The whale that swam to London

In January 2006, a northern bottlenose whale swam up the River Thames in London, briefly grabbing the attention of the world's media. On December 21 there is a documentary being shown in the UK about this specific animal which examines the media furore that surrounded this rare spectacle. The Marine Connection contributed towards the programme.

Liz Sandeman, Director of Operations remembers the occasion well, “ On January 20 I received a call from BDMLR asking for my assistance, the whale had been sighted at Westminster Bridge and would I accompany the RNLI to assess the animal's health and confirm the species - I jumped at the opportunity! As it was early morning and the news had not yet spread to the media, I enjoyed some quiet time observing, in London's wintry sunshine, what turned out to be a female Northern bottlenose whale. It was very strange seeing such a creature in the Thames.

“I took a series of images, some of the first taken of the whale in the upper Thames. Over the next few days one of these images (of the whale swimming past the House of Commons) became infamous – and this particular Marine Connection image was used extensively by the world's media when covering the whale's story”.

This was the first sighting of this species in the Thames since records began in 1913, though other cetaceans have, wittingly or otherwise, visited London's waterway during this time. However, despite the undeniable excitement this animal created - thousands of people along the riverbank on the day of the actual rescue –no-one who truly cares about cetaceans will be hoping to see another such creature bewildered and lost so far from its native waters, fighting to survive. The sense of goodwill towards the creature was incredible, with people cheering and clapping as the whale made its way back downriver, everyone hoping it could be returned to the open sea. Sadly, it wasn't to be; a very distressing outcome for all involved in the rescue effort.

Watch it!
December 21 2006 - Channel 4 at 8pm

Image Copyright: Marine Connection