Sir David Attenborough feared he had contracted malaria during a trip to Borneo but his hot flush was actually caused by a "red hot" electric blanket.
The 92-year-old wildlife expert had spent four months on the Asian island for a television project and when he returned home he awoke one night sweating profusely and his body was burning hot.
Recognising his hot flush as a symptom of malaria he feared the worst, but the ‘Blue Planet’ narrator was relieved when he realised the source of his discomfort was actually a new electric blanket his wife Jane had purchased whilst he had been away on his travels.
Speaking to the Daily Star newspaper, he said: "I thought this is what I read about this is malaria. I thought what do I do? Do I nudge and say, ‘I have got malaria darling?’
"I put my hand on the sheet, and it was red hot almost. I realised while I had been away my wife had bought electric blankets with a dual control and mine was still on."
David’s new Netflix series ‘Our Planet’ launched on the streaming platform last Friday (05.04.19) and the host admitted it is "naive" to suggest that changes will be made "overnight", but he added it is something that can change over time.
He previously said: "It would be naive to think suddenly that you can say something and these enormously powerful men and organisations are going to change overnight. The world doesn’t work like that. But there are groundswells, there are these great sea changes that are difficult to plot, but they do happen. It’s up to us to bring that about."
The broadcaster also explained that nature shows have a "responsibility" in the battle against climate change.
He said: "There’s a big responsibility that natural history filmmakers have. I’d love to spend the whole time saying, ‘Look at these wonderful things, aren’t they lovely?’ But you have a responsibility for pointing out that unless we change our ways, they’re not going to be here forever."
David Attenborough
