Ahead of a Kent stage show this week, TV presenter Saba Douglas-Hamilton reveals the challenges and rewards of bringing up her children on a Kenyan safari camp where elephants and lions roam free.

Not many mums have a Samburu warrior as a babysitter – especially one armed with a machete – but then not many mums are bringing up their children in the middle of a Kenyan nature reserve.

For BBC presenter Saba Douglas-Hamilton and her family, it’s second nature. It’s the life she had as a child and she is adamant it is right for her own offspring.

However, her “Ninja Nanny”, Mporian, still has to protect them from the dangers that come with the territory.

“The most obvious fear is stepping on snakes or scorpions – which can be fatal for children – so although we rarely see them it’s important to always be aware that they are present,” said 45-year-old Saba.

“The other danger is when there are elephants in camp, which is quite a common occurrence – especially when the acacia trees are in seed. Despite their size, elephants can disappear completely in rather innocuous-looking bushes, so you must always have your wits about you.”

She adds: “One of the bulls who particularly likes camp is called Sarara – he’s really beautiful, enormous, but also quite feisty. He’s convinced it’s his patch and we are all trespassers. I think the most dangerous situation any of the kids got in to was when Mayian, one of the twins, was stomping along looking at her feet and walked straight into Sarara’s backside. When she saw his feet, then looked up, she got the most terrible fright! He swung around and shook his head at her, but luckily Mporian had caught up and snatched her to safety.”

Saba grew up in Kenya’s capital Nairobi, where her father ran an elephant charity.

“I think if you grow up being exposed to very different environments it has a profound effect on you. My sister and I fell in love with the Samburu people and their way of life.

“My husband Frank and I wanted our kids to experience bush living, so deciding to run Elephant Watch Camp was relatively easy.

“Also, I was going a bit mad being a ‘mum in the suburbs’ – my life pre-kids was very adventurous and mostly in wild places.”

So how is family life in the bush?

“You still have to make meals, brush teeth, figure out day-care, read bedtime stories and convince the kids to have a bath! They still say the food is yucky and yowl at us when they’re annoyed. But while our kids have no problems feeding warthogs or giraffes by hand, they are terrified of dogs!”

She also has chosen not to expose her children to iPads, internet and even TV – and does not have a TV herself – despite being a BBC presenter.

Instead, the family are immersed in reserve life.

“Living among Samburu nomads is the most incredible education for the kids – they absorb absolutely everything they see and hear, and just by living in the bush are learning all about the animals, bugs and birds, what they eat, where to find them, what their footprints or dung looks like.

“We didn’t bring many toys with us, so, like Samburu kids, they started making their own. Mainly wrapping up the great sausage-like seeds from the kigelia trees to use as dolls.”

Despite the dangers, Saba is emphatic about the life she has chosen, saying: “If kids feel secure and happy, they can survive almost anything.”

ELE-VISION

Elephant conservationist and wildlife television presenter Saba Douglas-Hamilton’s life has been surrounded by elephants.

She met her first wild elephant when she was just six weeks old, after being born in the Great Rift Valley in Kenya.

Her first job was with the Save the Rhino Trust in Namibia. She then joined Save the Elephants, the charity run by her father, Iain Douglas-Hamilton. It was while working in the Samburu National Reserve that Saba was spotted by the BBC.

The This Wild Life on BBC2 and Big Cat Diaries presenter now lives in Kenya and is bringing her three children up there, running a tented eco-lodge, Elephant Watch Camp.

DETAILS

Saba Douglas-Hamilton: A Life With Elephants will be at the Assembly Hall Theatre, Tunbridge Wells, on Wednesday, April 20, at 7.30pm. She is only doing 15 dates across the UK. The show includes a question-and- answer session.

For tickets at £17.50, click here or call 01892 530613.