

According to the Telegraph, it's widely believed that the Queen was moved to cut down on plastic after working with Attenborough on The Queen's Green Planet. "Across the organisation, the Royal Household is committed to reducing its environmental impact," a spokesman told the Telegraph. "As part of that, we have taken a number of practical steps to cut back on the use of plastics. At all levels, there's a strong desire to tackle this issue."

Prince William took the stage at Davos to interview Attenborough in 2019.

At this year's World Economic Forum, Attenborough and Prince William discussed the broadcaster's ecological advocacy, and the the formidable challenges in store for future generations of green activists.

Prince William has long been an admirer of Attenborough's work. He's credited the broadcaster as "the single most important impact in my conservation thinking." And in 2016 BBC program tied to Attenborough's 90th birthday, William called him a "national treasure... I used to love, and I still do, but when I was a young boy, used to love turning on the television and watching David's programs and really feeling like I was back out in Africa or I was learning about something magical and almost out of this planet."

Photo credit: FABRICE COFFRINI - Getty Images
Photo credit: FABRICE COFFRINI - Getty Images

Queen Elizabeth presented the 2019 Chatham House Prize to Attenborough.

As patron of the Royal Institute of International Affairs, the Queen presented the Chatham House Prize to David Attenborough and the Blue Planet II team. In her speech, she said she was "delighted" that institute members had chosen them as recipients.

"Sir David, this award recognizes your many talents and one can’t help but feel that, for those of us of a certain generation, we can take great pleasure in proving age is no barrier to being a positive influence," she said, per Hello.

The Queen went on, "Your ability to communicate the beauty and vulnerability of our natural environment remains unequalled as you—and your team—have engaged and enthused many people, young and old, to appreciate and preserve our world’s oceans. For that we should all be thankful. I congratulate you and all involved in this endeavor."

Photo credit: WPA Pool - Getty Images
Photo credit: WPA Pool - Getty Images

In 2020, Attenborough attended an outdoor screening of one of his films with the Cambridge family at Kensington Palace.

The royals released some adorable photos from the occasion, which show George, Charlotte, and Louis having a grand time with the naturalist. Following the screening of David Attenborough: A Life On Our Planet, Attenborough gave a very special present to George: a tooth from a giant shark that lived 23 million years ago.

William, who has also created a conservation-minded documentary (Prince William: A Planet For Us All, set to air in the U.K. this October), was happy to support Attenborough's film with the screening. "With a shared passion for protecting the natural world, they continue to support one another in their missions to tackle some of the biggest environmental challenges our planet faces," explained the caption on Will and Kate's Instagram post about Attenborough's visit.

Photo credit: Kensington Palace - Getty Images
Photo credit: Kensington Palace - Getty Images

In 2021, Attenborough served as a council member for Prince William's Earthshot Prize.

A year after Prince William launched his global £50 million Earthshot Prize, Attenborough joined the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge for the awards ceremony at Alexandra Palace on October 17, 2021. Along with the likes of Shakira Mebarak and Daniel Alves, Attenborough served as a council member for the prize, which was aimed at finding 50 solutions to the world’s biggest environmental challenges over the course of a decade.

Photo credit: WPA Pool - Getty Images
Photo credit: WPA Pool - Getty Images

In 2022, he received his second knighthood from Prince Charles.

37 years after he was granted his Knights Bachelor honors by the Queen, Attenborough was awarded another knighthood by Prince Charles, the prestigious Knight Grand Cross, which "recognises service in a foreign country, or in relation to foreign and Commonwealth affairs," according to the royal family's website. He received the honors for his services to television broadcasting and conservation.

Photo credit: Pool - Getty Images
Photo credit: Pool - Getty Images

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