Meet John Miller, the BAFTA award winning series producer of Deadly 60, and the man in charge of putting the show together.

“We nearly didn’t even get Deadly 1”, says Miller.

In the series’ first episode, one of the show’s most infamous moments saw Steve Backshall and the crew get snuck up on by an aggressive hippo.

Miller says: “It was our second day of filming, we knew where this particular hippo was and we knew there was this sand bank we could film on where it couldn’t get to us. We’ve got crew on the bank and in a boat filming. Suddenly this other hippo turns up behind us and you can see this thing in the water coming in. It’s 5 metres away, now 3 metres and you’re thinking oh my God. We managed to get the boat out, whilst Steve’s hidden down the river in his little kayak.

“We were able to capture all of it and it added this dynamic feel because it was all hand held and we were all over the shop, but I’m glad that we did because it showed just how dangerous these animals can be if you’re really not 100% on it.”

It’s commonplace for nature documentaries to have loads of cameramen camouflaged away, sitting totally still for hours a day, aiming their cameras at animals hundreds of metres away, hoping they catch them doing something remarkable. Deadly 60 took an exciting new approach.

They had the unique task of creating a wildlife programme that showcased some of the scariest creatures on the planet whilst tailoring it for children.

Miller says: “So as series producer I was in charge of looking after the programme. We went off and shot the first few episodes and I came back and sat with the series editor for a good couple months, putting it together, working out what the format should be and making sure it all had the same style and tone. Is it going to be funny? Is it going to be serious? So we worked out a balance. It was a very simple format and it worked and if we tried to break away from it it’d fall apart.

“There’s a moment after the hippo tension where me and the soundman make a joke about it being an inflatable hippo. We left it in because we thought let’s lighten the mood because it was quite nerve racking the whole thing.

“You’ve got to be careful with how you delve into those stories. There’s editorial guidelines to all of it. Certainly with children there’s a level you mustn’t cross. You don’t want to scare them but at the same time you want to tell them about these animals which can be quite cruel and dangerous at times. There’s a massive responsibility there.”

Filming wildlife is unpredictable and no amount of planning can fully prepare a crew for the unexpected. John recounts the time he and the crew were documenting a domesticated hippo, which took a dislike to the soundman because of his large boom mic.

Miller says: “He had to jump out the window to save himself. And then you’ve got Steve in the water with this hippo showing off its massive tusks. I’m thinking this could go wrong at any moment. 

“The risk assessment sheets are huge and you’re constantly having to do it, because things are changing every second.

“You’re constantly thinking, I want to capture this, but in a way that we’re not going to end up never coming home. Some things were just pulled because we haven’t felt safe.”

Filming for wildlife television is a constant bumpy ride. Often, plenty of ideas are scrapped due to safety concerns and the impossible circumstances of the jungle.

Out filming in the jungle, the beauty of the process lies where one idea gets discarded, and another idea nobody thought of comes out of nowhere. 

John explains how on the fly wildlife shooting is, when an animal he and the crew didn’t know existed, and were not seeking out, made it onto the Deadly 60.

“So we were in Brazil and staying on this river boat. We were out at night and trying to catch some fish to eat for supper and realised something was taking all our bait. So we put a camera down and there were these things called candiru eels which were about a foot long and an inch thick. They look like something out of Alien! Basically, what they do is at night, if anything comes into the water they’ll burrow into any hole or orifice they can find.

“We were thinking, this is great. So we’ve lowered a chicken carcass in, and it stripped it within seconds. We filmed it and it was one of those surprise things that ended up going on the Deadly 60 because it was just so horrific but amazing at the same time.

“We’d been swimming in that river during the day, but they only come out at night, thank God!”

A small crew is crucial during wildlife shoots. A lean crew lowers the amount of equipment needed and helps with flexibility, especially in unfamiliar locations.

It’s easier to move quickly and navigate potentially risky situations. Miller says that the Deadly crew typically consists of a presenter, producer, director, camera operator, soundman and a fixer, the latter being the most important person when travelling abroad:

“98% of what we filmed on Deadly was because of the fixer. They’re invaluable. You’d never find anything without them.”

“They know the area, they know the people who can get you into places and they know where the animals are. When they know you’re coming they’ll be out searching for the animal, weeks in advance. Normally they’ve grown up there. They’re one of the most key people.

“I had a great experience with one guy. We were on the river and he woke me at 5 in the morning and said, ‘John would you like to come and meet my family, they live just down the river.’ We trundled off in his little boat while everyone else was asleep. I’d gotten on so well with this guy and I had breakfast with him and his family. It was like a bit of a dream, like it hadn’t happened but it was a lovely, lovely moment.”

On top of being the series producer of Deadly 60, John Miller is also a writer, director and a jack of all trades in the TV industry.

He’s worked on countless popular shows including ‘Dickinson’s Real Deal’, ‘Andy’s Dinosaur Adventures’, ‘Ray Mears’ and ‘Accidental Angler’ to name a few. He also directed the movie ‘Golden Years’, which he wrote alongside Nick Knowles.

He’s written a comedy, ‘Unwanted’, as a passion project at this stage of his impressive career. He says: “Nobody’s paying me to do it. I’m just writing it for me really. 

“It’s funny. It’s poignant, you know? And it’s quite sad. Often, I’ve written with people. I’ve written a lot of things, but writing a whole series on your own, it’s quite interesting, but I loved it.

When Miller started his career he wanted to be an actor, but realised he preferred writing and directing as a way to tell stories. He says: “I was about 10 when I first started making films with my mates. I did a drama degree and after that, made some self-funded short films and put together this little production company with some friends.

“It’s kind of a full circle moment. A lot of things I’m making for other people, for companies and I’ve got a brief and they want it a certain way. With this, I can do what I want.”

Deadly 60 is another example of John Miller being passionate about his projects. The show’s success garnered them the BAFTA award for Factual Programme.

Miller says: “It’s such a lovely thing to get, it’s such a high accolade in this country. I rang my mum and dad a little bit drunk after! And doing all these interviews, it was quite fun being a celebrity for the night.

“The most rewarding thing though, really, was the reaction from parents. We got a lot of appreciative messages, a lot of thanks for getting their kids interested in animals and wildlife. I think introducing children to the world of wildlife is something we’re all proud and privileged to do.”

For more on set stories, click here.