Sir David Attenborough has his say on Brexit, Bake Off and Clarkson

Right, tune your inner voice to the dulcet tones of Sir David Attenborough for this...

"And here we see, that strange beast - the British public - being led from the safety of its European home into the wilderness of Brexit by the beguiling songs of Parliament."

That, in essence, is Attenborough's take on the nation's current plight. Speaking to The Radio Times ahead of the arrival of Planet Earth II, the famed naturalist/national treasure/everyone's dream grandfather described his concerns about "the mess" the Brexit referendum result has left the nation in.

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"There's confusion, isn't there, between populism and parliamentary democracy," said Attenborough. "I mean, that's why we're in the mess we are with Brexit, is it not? Do we really want to live by this kind of referendum?"

In Attenborough's eyes, the decision on whether the nation should remain in the EU should have been made by politicians, not by the public. 

"What we mean by parliamentary democracy is surely that we find someone we respect who we think is probably wiser than we are, who is prepared to take the responsibility of pondering difficult things and then trust him – or her – to vote on our behalf."

Once he'd calmed down about the nation's political state, Attenborough turned his attention to his beloved BBC - for whom he worked as the controller of BBC Two between 1965 and 1973. Attenborough was asked if the network had made the right decision to not outbid Channel 4 to regain the Great British Bake Off:

"Oh, absolutely right! To say to them: ‘If you want another million, go ahead, we’ve got plenty more ideas where that came from’."

However, Attenborough had some harsher words for the BBC's decision to sack Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson. 

"I regret letting Clarkson go, because it’s very good to have a voice that’s anti-establishment, or so profoundly anti-establishment."

How about we let Attenborough host the next season of Top Gear with Matt LeBlanc? He wouldn't drive, he'd just sit in the passenger seat and talk about how lovely nature is. You know you'd love that. 

Planet Earth II - which isn't a sci-fi flick - airs on BBC One on Sunday 6 November at 8pm. It looks fit.