Bill Oddie is well known as an ornithologist, conservationist and natural history presenter. His most recent TV projects include Bill Oddie goes Wild , How to Watch Wildlife and Britain Goes Wild with Bill Oddie. He is currently working on Springwatch with Bill Oddie which will be on BBC televison in 2005.

Bill Oddie was born in Rochdale, Lancashire, in 1941, but was brought up in Birmingham. He appeared in several Cambridge Footlights productions, one of which - Cambridge Circus - transferred to the West End and - via New Zealand - to Broadway where Bill, much to his bewilderment, received 'rave' notices. While still at University he wrote scripts for TV's That Was The Week That Was and on leaving Cambridge he gave up all plans to become either an English teacher or the warden of a Bird Observatory and went into 'Showbiz' where he has been ever since, trying to decide what to do when - and if - he finally grows up.

Bill has written and presented hundreds of TV and Radio programmes. These include I'm Sorry I'll Read That Again, Twice a Fortnight, Broaden Your mind, The Goodies, Festival, Ask Oddie.

In addition to his wildlife TV work, Bill has worked on a variety of non-birdy projects, mainly co-written with his wife Laura Beaumont. These range from film scripts, drama and comedy series to puppet shows and books.

Bill has been called 'Britain's best-known bird-watcher'. In recent years he has presented a number of bird or general wildlife programmes including Bill Oddie goes Wild, Britain Goes Wild, three series of Birding with Bill Oddie, Bird in the Nest, Oddie in Paradise, The Great Kenyan Bird Safari, Favourite Walks, Wild Weekends, The Bird Business, Flight to Eilat, The Big Bird Face and BBC - Nature Watch.

As well as writing scripts, Bill has written numerous bird books including Bill Oddie's Little Black Bird Book, Gone Birding, and Birdwatching with Bill Oddie, all illustrated with his own drawings. He has also written wildlife travel articles for magazines such as BBC Wildlife, Country Life and Signature, often accompanied with his own photos.

He has written for many specialist publications including British Birds, Birdwatching Magazine and Birdwatch.

Bill is an active conservationist and he publicly represents organisations such as the World Wildlife Fund, Friends of the Earth, Fauna & Flora International, BirdLife International, the Royal Society for Nature Conservation and the British Trust for Conservation Volunteers. He is a past or present council member of the RSPB, the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust and the Ornithological Society of the Middle East.

Bill plays the drums, saxophone and percussion.