Tippi Degré
Tippi Degré (born 4 June 1990) is a French girl, who spent her childhood in Namibia among wild animals and tribespeople.[1] After moving to Paris, France with her parents, she returned to Africa to make six nature documentaries for the Discovery Channel. She is known among other things for supervising the tigers in Fort Boyard, off the coast of France, which is the stage for a popular international game show.
Biography
Tippi was born in Namibia, where her parents, Alain Degré and Sylvie Robert, worked as freelance wildlife photographers.[2] She was named after Tippi Hedren.[3] During her stay in Namibia, she befriended wild animals, including a 28-year old elephant Abu, a leopard nicknamed J&B, crocodiles, lion cubs, giraffes, giant bullfrogs and chameleons.[4] She also befriended the Bushmen and the Himba tribespeople of the Kalahari, who taught her how to survive on roots and berries, and to speak their language.[4]
Tippi later moved with her parents to Madagascar and then to France, where she became a celebrity.[5] A book of her adventures (Tippi of Africa, ISBN 978-1868720835) was published and translated in several languages.[6][7] She also set up a website, and returned to Africa to make six nature documentaries for the Discovery Channel.[4]
In Paris (France), Tippi attended a local state school for the first two years, but is now homeschooled because she was found to have little in common with the other children in Paris.[4]
References
- ^ Haine, Alice (December 22, 2002). "Pets and their People: The bush baby; Little Tippi walks and talks with the animals". The People. Trinity Mirror. Retrieved 2007-10-09.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Burrow, Lisa (May 19, 1996). "Tippi The Animal Girl of Africa". The People. Trinity Mirror. Retrieved 2007-10-09.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Pip Smith (January 24, 1998). "Unattractive experience of the not-so-dark continent". Daily Dispatch. Retrieved 2007-10-09.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ a b c d Willsher, Kim (December 27, 2002). "Forget being famous, says bush baby, I'd just like to be normal". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2007-10-09.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Willsher, Kim (June 23, 2001). "The Real Mowgli; Tippi Degre is the little girl who was best of friends with the jungle's fiercest animals". Daily Record. Retrieved 2007-10-09.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Degre, Tippi (2000). Tippi aus Afrika. Das Mädchen, das mit den Tieren spricht (in German). Claudia Steinitz (translator). Ullstein Hc. ISBN 978-3550071645.
- ^ Degre, Tippi (2002). 我的野生動物朋友 (in Chinese). Huang Tien-yuan (translator). ISBN 9576078237.
Further reading
- Ody, Joelle (1998). Tippi of Africa. New Holland Publishers. ISBN 978-1868720835.
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External links
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