FIRST IMPRESSIONS: KATE HUMBLE
What are you working on at the moment?
I’m in Scotland working on Lambing Live. It’s probably the biggest farm we’ve done, so we’re going to be extremely busy. Then I’m off to Australia for a two-part BBC series looking at the science of wildfires. The production team have told me to wear cotton underwear – anything else will melt.
When are you at your happiest?
The first thing I do when I get up is make a cup of tea, have a cuddle with my dogs, let the poultry out, feed my sheep, then take the dogs for a long walk. It’s a glorious way to start the day.
What is your greatest fear?
I believe in the right to choose whether you live or die. I fear having a disease or accident that denies me this right.
What is your earliest memory?
We had a tame sparrow called Martha. Mum would cut the crusts off the bread and Martha would fly in the window, sit on the breadboard and peck at them.
What do you dislike about yourself?
I hate the fact that I’m incapable of learning a language.
Who has been your greatest influence?
David Attenborough. I had the privilege of meeting him and we’ve done a programme together. I went to dinner with friends and he was a guest. He told stories because everybody wanted to hear them, and he drew out everybody else’s stories. He also introduced himself – if there’s one person in the world who could get away without introducing himself, it’s him. He inspires me to be better.
What is your most treasured possession?
My wedding ring. My husband doesn’t wear one, so I think of it as our wedding ring. It was given to us by his grandmother – it was from her first marriage. Her husband died tragically.
What do you most dislike about your appearance?
When you spend most of your life covered in muddy wet-weather gear, you don’t really think that hard about looks.
What trait do you most deplore in others?
Box ticking.
What is your favourite book?
Winnie-the-Pooh.
Your favourite piece of music?
I love the Elgar Cello Concerto, which makes me cry. And The Muppet Show theme tune.
Your favourite film?
Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid.
Your favourite meal?
I spent a month with my husband in Nepal and we lived on vegetable dahl curry. I could live on that very happily for the rest of my life.
Who would you most like to come to dinner?
Peter Ustinov, writer Martha Gellhorn, comedian Miles Jupp and explorer Freya Stark.
What is the nastiest thing anyone has ever said to you?
I remember someone shouting at me in a car park once and the injustice of it upset me.
What is your secret vice?
Very blue cheese – the stinkier and runnier the better.
Do you write thank-you notes?
I do. When I’m president of the world, which is what I’m planning, email and technology will be banned. We’ll write letters delivered by liveried footmen.
Which phrase do you most overuse?
‘I was thinking in the night’. I have bouts of insomnia.
What would most improve the quality of your life?
A mind-reading assistant who never sleeps.
Tell us something that people might not know about you.
I’m terrified of flying. I had two brave grandfathers, one was in the RAF and one was a test pilot, but the genetics were not passed down.
What would you like your epitaph to read?
I’d like to steal Willie Rushton’s: Kate Humble – ‘Discontinued’.
Kate Humble’s Humble By Nature (Headline, £8.99), is out in paperback on 27 February. Lambing Live returns to BBC Two in March and The Wildfi re will be shown on BBC Two later this year.
I’m in Scotland working on Lambing Live. It’s probably the biggest farm we’ve done, so we’re going to be extremely busy. Then I’m off to Australia for a two-part BBC series looking at the science of wildfires. The production team have told me to wear cotton underwear – anything else will melt.
When are you at your happiest?
The first thing I do when I get up is make a cup of tea, have a cuddle with my dogs, let the poultry out, feed my sheep, then take the dogs for a long walk. It’s a glorious way to start the day.
What is your greatest fear?
I believe in the right to choose whether you live or die. I fear having a disease or accident that denies me this right.
What is your earliest memory?
We had a tame sparrow called Martha. Mum would cut the crusts off the bread and Martha would fly in the window, sit on the breadboard and peck at them.
What do you dislike about yourself?
I hate the fact that I’m incapable of learning a language.
Who has been your greatest influence?
David Attenborough. I had the privilege of meeting him and we’ve done a programme together. I went to dinner with friends and he was a guest. He told stories because everybody wanted to hear them, and he drew out everybody else’s stories. He also introduced himself – if there’s one person in the world who could get away without introducing himself, it’s him. He inspires me to be better.
What is your most treasured possession?
My wedding ring. My husband doesn’t wear one, so I think of it as our wedding ring. It was given to us by his grandmother – it was from her first marriage. Her husband died tragically.
What do you most dislike about your appearance?
When you spend most of your life covered in muddy wet-weather gear, you don’t really think that hard about looks.
What trait do you most deplore in others?
Box ticking.
What is your favourite book?
Winnie-the-Pooh.
Your favourite piece of music?
I love the Elgar Cello Concerto, which makes me cry. And The Muppet Show theme tune.
Your favourite film?
Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid.
Your favourite meal?
I spent a month with my husband in Nepal and we lived on vegetable dahl curry. I could live on that very happily for the rest of my life.
Who would you most like to come to dinner?
Peter Ustinov, writer Martha Gellhorn, comedian Miles Jupp and explorer Freya Stark.
What is the nastiest thing anyone has ever said to you?
I remember someone shouting at me in a car park once and the injustice of it upset me.
What is your secret vice?
Very blue cheese – the stinkier and runnier the better.
Do you write thank-you notes?
I do. When I’m president of the world, which is what I’m planning, email and technology will be banned. We’ll write letters delivered by liveried footmen.
Which phrase do you most overuse?
‘I was thinking in the night’. I have bouts of insomnia.
What would most improve the quality of your life?
A mind-reading assistant who never sleeps.
Tell us something that people might not know about you.
I’m terrified of flying. I had two brave grandfathers, one was in the RAF and one was a test pilot, but the genetics were not passed down.
What would you like your epitaph to read?
I’d like to steal Willie Rushton’s: Kate Humble – ‘Discontinued’.
Kate Humble’s Humble By Nature (Headline, £8.99), is out in paperback on 27 February. Lambing Live returns to BBC Two in March and The Wildfi re will be shown on BBC Two later this year.