Tuesday 9th December was a BIG DAY for me - the Zoological Society of London were giving me the rather prestigious Clarivate Award for Communicating Zoology. I had to prepare a 15 minute speech … and there was a dress code - ‘smart’ …
Please - pop over to the Substack version of this article - there will be lots more photos and a chance to join in the conversation about the people who mentored you and helped you become who you are today.
To make this special event even more special I went and got my mother, Anne, who lives near Birkenhead. We managed to squeeze in Magdalen College Choir’s Carols by Candlelight service on the Sunday - which I was photographing. Really lovely, even for a bah-humbug like myself!
Monday morning, I was getting nervous - I wanted my short speech to be good - bringing my thinking about the book, Cull of the Wild, to the audience, but also not being too serious. So I worked hard, rehearsed and rehearsed and then, while I was out in the park walking Ogli, the phone went. It was my friend Emma Campbell who produces the Radio 4 programme, Rare Earth - something I have had my eyes on for a while …
Would I like to come on to the show and talk about hedgehogs and hibernation? Of course I would - in fact I had just written this article all about that very subject, and I find it fascinating. Okay, she continued, could you be in the studio in Bristol tomorrow morning - we start recording at 1045.
Of course, I said, as my brain whirled into a tizzy … was it even going to be possible to get to Bristol and back to Oxford in time to pick up Zoe and my mother to get to London for the awards?
I spent a while with google maps … if I drove and if the roads were clear, yes - it would work. But it would mean a day of seven hours of driving … a major interview and an award ceremony.
Tuesday morning the news was full of the storm that was hitting … pretty much where I was going - and my heart sank. But, there was no alternative, and thank goodness, the drive went smoothly - well, as smoothly as any drive does while listening to the dystopian novel, ‘The Ministry of the Future’ … wow - if you need cheering up … don’t go there!!!
Rare Earth is hosted by Helen Czerski and Tom Heap - and while I was tempted to slip something in their tea to cause them to not be able to present the show anymore, leaving the door open for …. me … I was well-behaved - and we had a lot of fun. It was a shame that the other two guests, author Val Macdermid and weatherman John Hammond were down the line.
I talked, a lot, about hedgehogs - so much so that the studio manager suggested the programme dedicate an entire issue to me and the animal … can’t see anything wrong with that … and please do lobby them!!
Hibernation is fascinating - one fact that really sticks is quite how much the metabolism shuts down. When we sleep we shut down by 15-20% - when a hedgehog is in hibernation, that is around 95%!! And for a hedgehog to be able to hibernate, they need to be able to build a hibernaculum - the special, well-insulated nest, that will be their home for much of the next few months ... which require all of us with gardens to remember to SHARE ... and to escape of the 'cult of tidiness'!
The recording finished - it will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on Friday 19th at midday - I dashed to the car and headed home. Adrenaline beats red bull any day … but I managed a 20 minute power-nap before packing Zoe and Anne into the car and heading to London and the main event!
I hate being late. In fact we got there so early there was time to visit the ZSL library - and bump into Chloe Dalton - where we had one of those socially awkward author moments … both having each others’ books in our TBR pile!
Winning the ZSL prize means so much to me. It is the first time I have won anything and it has given me a sense of validation that is a rare boost to someone who hides out in their shed with a vast case of imposter syndrome most of the time!
I had been asked to talk about my work, but I could not do that without some thanks. Obviously ZSL and Clarivate - and Bloomsbury for being brave enough to publish Cull of the Wild - but also to the two people who really got me to where I am now … I wrote about Pat Morris and Roz Kidman-Cox here.
Pat was able to come and it was such a delight to be able to thank him in front of a room full of people. Though I think his favourite bit was the photo at the top of the update - there we are, with my mother … who is clutching HIS BOOK !!!!
I made a joke during my speech about how if you want an easy science, choose astrophysics - because ecology and conservation are properly complicated … this drew a larger laugh than I was expecting … only afterwards did I find out that the host for the evening, Dr May Chiao, is an astrophysicist and was editor of the journal Nature Astronomy. Fortunately she took this in good humour - and I did get to apologise afterwards, promising to reference partial physicists next time!
I met so many amazing people - researchers who have been looking into the plight of pangolins in Nigeria, or the genetics of Soay sheep on St Kilda. Here is a list of the other winners.
Among these names are many who have acted as mentors to students at the start of their careers - people who are doing today what Pat Morris did for me back in 1993. Can you remember anyone who helped you? And have you found ways to ‘pay back’ that good fortune? I know I am trying - I really want to be remembered as a ‘good ancestor’ to someone!
Finally - a personal request …
Please try and encourage people you know to sign up to my Substack account. Remember, it is free - no paywalls - but if you have the capacity (and have an idea of how much money writers make!!) don’t be shy!
And - Christmas is coming and EVERYONE (well, most people I know at least) loves a book as a gift … I have nine out there - two more coming next year and I am working on my 12th … so please - pop into your local bookshop and find a copy - whether it is the narrative nonfiction books - Cull of the Wild, A Prickly Affair, Linescapes, The Beauty in the Beast - or the monographs on hedgehog iconography (yes, niche, but fun!), hedgehogs (again), water voles and beavers … or Five Nights Out (for younger readers) … the links here are to Amazon ONLY to give you details for your order to your local bookshop!
Thank you for all your kind words and support …