Helen Skelton on why she loves Yorkshire Wildlife Park as she opens expanded attraction

The 37-year-old, who is married to Leeds Rhinos player Richie Myler, knows the park well from hosting Channel 5’s Big Week at the Zoo.

And she attended the park, near Doncaster, on August 4 for a preview of phase one of the attraction’s expanded animal reserves before they opened to visitors on Tuesday.

Phase one of the park's expansion includes Experience Ethiopia, with its two reserves: Hyenas of Harar and Simien Mountains, with its troop of gelada monkeys.

There is also the Himalayan Pass, which features red pandas and smooth coated otters.

Skelton said: “What I love about this place is that it’s very much a park. I loved wandering around. You feel spaced out. You feel like the animals are enjoying themselves.

“For me, this is a golden opportunity to say to my kids ‘this is why I nag you to recycle, this is why I nag you to protect the planet, this is why I want you to care about animals.'

“It’s a real showcase of why we should be protecting the planet.”

The former Blue Peter and Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins star said she has continued to work throughout the pandemic, with sometimes chaotic results involving her children popping up on a range of TV and radio shows.

She said: “I am the most untechnical person ever but, like everyone in lockdown, we’ve been doing things in a different way. I’ve been making telly right through, filming in my garden, filming on phones, filming on various bits and bobs.

“I have a new found love and respect for my soundmen friends and my cameramen friends because they make it look easy and it ain’t.”

Skelton said: “It’s given people a respect for working parents because the juggling is real. And I don’t think working from home is as easy as people think it is. You think you can do all your work in your pyjamas but you can’t. Your head can’t be in seven places at once.”