'A picture is more powerful than a spoken word...' Sir David Attenborough doesn't want to talk too much on his wildlife shows

Sir David Attenborough stops himself from talking too much on his wildlife shows, which include new series 'Planet Earth III', because the images and footage of the animals is so powerful.

David Attenborough

Sir David Attenborough worries that if he talks too much on his wildlife shows he will spoil the magic for the viewers.

The 97-year-old BBC biologist has been teaching us about nature on television for eight decades narrating shows such 'Blue Planet', 'Life on Earth' and 'The Private Life of Plants'.

But Sir David believes that less is more when it comes to what he adds to the scenes of wildlife because "a picture is more powerful than a spoken word".

Speaking to BBC Wildlife Magazine, he said: "You mustn't be too wordy.

"The one key, I think, is that a picture is more powerful than a spoken word, and if you give people the two things, the thing that they remember is the picture.

"You can’t ignore pictures. I don't think you could generalise, but you should remember that pictures are more powerful than words."

David also revealed that he often tosses his script aside in the recording booth to improve the shows.

He said: "Having written a commentary, the first thing to do is to carefully see what you can get rid of."

Attenborough will be returning to our screens this weekend with 'Planet Earth III', which will air on Sunday at 6:15pm on BBC One.

Speaking about how impressed he is with the technological advancements in filming technology in recent years, and all of the possibilities it allows, David said: "The drone is now quite small. It carries a camera, it carries a transmitter, and it can go anywhere.

"It can take you and show you sites that human eyes have simply never seen before – and answer all kinds of questions.

"It's really quite extraordinary."