With the warmer weather, BBC‘s beloved wildlife series Springwatch has finally returned with presenters Chris Packham and Michaela Strachan back at the helm. The duo were live from a brand new location of National Trust Crom in Northern Ireland, while their co-host, Lolo Williams, made an appearance from the Knepp Estate in Sussex. As the cameras went live to Lolo, the ornithologist was still being driven and en route to the location.

As he said: “Yes, Michaela, it does look like the Serengeti, it feels like the Serengeti,” but before he could continue admiring his surroundings, Lolo declared: “I’m late, I’m late, I’m on the way, I’m on the way!” The 63-year-old then interrupted the live programme, addressing the driver and stating: “Stop!”

As he arrived, Lolo explained: “Don’t worry, don’t worry, I’m just on the way back from a Knepp Wildland Safari, and it’s fantastic, it’s a wonderful experience.”

Running late, he then turned to the driver and said: “Stop, stop, stop! I need to get out, I have a programme.”

As the presenter rushed out of the car, he sighed: “Here we are,” then turned back to the driver and said: “Thank you very much, that was absolutely brilliant.

“Right, I’m at Knepp this week and for the whole of this week, and what a place this is. Knepp is rewilding central, it’s being driven by nature and creating all kinds of habitats, which has attracted hundreds and thousands of species.”

Ahead of Springwatch’s return, Michaela told the BBC: “Very excited to be coming live from Northern Ireland for Springwatch.

“We never quite know what species will become our stars each year or what stories will emerge. That’s what I love about Springwatch: the wildlife writes the script and every year there’s a chapter we weren’t expecting!

“Can’t wait to see what plots Crom has in store for us. I’m hoping it hasn’t planned for too much rain in the script!”

As Tom Watt Smith, Lead Commissioning Editor in Specialist Factual at the BBC said: “A beautiful setting for Springwatch 2026. Crom will no doubt bring audiences a rich and diverse range of wildlife stories. We are delighted to be working with the National Trust to bring this amazing part of Northern Ireland to audiences across the UK.”