Miracles in the park

Kate Humble and Ben Fogle reveal what makes Longleat a special place at Christmas time…

- Caren Clark

ANIMAL PARK CHRISTMAS SPECIAL NEW MON-FRI / BBC1 / TIMES VARY / EPS 1-5 of 5 / NATURE

From a budding romance in the fennec fox enclosure to the arrival of a gorgeous giant anteater, there’s no shortage of heart-warming stories as Kate Humble, Ben Fogle and Jean Johansson return to Longleat Safari Park in Wiltshire for BBC1’s Animal Park Christmas Special.

Here, Kate, who turns 52 on 12 December, and Ben, 47, tell us about the birth of the park’s first baby aardvark and why cockatoo Rio is in for a festive treat…

Why is Longleat such a lovely place to be in the run-up to Christmas?

KATE: There’s something about being in the grounds of a house that has stood for nearly 500 years. It has a real sense of tradition and the landscape lends itself to winter – it’s just beautiful.

BEN: We’ve been coming here for so many years, but we haven’t always been here at Christmas time itself. It’s almost like a punctuation mark at the end of the year for us.

What animals should we look out for?