\u201cComplicated science was something that I struggled with initially because I had to find my own way to learn it. I don\u2019t learn conventionally. After a class I might be able to relay the information and understand it, but there was no chance that I could retain it in the way that was asked of me. My brain definitely works very differently from other people\u2019s \u2013 I retain information differently.\u201d<\/p>\n
One of her coping strategies was to strip out some of the complex language she was presented with in order to absorb the core detail. It\u2019s an approach she still uses today. \u201cI think my dyslexia does change the way that I broadcast, because I try to speak about science in a way that I would have understood when I was younger. I\u2019m like that with my writing \u2013 I\u2019m a very slow writer. So I try to strip back the unnecessary complexities.\u201d<\/p>\n
Does her dyslexia impact the way she works? Can she digest scripts, for instance?<\/p>\n
\u201cI mean, I can. I did drama at A-level and I had to learn scripts for that \u2013 memorising them line by line if I needed to. But I try not to [for television work], because I think if you memorise a script and are going into a live broadcast, your head is so full of words that you trip yourself up. So I have to find a fundamental thread that sticks in my mind and then I work out from that in branches. As long as I\u2019ve got the basic points, I just let my brain run with it.\u201d<\/p>\n
When we speak, her brain is in coherent and confident free flow, which is particularly impressive given we\u2019re talking in the stupefying heat of the warmest day ever recorded in the UK. Her environmental activism suggests that if she were wearing a collar, she\u2019d be getting pretty hot underneath it.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is not what summer in the UK should be like,\u201d she says. \u201cThe scary thing is that we think this is hot now, but it\u2019s only going to get hotter. It\u2019s not just here. It\u2019s the hottest it\u2019s ever been in Portugal and Spain and it\u2019s the coldest it\u2019s ever been in parts of Australia. So this isn\u2019t just about heating, this is about the occurrence of extreme weather events.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"""\"](\""https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2022\/08\/megan-mccubbin-animal-farm-2-b5ad859.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413"\" "\\"\"\"\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>McCubbin, who made her debut on Springwatch in 2020 after moving in with Packham during the first lockdown and co-presenting the show from his New Forest home, accepts there is a parallel concern of eco-fatigue among the public.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s definitely a fear,\u201d she admits. \u201cWe know from psychological studies that the human brain isn\u2019t actually very good at processing the issues of climate change because they are seen as too big. So we have to take that down a notch and start talking about little steps, and then solutions that can make systematic change. Because that\u2019s the change we need in order to prevent summers getting hotter, winters getting colder and wetter and more extreme weather events around the world.\u201d<\/p>\n
What gives McCubbin most hope is the generation following her, those inspired by the likes of Greta Thunberg. \u201cThe younger generation is more motivated, knowledgeable and empowered than I think they\u2019ve ever been. It really is a generation of action, so it\u2019s brilliant to see young people engaging and being passionate and taking a stand and using their voice, because the most important tool that we all have is our voice. And we can use it wisely and kindly and get our message out there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Of course, in the vanguard of the movement is her stepfather Chris Packham. Despite splitting up with Megan\u2019s mother, nurse Jo McCubbin, when Megan was 12, he has remained at her side throughout her life and helped shape her interest in the natural world, which led to that degree in Zoology from the University of Liverpool in 2018. But she was very much an early adopter\u2026<\/p>
You were interested in animals from a young age. Which were your favourites?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI loved snakes. I thought they were great. And I had a praying mantis, that was cool. Most young girls probably think it\u2019s quite weird, but when I was younger it was the things that I could get my nose into.\u201d<\/p>\n Talking of using your nose, tell us about your encounter with the dik-diks at Longleat Safari Park in Wiltshire, where Animal Park is filmed?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cThey are the smallest antelope that [in the wild] live out in the plains of Africa \u2013 adorable little things with really big eyes, very small bodies, very agile. They get a putty-like substance coming out of their eyes, which is full of lots of different scents that they use for communication. So this was kind of dotted around the enclosure and I immediately picked it up and had a sniff. I think that natural curiosity is important. I want to know how things sound, how they smell, how they move. You\u2019d win a pub quiz, wouldn\u2019t you, if you could tell what a dik-dik\u2019s eye gloop smelled like!\u201d<\/p>\n Did you have any misgivings about filming with captive animals?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cHonestly, it can be a complicated answer. I always say that it depends on the zoo and the sanctuary. For me, zoos and sanctuaries across the UK have a responsibility to educate everybody that walks through the doors. You want people leaving with more information, more facts, than they ever came in with. Animal Park is a fantastic way for Longleat to educate not only the people that visit and see the animals first-hand, but the nation as well. So it\u2019s really important for me that the animals in captivity are fantastic ambassadors for their wild counterparts. That\u2019s the most critical thing. Of course, their welfare as well. And that we are learning from them the best that we can.\u201d<\/p>\n Chris has supported you throughout your life and career. Does he still offer advice? <\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cYeah, all the time. We are very close \u2013 we\u2019re very good friends more than anything. He\u2019s been in the industry for a really long time and he\u2019s a brilliant person to learn from and I will always continue learning from him. I actually got a message from him half an hour ago asking me to go and collect some red squirrel poo for him. So that\u2019s a job for this afternoon.\u201d<\/p>\n Er, why?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s doing a talk that he wants me to bring it to. And then he also added, if I could get pine marten poo as well, that\u2019d be great!\u201d<\/p>\n Animal Park airs weekday mornings at 9:15am on BBC One. Looking for something else to watch? Visit our\u00a0TV Guide<\/a>.<\/b><\/strong><\/p>\n The latest issue of Radio Times magazine is on sale now \u2013\u00a0subscribe now<\/a>\u00a0and get the next 12 issues for only \u00a31. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to the\u00a0Radio Times podcast<\/a>\u00a0with Jane Garvey.<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/body><\/html>\n By Terry Payne Published: Tuesday, 09 August 2022 at 12:00 am In 2018 Megan McCubbin saw a random tweet posing the question: what were you told you\u2019d never be able to achieve, but have since accomplished? The stepdaughter and sometime screen partner of Chris Packham responded: \u201cMy teacher told me I would never get a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":20013,"template":"","categories":[5],"acf":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/08\/animal-parks-megan-mccubbin-on-dyslexia-climate-hopes-and-chris-packham-scaled.jpg",2560,1707,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/08\/animal-parks-megan-mccubbin-on-dyslexia-climate-hopes-and-chris-packham-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/08\/animal-parks-megan-mccubbin-on-dyslexia-climate-hopes-and-chris-packham-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/08\/animal-parks-megan-mccubbin-on-dyslexia-climate-hopes-and-chris-packham-768x512.jpg",768,512,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/08\/animal-parks-megan-mccubbin-on-dyslexia-climate-hopes-and-chris-packham-1024x683.jpg",800,534,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/08\/animal-parks-megan-mccubbin-on-dyslexia-climate-hopes-and-chris-packham-1536x1024.jpg",1536,1024,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/08\/animal-parks-megan-mccubbin-on-dyslexia-climate-hopes-and-chris-packham-2048x1365.jpg",2048,1365,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By Terry Payne Published: Tuesday, 09 August 2022 at 12:00 am In 2018 Megan McCubbin saw a random tweet posing the question: what were you told you\u2019d never be able to achieve, but have since accomplished? The stepdaughter and sometime screen partner of Chris Packham responded: \u201cMy teacher told me I would never get a…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/20012"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20013"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20012"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20012"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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