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The Hindu
30-07-2025
- General
- The Hindu
Badly behaved tourists crowd safari parks. How do you stop them from taking selfies with the lions?
It was a viral video of a group of cheetahs taking down a wildebeest that triggered Big Cat People, Jonathan and Angela Scott, to put together their latest e-book, Safari Etiquette: An essential guide. 'There were five male cheetahs, unusual to have such a big coalition, and in October 2022, two of these cheetahs ended up nailing a wildebeest,' Jonathan says. Within seconds of their kill, they were surrounded by vehicles filled with overexcited people, egging the guides and driver to go even closer. 'It is the paparazzi effect, isn't it? People behave really badly when there is something they want to see,' says the Kenya-based wildlife photographer and conservationist, the popular co-host of the BBC's long-running nature documentary series, Big Cat Diary. On a safari, charismatic large animals often end up becoming celebrities of sorts, and, as with stars, 'we are innately curious…want to get a closer look,' says Jonathan, whose new e-book explains precisely why one should not behave like this on a safari. 'No image is worth causing distress to a vulnerable animal, prompting it to move and possibly putting it in danger,' it states. Safari Etiquette: An essential guide, a joint initiative of their NGO, Sacred Nature Initiative, and the Narok County Government's One Mara Brand, has been brewing since 1974, when Jonathan went out on a game drive as a visitor. 'We were travelling overland from London to Johannesburg…four months, 6,000 miles,' he says. When the truck reached Serengeti, the ranger who had been guiding the group along spotted a leopard at the base of a tree and pointed it out to them. 'We asked the ranger if it was possible to go a little bit closer,' remembers Jonathan. The man refused, claiming that they were not allowed to and that if the park's warden spotted him, there would be significant consequences. 'So, I saw, from the beginning, what a good guide looked like, which, to me, was to give the animal the space to breathe,' he says. Much has changed since Jonathan first went on that game drive and settled permanently in Maasai Mara in 1977. 'When I first came to live in the Mara, there were maybe five camps and lodges in an area of 1500 square kilometres,' he says. Now, there are over 200, 'more than 5,000 beds,' he says. 'I have watched this ridiculous explosion of camps and lodges driven not by sound management practices but by economic greed.' In the Mara, this 'epidemic of aggressive tourism, which is global', had led to a chaotic situation, in his opinion. With the mushrooming of the camps and lodges, also comes the exponential increase in the number of vehicles being allowed to traverse through the Mara, 'roaming in a way that has nothing to do with good guiding or following proper protocol,' he says, adding that the safari etiquette book, the rules of which are relevant to any part of the world, is not rocket science, but pure common sense. For instance, according to the e-book, camps and lodges should provide guests with a comprehensive briefing before they set out on their first game drive. 'It is much easier to remind visitors to be quiet and respectful when they see their first lion and are overwhelmed with excitement and emotion, if they have been briefed properly before departing from camp,' it states. Some other pointers include listening to your guide and driver, never getting out at river crossing, being courteous and considerate when approaching a sighting, never encircling wildlife and blocking their entry and exit pathway and backing off while watching a mother with her young, if she appears nervous. After all, 'this is not a circus, theme park or zoo, but real, wild Africa where animals are living and dying,' he says. In the age of social media and selfies, unfortunately, the safari business is driven by getting a shot at all costs, rues Jonathan. 'Nothing else matters…ethics go out of the window…even decent behaviour,' he says. And the cost of this is borne by wildlife. As much recent research has demonstrated, rampant tourism can have a significant impact on wild animals, altering their behaviours and habits, even endangering their lives. Jonathan highlights one such telling piece of research: a researcher who was doing a cheetah monitoring project for the Kenya Wildlife Trust discovered that in high tourist areas, cheetahs raised fewer cubs to independence when compared to those with lower tourist footfall. According to him, often, when a cheetah mother got up to hunt, she would be relentlessly followed, impacting her ability to find sufficient food for her cubs,' he says. Additionally, if the cubs are young and the vehicle gets too close to them, she would have to move them and risk running into predators like hyenas and lions in the process. 'This is a living, breathing, very smart creature, and the least we can do is be respectful. No photograph should be worth a cost to the subject.'
Glasgow Times
08-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Glasgow Times
'Scottish David Attenborough' bringing tour to Glasgow
Gordon Buchanan, acclaimed Scottish filmmaker and photographer, is bringing his tour - Lions and Tigers and Bears with Gordon Buchanan - back to the UK. He will stop at 30 venues across England and Scotland including a night at Glasgow's Pavilion Theatre on February 28, 2026. Read more: New Glasgow exhibition poses question 'What might feminist energy systems look like?' Originally launching in February, the tour has already played to packed audiences across the UK and is now returning to Scotland thanks to popular demand. Speaking about his tour, Gordon said: "I had a wonderful time touring Lions and Tigers and Bears earlier this year – and I had to say 'yes' when the chance came up to go back out on the road to a load of new venues. "We joked that it sounded like a line from The Wizard of Oz – but the show is all about these amazing creatures, the undisputed icons of the animal kingdom, who I have been incredibly privileged to spend a lifetime observing. Gordon's Glasgow date is the first of his five Scottish shows, followed by Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Inverness, and Stirling. Buchanan, often described as "Scotland's own Sir David Attenborough", has spent more than three decades documenting wildlife across the globe. He began his filmmaking career in 1989 as an assistant to survival cameraman Nick Gordon, travelling to Sierra Leone to film in the Gola Rainforest. His credits include the BBC's Big Cat Diary, the Lost Land Of The… series, and the long-running Family & Me documentaries, which began in 2010 and have featured various species including some Minnesota black bears. Read more: Scotland's biggest motorcycle event set to roar back into action next month Most recently, Buchanan appeared in the BBC series Big Cats 24/7, tracking lions, leopards, and cheetahs in Botswana. Gordon said: "From pandas in China to orphaned grizzlies in Russia, from high-altitude tigers in the Himalayas to jaguars in the depths of the Amazon, I have been fortunate enough to meet many of these incredible creatures in their natural habitats – and I love being able to share their secrets with audiences. "I cannot wait to get back out there, to meet more animal lovers and to tell more tales of amazing adventures. "See you in 2026." Tickets for the Glasgow show go on sale on Friday, June 6, and can be purchased from the Pavilion Theatre or the Gordon Buchanan website.
