Sarah CassellsHe's the Springwatch presenter with fervent views about conservation, a penchant for punk and an unbridled love for Norfolk. There's no taming Chris Packham, says Sarah Cassells.Sarah Cassells

He's the Springwatch presenter with fervent views about conservation, a penchant for punk and an unbridled love for Norfolk. There's no taming Chris Packham, says Sarah Cassells.

It's fair to say Chris Packham is known for having some strong, occasionally controversial, opinions. When it comes to issues of conservation, the lifelong naturalist has historically argued that breeding giant pandas in captivity is pointless because of the lack of habitat left to sustain them, and that domestic cats should have night curfews to stop them murdering garden wildlife.

So when he starts a sentence with: 'My only personal problem with Norfolk…' you brace for impact, until he blindsides you with '…is that it's the other side of the M25.'

It's pure Packham; a little bit provocative, a little bit playful. He has homes in the New Forest and just south of Bordeaux, but loves any excuse to visit this region. He is an unashamed 'real fan of Norfolk' and, as he prepares to film Springwatch at Pensthorpe Nature Reserve near Fakenham this month, says with genuine sincerity: 'I can't think of a finer place to spend a month in spring.'

For a third and final time, the BBC's flagship nature programme returns to the Norfolk reserve, and the presenting team of Chris, Kate Humble, Martin Hughes Games, Simon King and Gordon Buchanan are poised to deliver wildlife reports on the UK's elusive and captivating critters.

Read the full interview with Chris in the June issue of EDP Norfolk, out now!