Megan McCubbin grew up with a loo full of animals and a bedroom like a mini zoo
Megan McCubbin is back on our screens presenting live, alongside her stepdad Chris Packham, in Winterwatch 2021. Country Living caught up with the young zoologist over Zoom ahead of the new series...
1. Were you a ‘wild child’?
I grew up with my mum [Jo, a nurse] and Chris [Packham] just outside Southampton. Chris would often be rehabilitating foxes and birds in the downstairs toilet. We once looked after a barn owl called Marmite, which Chris and I took to school for a demonstration. Marmite flew towards the ceiling and refused to come down! My bedroom was full of praying mantises, tortoises and cockroaches – it was like a mini zoo.
2. Growing up with Chris sounds like an adventure – was it?
He once woke me up at 2am when I was six or seven to see a giraffe who had just given birth at Marwell Zoo nearby. Not many adults would have done that! I don’t know if I would have loved wildlife quite as much had I not lived with Chris. He did try to teach me about art, punk rock and opera as well – but I just gravitated towards animals. They were always part of our lives.
3. When did animals become the day job?
When I was 12, I started working at The Wildheart Trust, which looks after big cats from circuses, over the summer. I developed a bond with four tigers who had been hand-reared by Charlotte, who runs the Trust and is now Chris’s partner. I spent hours every day talking to them. The first time one followed me round her enclosure, I was so excited because she had picked me out.
4. Your favourite animal now?
I’ve recently been trying to appreciate the animals on our doorstep. I’m passionate about blue sharks, which swim off the Cornish coast, and I love my local foxes and badgers. I spent much of lockdown last year lying down to watch badgers. Both Chris and I are keen photographers, so one of us would always be there. We had a private badger photography competition! We got to know them really well.
5. What is it like working with your stepdad on the Watches?
I never imagined I’d do much presenting, but I really enjoyed it. I was nervous at first, but Chris is the best person in the industry to learn from. We’ve always got on really well. We understand each other, so we’ve been able to push each other. He’s pushed me to be a little more outrageous and I’ve been able to pull him back and say, ‘Let’s think about this.’ We’ve also got a similar sense of humour.
6. What’s he like at home?
I spent lockdown in the New Forest with Chris, walking the poodles twice a day. We’re both just as we are on TV! We try to find the weirdest scientific papers to share with each other around the dinner table. The only downside of living together is that he’s a rubbish cook, but I don’t like washing up and he does, so it evens out.
7. You’re a natural on TV, but did you ever consider a different career?
I loved acting at school and almost studied drama. As I’m dyslexic, I struggled with science and I was behind on spelling and maths, but when it came to A-levels, I realised I really wanted to work with animals. I took environmental studies and then did a foundation year in biological science to get onto my zoology course. Learning about cells and lifecycles was a challenge because it’s hard for me to remember patterns, but I stuck at it and got there in the end.
8. Has the pandemic changed anything for you?
The countryside provided solace and escapism. The pandemic made me more determined than ever to increase accessibility to green space for those who live in flats and cities, as well as to remind people how much nature does for us. With the decline in wildlife and plant life, it now needs us as much as we need it.
9. Do you think you have ‘eco anxiety’?
I feel stressed sometimes, but I always try to transform that feeling into something positive and productive. I try to face things head on and understand them as best I can. Whenever I feel overwhelmed, I go for a walk. It helps me deal with everything. I want people to realise that we can all live more sustainably. We can use whatever space we have – from a windowsill to a garden – to encourage wildlife. Back to Nature, the book I wrote with Chris last year, is all about that. We can also eat less meat. I’ve always been vegetarian, and I get my eggs from a local farm shop to support farmers and keep my carbon footprint low. And we can travel less, taking public transport and walking instead of driving. Little steps help.
10. Amid dire predictions for the planet, do you think that we can feel optimistic?
It’s really exciting because I think we are moving towards a greener, more sustainable future. Younger and younger people are making their voices heard because they can see that climate change will affect them and they’re determined to do something about it. I hope to be communicating about science in years to come – perhaps on TV and certainly campaigning. If I can improve one thing for a species or the environment, then I’ll be happy.
Winterwatch 2021 will air on BBC Two from Tuesday 19th to Friday 29th January. It will run every evening, Tuesdays to Fridays, at 8pm.
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