One of the elements of my book Burning Embers that readers most often comment on is that the description of Africa is vivid and transports the reader to the wild and exotic Kenya of the year 1970. Take, for example, the following description is extracted from a scene in which the two main characters, Rafe and Coral, are in a hot air balloon taking in the vistas of the Rift Valley and the Masai Mara:

Gradually the mist had lifted, and the sun burst forth, a ball of fire radiating the sky with unnaturally incandescent hues. Coral was reminded of the strident brushwork and wild colors of the Fauvist paintings that filled her mother’s gallery, which Coral had always loved. The scene was now set for the show to begin: the drama in which the broad, breath-taking landscapes of Africa were the stage and the animals the actors.

… The passengers watched silently as the thrilling spectacle of nature’s daily life unfolded. They caught sight of a herd of elephants rushing toward a lake in the distance: massive, magnificent animals led by the female, their large ears flapping in the morning air. … They saw impalas and antelopes, delighting in mighty leaps into the air, and witnessed large numbers of hippos playing in a big pool close to the surface of the water, while others dozed lazily on the rocks surrounding it, their great pink mouths yawning in the bright gold sun that was now high in the sky. … They glided over a herd of black buffalo, their mighty hooves dredging up clouds of gray dust as they thundered away at full speed. Coral wondered what could have sent the most dangerous beast of the bush into such a panic. They saw zebras, their skin of black and silver stripes glistening in the sun. There were also bucks, rhinos, and undulating towers of giraffes in clusters of six or more — a paradise for a photographer.

I wrote such descriptions of the African landscape and wildlife largely based on my own travels in the country and my reading of books and websites. But recently I have been watching the new BBC wildlife programme Africa by BAFTA-winning broadcaster Sir David Attenborough, and how I wish I could have seen this programme as I was writing! Have you been watching it? The colours, the perspectives, the detail, the moments captured on film: they are absolutely wonderful. The sheer scale of the country takes my breath away – fires bigger than the UK; savannahs stretching beyond the bounds of America. Then, from the epic, sweeping aerial shots that make you realise the awesome size of a location, the camera work drills down to the most minute detail – the swish of a giraffe’s tail; a money’s fur lazily wafting in the breeze.

On its opening night of broadcast, Africa was the most-watched programme on UK television, with 6.5 million viewers tuning in to see Attenborough’s latest offering. There is something timeless about his work – for so many years he has been making natural history programmes that break new ground in the field. As a Daily Telegraph reviewer noted, “After 60 years of Attenborough’s nature programmes, his narration is as familiar and evocative of childhood as the Shipping Forecast.” His filmography is surely unsurpassed by any other, and personally I find his work moving – and very inspirational for my writing, which is always closely attuned to its setting. I highly recommend taking a look at this latest series. You can watch the trailer for the programme below, and if you visit the BBC iPlayer website, you can watch full episodes.