Bambi and Me

Television's favourite countryman, Johnny Kingdom, tells the touching and hilarious story of life with a red deer in the family...

a gentle and delightful book, thoroughly evocative of Exmoor and its wildlife, as well as the heart-warming personal story of a countryman and one of his favourite animals

Johnny Kingdom lived on the edge of Exmoor with his wife, Julie. For the past several years he made a living running wildlife safaris on the moor and making videos of its flora and fauna. Johnny was already a local celebrity with a nature series on ITV West but firmly became a national treasure with his BBC2 series and Christmas specials.

When a farmer on Exmoor found a frightened and badly injured red deer calf hanging by the leg from a barbed wire fence, he knew there was only one man he could call. Johnny Kingdom took Bambi home and became her surrogate mother, nursing her through the night after the dangerous operation to amputate her now infected limb. 
 
Against the odds, Bambi survived and, as she grew bigger, became a part of Johnny's family, taking over his garden and developing a taste for custard creams (and Johnny's wife's roses). But it wasn't just Johnny and his family who loved Bambi - friends, neighbours and even complete strangers would occasionally drop by with tasty treats they thought she might enjoy. But the doe in his back garden was by no means Johnny's only contact with the red deer of Exmoor. Over the years he followed the wild herds over moor and farmland as the seasons changed, filming every detail of their lives and trying to understand what Bambi was missing out on. 
 
Millions of viewers fell in love with Bambi during Johnny's BBC television series and accompanying book, but now he tells her full story. Sometimes poignant and sometimes hilarious, this is both the tale of all of Exmoor's wild deer and the story of how one very special animal came to live a very different life.

Johnny Kingdom

Johnny Kingdom has rustic England coursing through his veins. He is the spirit of Exmoor in all its bluff, breezy essentials

Kingdom's enthusiasm and eccentricity pull you along

Johnny Kingdom... might yet become a hero of our times

A delightful collection of reminiscences... in Johnny's inimitable bucolic style

There are few people better acquainted with the West Country than Johnny Kingdom. His knowledge of local wildlife is second to none, but he's also a fount of knowledge when it comes to all the old stories that get passed down from generation to generation. West Country Tales is a charming collection of these local myths and legends, interwoven with many more anecdotes from Johnny himself and his forbears and friends. 
The atmospheric West Country landscape lends itself perfectly to dramatic tales of eerie hauntings and ghostly happenings, daring smugglers and dashing highwaymen, and many have heard of - or might even have seen - the modern-day legend that is the Beast of Exmoor. But what about the Flying Fish of Exmoor, a slippery catch of Johnny's that sailed up and over a bridge into the back seat of a passing open-top car, never to be seen again? 
Gently humorous and wonderfully evocative, it's only a matter of time before some of Johnny's own tales weave their way into West Country lore.

Johnny Kingdom's West Country Tales

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Praise for Johnny Kingdom's West Country Tales

Johnny Kingdom has rustic England coursing through his veins. He is the spirit of Exmoor in all its bluff, breezy essentials

Kingdom's enthusiasm and eccentricity pull you along

Johnny Kingdom... might yet become a hero of our times

Johnny Kingdom has rustic England coursing through his veins. He is the spirit of Exmoor in all its bluff, breezy essentials

Kingdom's enthusiasm and eccentricity pull you along

Johnny Kingdom... might yet become a hero of our times

Johnny Kingdom has rustic England coursing through his veins. He is the spirit of Exmoor in all its bluff, breezy essentials

Kingdom's enthusiasm and eccentricity pull you along

Johnny Kingdom... might yet become a hero of our times

Books by Johnny Kingdom

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