Renowned for his iconic documentaries and conservation work, Attenborough’s career has spanned more than 70 years as a broadcaster, author, producer, and environmentalist.
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However, the revered narrator and naturalist, who turns 100 today (Friday 8 May), also has an unusual connection with a pub in the capital.
Attenborough has reportedly lived in the same house in the London borough of Richmond Upon Thames since the 1950s, and in 2009, he purchased the pub next door.
Historic pub
Dating back to 1868, the Hole in the Wall pub had been closed since early 2006. It was previously known as the Park Road Arms, but was renamed after being renovated in 1967.
Fearing the historic building would come under disrepair or be redeveloped into flats, Attenborough took ownership of the vacant pub 17 years ago for an alleged sum of £1m.
Since then, he has extended his home into the pub and created a wild-life friendly outdoor space, complete with an orchard, fish pond and glasshouse, according to reports.
The globally cherished environmentalist and humanitarian advocate preserved the facade of the pub.
Around five years after Attenborough purchased the Hole in the Wall, a human skill that had lain undiscovered, buried under the old pub’s stables, for more than 130 years was discovered while building work was carried out.
Unexpected legacy
The remains were eventually identified and found to belong to Julia Martha Thomas, a widow who was supposedly murdered by her housekeeper in 1879.
While much of the case had long since passed into local folklore, the finding beneath the former pub brought renewed attention to the building’s unusual history.
Today, the former Hole in the Wall remains part of Attenborough’s private property, with the broadcaster having quietly preserved a small piece of London pub heritage alongside his better-known work championing the natural world.
As he marks a century of life, the story offers another glimpse into the remarkable and often unexpected legacy of one of Britain’s most recognisable figures.