Scotsman
06-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Oh my... wildlife filmmaker Gordon Buchanan heads to Edinburgh in 2026 to share more tales of Lions and Tigers and Bears
Due to phenomenal demand, acclaimed wildlife filmmaker and photographer Gordon Buchanan is hitting the road again in 2026, continuing the huge success of his Lions and Tigers and Bears tour as he heads to Edinburgh. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... From January, Gordon will visit 30 venues across England and Scotland – including a stop at the Assembly Rooms in Edinburgh on Sunday March 1 – to recount tales from his thrilling encounters with some of nature's most fascinating animals – including pandas, polar bears, grizzly bears, lions, tigers, jaguars and more – making for a night of adventure, awe and wonder. Lions and Tigers and Bears with Gordon Buchanan launched in February 2025, and played to packed theatres across the UK. Gordon will visit 25 all-new venues across England and will round off the 2026 tour with return visits, by popular demand, to five Scottish cities. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Speaking about the new tour, Gordon said: 'I had a wonderful time touring Lions and Tigers and Bears earlier this year – and I had to say 'Yes' when the chance came up to go back out on the road to a load of new venues. Gordon Buchanan 'We joked that it sounded like a line from The Wizard of Oz – but the show is all about these amazing creatures, the undisputed icons of the animal kingdom, who I have been incredibly privileged to spend a lifetime observing. 'From pandas in China to orphaned grizzlies in Russia, from high-altitude tigers in the Himalayas to jaguars in the depths of the Amazon, I have been fortunate enough to meet many of these incredible creatures in their natural habitats – and I love being able to share their secrets with audiences. 'I cannot wait to get back out there, to meet more animal lovers and to tell more tales of amazing adventures. See you in 2026!' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Hailed as Scotland's own David Attenborough, Gordon Buchanan has dedicated his life to exploring the untamed beauty of the natural world, from forests to snowy landscapes and from towering mountains to the depths of the great rainforests. All his travels were with a single mission in mind: To capture the majestic bears and big cats on film and reveal their secrets to a global audience. Gordon grew up on the Isle of Mull and began his career in filmmaking in 1989 as assistant to the acclaimed survival cameraman Nick Gordon, traveling to Sierra Leone to document animals in the Gola Rainforest. He went on to work on the Big Cat Diary series as well as the long-running expedition series Lost Land Of The… for the BBC. The Family & Me documentaries began in 2010 when Gordon featured alongside Minnesota black bears, with Gordon going on to showcase some of the world's most fascinating animals. He was on the team for Our Changing Planet, a seven-year diary charting the fight to save the planet's ecosystems. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Most recently, he's been seen tracking lions, leopards and cheetahs in Botswana for the BBC series Big Cats 24/7 – with series two reaching screens later this year. For more information and to purchase tickets go to
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
TV Nature filmmaker to recount encounters with wild animals at Colchester show
A POPULAR Scottish wildlife filmmaker is set to headline a Colchester venue next year. Gordon Buchanan will bring his Lions and Tigers and Bears tour to Charter Hall, in Cowdray Avenue, on February 19, 2026, as part of a 30 date UK tour. The filmmaker and photographer will recount tales from his encounters with pandas, polar bears, grizzly bears, lions, jaguars, and the many adventures he has had over the years. A spokesman for the explorer said: 'Hailed as Scotland's own David Attenborough, Gordon Buchanan has dedicated his life to exploring the untamed beauty of the natural world, from forests to snowy landscapes and from towering mountains to the depths of the great rainforests. 'All his travels were with a single mission in mind: To capture the majestic bears and big cats on film and reveal their secrets to a global audience.' He began his career n filmmaking in 1989 and travelled to Sierra Leone to document animals in the Gola Rainforest, he has worked on the Big Cat Diary series and the BBC series Lost Land Of The… Last year, he performed the tour to 25 venues, and he is looking forward to getting back on the road. Speaking about the new tour, Gordon said: 'I had a wonderful time touring Lions and Tigers and Bears earlier this year – and I had to say 'Yes' when the chance came up to go back out on the road to a load of new venues. 'We joked that it sounded like a line from The Wizard of Oz – but the show is all about these amazing creatures, the undisputed icons of the animal kingdom, who I have been incredibly privileged to spend a lifetime observing. 'From pandas in China to orphaned grizzlies in Russia, from high-altitude tigers in the Himalayas to jaguars in the depths of the Amazon, I have been fortunate enough to meet many of these incredible creatures in their natural habitats – and I love being able to share their secrets with audiences. 'I cannot wait to get back out there, to meet more animal lovers and to tell more tales of amazing adventures.' Doors for the event will open at 6.30pm, and the show will start at 7.30pm. Tickets go on sale on Friday; ticket prices have not been revealed yet. To find out more, visit
