My Secret Life: Kate Humble, wildlife presenter, 41

News in pictures
News in pictures
On Facebook
From the blogs

HIV orphans in Thailand prepare for the future

In Baan Gerda, a community for HIV infected or affected youngsters in Northern Thailand, a group of ...

Online House Hunter: England’s most romantic places

Our Online House Hunter goes in search of romance this Valentine's Day...

Roy Hodgson for England: A club of one

To argue against Harry Redknapp for England is akin to arguing in favour of bankers bonuses. While s...

Time for a reality check on the Sri Lankan civil war

Sri Lanka, much like Britain, has side-lined accountability long enough.


My parents ... instilled a real sense of priority in me; they made me realise that the most joyful and important things in life cost nothing. My dad worked for IBM – I was never quite sure what he did. My mum looked after me and my younger brother Charlie.

The house I grew up in ... was great for playing hide and seek but full of spiders. It was a Victorian farmhouse next door to a working farm in Berkshire. We'd moved away from London when I was nine months old.

When I was a child I wanted to be ... a Red Indian or a Gypsy or in the circus: all of them involved horses and being semi-nomadic.

If I could change one thing about myself ... I'd have a prehensile tail, like a monkey.

You wouldn't know it but I'm very good at ... wolf-whistling.

You may not know it but I'm no good at ... anything to do with computers.

At night I dream of ... bees. Last night, I dreamt that they were all swarming.

What I see when I look in the mirror ... is someone who should probably look in the mirror more often.

My favourite items of clothing ... are my wellies.

I wish I'd never worn ... a ra-ra skirt: what a completely ridiculous idea that was.

It's not fashionable but I like ... Marmite on apples. A friend of my grandmother's was a vegetarian back in the days when no one was, and it was her favourite snack. She introduced it to me and I became obsessed.

I drive/ride ... a Skoda Octavia estate, and very occasionally my donkey, Bertie.

My house is ... set in one of the most beautiful places in the world, up a dirt track on a hill looking over Wye Valley. There are woods below and farmland all around; it feels like a total retreat.

My favourite building ... is the Alhambra in Granada, Spain. It's full of birdsong, with a wonderful shady courtyard, and has a feeling of complete peace about it.

My favourite work of art ... is probably 'The Angel of the North' by Antony Gormley; it is slightly and gloriously impractical.

A book that changed me ... was a field guide: 'Birds of Southern Africa' by Ber van Perlo.

Movie heaven ... is 'Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid', curled up on the sofa on a rainy Sunday afternoon. I love the rebelliousness of it; although it's fundamentally glamourising two terrible criminals, there's something uplifting about the film too.

The last album I bought/downloaded ... I've never downloaded an album. My husband does that, and I listen and think: this is nice.

My secret crush ... is Nicolas Cage in 'Raising Arizona': scruffy and badly behaved.

My real-life villain ... is Robert Mugabe.

The person who really makes me laugh ... is Dylan Moran.

The last time I cried ... was watching a clip called 'Jill and Kevin's Wedding' on YouTube: it's a clip of people waiting in a room for the bride and groom to arrive and it's totally wonderful. I cry all the time, it's my dad's fault. He'd put on a piece of music at home and hide behind his newspaper and sob.

My five-year plan ... is to do everything I can to keep the British countryside the special place that it is, and to spend as much time as I can surrounded by it.

What's the point? The point is to recognise that humans have a disproportionate influence on the rest of the world, and to understand how important it is that we expend energy in a positive way, trying to understand nature and wildlife, rather than separating ourselves from it.

My life in six words ... Big walks, big talks, big laughs.

A life in brief

Kate Humble was born in London in December 1968. She started her career as an actress and TV researcher before making her name presenting BBC's Springwatch. She lives in the Wye Valley with her husband Ludo, her dogs Badger and Bella, and a hive of bees. Kate is fronting a campaign called 'Break the Habit' to encourage people to switch to organic milk

Independent Comment
blog comments powered by Disqus
Career Services

Day In a Page

Apple admits it has a human rights problem

Apple admits it has a human rights problem

After years of complaints and workers' suicides in China the technology giant faces up to the human cost of its gadgets
Peter Moore: 'I feel guilty I'm the only one alive'

Peter Moore interview

'I feel guilty I'm the only one alive'
Sellafield faces nuclear option as overspending threatens plant's future

Sellafield faces nuclear option

Overspending threatens plant's future
Israel blames Iran for embassy bomb attacks

Israel blames Iran for embassy bomb attacks

Tehran rejects Netanyahu's 'lies' after diplomats in India and Georgia targeted
Former manager enjoying Apoel crack at the big time

Tommy Cassidy interview

Former manager enjoying Apoel crack at the big time
James Lawton: Patience may not be a virtue this time, Roman – Andre Villas-Boas looks all at sea

James Lawton: AVB looks all at sea

Abramovich's visits to training reinforce the idea of a coach feeling pressure from above and below
The 10 Best sledges

The 10 Best sledges

Not all of them require snow...
Procrastination: Not now – I'm busy

Procrastination: Not now – I'm busy

Confronting the real reasons for puttting things off can help us beat it
Fun in the sunset years

Fun in the sunset years

A new movie follows retirees moving to India for low-cost care and a culture of respect for the elderly. For many Britons, it's already a reality
Picture preview: Lucian Freud drawings

Lucian Freud drawings

Picture preview
Silent revolution at the Baftas as the French take top awards

Silent revolution at the Baftas

The Artist wins in seven categories, with Meryl Streep the other big success story
Whitney Houston: The diva who had – and lost – it all

The diva who had – and lost – it all

Nick Hasted charts the highs and lows of Whitney Houston's life
How Picasso won over (some of) the British

How Picasso won over (some of) the British

Winston Churchill and Evelyn Waugh hated his work, but Picasso provided inspiration for a whole generation of UK artists
Topshop: A Decade Of Design

Topshop: A Decade Of Design

When London Fashion Week starts on Friday, Topshop will celebrate 10 years backing its brightest young stars
John Prescott: 'My wife thought I'd just retire, but I'm not a slippers man'

'My wife thought I'd just retire, but I'm not a slippers man'

At 73, John Prescott isn't mellowing. In fact he's taking a shot at becoming a police commissioner