Steve Backshall was nine years old the first time he saw a shark, while on holiday with his family in Malaysia. It was the beginning of a lifelong fascination with these 'lords of the sea', and the oceanic life around them. His career as one of the world's most popular naturalists and explorers has taken him to countless underwater places, many never before seen by others. And he's also been witness to the startling decline in the fortune of our oceans' wild inhabitants over the past fifty years.
Deep Blue is a book a lifetime in the making: a remarkable blend of memoir, travel, and marine and environmental science that takes us on an unforgettable tour of the many worlds of aquatic life: from underwater deserts and rainforests to the evolution of ocean heroes like the sea turtle and the Great White, from the genesis of ocean life to the rapidly declining state of white polar seas and coral reefs. It's both a love letter to our precious oceans and a rallying cry for what we must to do save them.
Born in 1973, Steve Backshall was brought up on a smallholding in the home counties of England. He studied English at university before going on to study biology, eventually becoming Adventurer in Residence for National Geographic. He travels the world as presenter of BBC TV’s Deadly series, for which he has won two BAFTAs. He presented BBC One’s Big Blue Live alongside Matt Baker and Liz Bonnin in 2015, which went on to win the BAFTA Television Award for Best Live Event. His other documentary series include Steve Backshall’s Extreme Mountain Challenge, Down the Mighty River, and Steve Backshall and the Vertical Mile.