Animal Magic legend's suit for sale

Published on Thursday 19 November 2009 21:55

THE zookeeper's outfit of one of Britain's best-loved television personalities, the Animal Magic presenter Johnny Morris, goes on the auction block in Edinburgh tomorrow.

The grey wool uniform, in which Morris charmed children and their parents for 20 years, is being sold by his protg and fellow presenter Terry Nutkins, who controversially inherited the bulk of Morris's estate on his death in 1999.

Mr Nutkins said of the suit yesterday: "It has been in my cupboard for ten years, and I've been trying to protect it from moths. I didn't want it to go because it was a close part of Johnny and me, but you have to let things go."

Interest is running high, said auctioneer and valuer Martin Cornish, of Ramsay Cornish auctioneers in Leith. He expects the suit to go for anything from 100 upwards. "There's a lot of people asking, the public seem to be interested," he said.

The proceeds will go to the Highland Wildlife Hospital Trust, a rescue centre in Ullapool, Mr Nutkins said.

The uniform is missing the cap, which Mr Nutkins placed in Morris's grave.

"The great British public are supposed to be animal lovers, I hope they will pay a little bit for it," he said. "It is a nice memory of Johnny."

But he did not offer the outfit to members of Morris's family, who challenged a will changed shortly before the presenter's death at the age of 82.

"It might stir up a hornet's nest with them one way or the other, but I'm not worried," he said.

A small collection of the presenter's furniture and art, including his writing desk and favourite animal prints, is also being sold, along with photographs of him at the BBC.

Morris, a former teacher and farmer, used the no-frills uniform to shape his cosy character on the show, where he gave voice to animals to the delight of generations of children. Based at the BBC's Natural History Unit, close to Bristol Zoo, he donned the zookeeper's uniform to chatter with monkeys and feed sealions. He once famously tried to wash the elephants – before they turned the hose on him.

"Johnny wore that uniform every time he did a piece on television in Bristol Zoo or any other zoo," said Mr Nutkins. "He took on this role as Keeper Morris, though he was never a keeper."

Mr Nutkins moved to Scotland as a child to work for the famed naturalist Gavin Maxwell. He was hired by Morris to join Animal Magic and went on to make his own name hosting the Really Wild Show from 1986 to 1993. He now lives on the west coast.

Earlier this year the presenter, who has eight children, launched a show mixing wildlife and reality television, My Life as an Animal. Celebrities spent four days at a time sleeping, eating and socialising with animals such as pigs or seals. It is unclear whether a repeat will be commissioned.

Morris left the bulk of his estate to Mr Nutkins, including a country house in Berkshire. The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals sued over the will, saying it had expected a large donation. It dropped the action after a payment was agreed.