Chris Packham shocked by step-daughter's wildlife passion

Chris Packham is surprised by his step-daughter\'s passion for wildlife.

The 59-year-old naturalist stars alongside Megan McCubbin, 25, on the new series of \'Springwatch\', but Chris admits he never imagined she\'d follow in his footsteps.

Introducing Megan to the \'This Morning\' audience, Chris shared: "A new partner from \'Springwatch\', but a partner for some time ... well, I say a partner, this is Megan, my step-daughter, who I met when she was two years old.

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"I was never my intention that she would go into the wildlife business. Her mother had her down as a ballet dancer. I - if I had any aspirations - had her down as an artist, I used to take her to see lots of Damien Hirst and all those sorts of things.

"But it didn\'t stick. It was wildlife that drew her in!"

Chris - whose usual \'Springwatch\' co-host, Michaela Strachan, is currently stuck in South Africa amid the lockdown - thinks the coronavirus pandemic means Brits have become more appreciative of nature.

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He explained: "Wherever people are, they\'re taking that little bit of extra time to realise that the natural world around them does give them some real respite and solace from this terrible tragedy."

The presenter also insisted that in spite of the lockdown, \'Springwatch\' will be as visually spectacular as always this year.

Chris hailed the new series of the show as "one of the most ambitious outside broadcasts" in BBC history.

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He said: "We\'ve gone to extraordinary lengths to bring you as good a programme as we possibly can, given the constraints. The technology behind what we\'re doing is astonishing.

"It\'s one of the most ambitious outside broadcasts the BBC has ever done."