National treasure and veteran naturalist Sir David Attenborough has been on our television screens for decades.

Sir David has inspired millions across the world with his documentaries (Image: Getty)

Celebrated broadcaster and filmmaker Sir David Attenborough is arguably one of the greatest British TV presenters of all time. The 99-year-old has inspired millions of people across the world with his incredible documentaries. Thanks to his tenacious desire to explore nature and the world, he joined the BBC as a trainee in 1952 and hasn’t stopped since. From trekking through uncharted wilderness to film some of the remotest people on earth, to pushing boundaries in a submersible off the Australian coast, Sir David has helped millions of us understand and appreciate the wonders of the world around us.

However, his remarkable career has seen the odd nasty accident over the years. During the 1980s, Sir David once “nearly died” filming for a television show. The national treasure was filming the series Trials of Life with his close friend and filmmaker Alastair Fothergill. Whilst David was in the Bahamas, he was caught in an enormous wave and left unconscious.

David will be turning 100 years old next year (Image: BBC/PA)

Alastair recounted: “We were filming David from the top of a boat that had a wooden platform on the back for people to dive off. We had just done a wonderful piece, and David was about to go under the water again, and a great wave washed him under the dive platform, which then came smashing down.

“I’ve never forgotten it because David was unconscious and there was blood everywhere and I remember thinking, ‘The one thing you don’t want on your CV is you’re the man who killed David Attenborough.’” Thankfully, David made a full recovery from his injury.

Sir David also experienced another painful injury during filming for the BBC series, The Green Planet. The presenter faced off against a cactus with needles like “glass”.

Sir David was once caught in an enormous wave whilst filming a series in the 1980s (Image: PA)During one episode, he got up close and personal with a range of plants across the globe. Despite wearing protective gear and undergloves, that wasn’t enough to protect him from the prickly plant.

Recalling the agonising experience, David said: “The cholla really is a physical danger. It has these very dense spines in rosettes, so they point in all directions, and if you just brush against it, the spines are like spicules of glass.

“I mean, they are that sharp, and they go into you, and you really have trouble getting them out, so that is a really dangerous plant. The cholla is an active aggressor. I mean, you feel you better stand back and you better watch out.”