Mike Gunton

Mike Gunton presenting a talk about Planet Earth II at the Cambridge University Zoology Department in September 2017

Mike Gunton is a British television producer and a senior executive at the BBC Natural History Unit, the world's largest production unit dedicated to wildlife film-making.[1] In November 2009 he became the Unit's first Creative Director.[2]

As Creative Director of BBC Studios Natural History Unit, he is responsible for bringing new and pioneering stories about the natural world to global audiences,[3] including the BAFTA and Emmy winning Planet Earth II, which was viewed by millions worldwide[4]. In 2018, his ground-breaking animal behaviours series, Dynasties, won a number of awards and was acclaimed by Sir David Attenborough as inventing a new genre in natural history film making.[5] A fellow of the Royal Television Society, he also speaks internationally and is an ambassador for natural history making, BBC Studios and the natural world.[6]  

He was the executive producer of Life, a nature documentary series which revealed the adaptive survival strategies of animals around the world, and as the co-author (with Martha Holmes) of the accompanying book. He co-directed (with Holmes) a feature film version of Life, and was the executive producer of a major BBC One series on African wildlife, broadcast in 2013.[7]

  1. ^ "Directory of Production Companies". The International Association of Wildlife Filmmakers. Archived from the original on 29 August 2010. Retrieved 20 January 2009.
  2. ^ Rushton, Katherine (19 November 2009). "NHU head Jackson makes mark with key exec changes". Broadcast magazine.
  3. ^ Koblin, John (15 January 2020). "Nature Shows Are Hot Again". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
  4. ^ Wollaston, Sam (7 November 2016). "Planet Earth II review: Attenborough's rollercoaster wildlife tour returns". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
  5. ^ "Dynasties review: David Attenborough's new series is immaculate". The Independent. 12 November 2018. Archived from the original on 14 May 2022. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
  6. ^ "Mike Gunton - Creative Director, BBC Studios Natural History Unit". Media Masters. 30 January 2020. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
  7. ^ "BBC One explores African continent in major new commission for Bristol's Natural History Unit". BBC Press Office. 29 April 2010.