Sir David Attenborough and the Sounds of Nature

National treasure Sir David Attenborough celebrated his 100th birthday on Friday, and his incredible life, dedicated to helping the public engage with the natural world, was honoured across the country. But did you know that one of his first series as a TV producer, broadcast in 1954, delved into the natural history of British folk music? Traditional musicians from all over Britain and Ireland performed on the six-part live TV series Song Hunter, presented by legendary American folk music collector Alan Lomax. Although the original programmes are now lost, tonight we hear Sir David Attenborough reminisce about his days recording Song Hunter in excerpts from a programme first broadcast on BBC Radio 2 in February 2014.

And in keeping with our natural history theme, we have a 'sound bath' featuring some of the best examples of when folk music and nature come together.