ONE of the world's leading wildlife film makers has died during a trip to film the rarest breed of the tarantula spider.
Nick Gordon, whose family run a fish and chip shop business in St Anne's, near Blackpool, had just completed a day's jungle filming with his colleague Rick West when he was taken ill.
He died from a heart problem in a remote area of Venezuela.
His body was due to arrive back in the UK today.
Locations
The 50-year-old award winner had turned his photographic hobby into his work making films for Anglia's world acclaimed Survival series and the BBC.
He spent 20 years travelling the world filming, photographing and writing about wildlife, environmental and travel issues.
He lived for extended periods in the locations where he was filming, including Guyana, Madagascar, China, Alaska, South Africa and India.
He recently completed a wildlife series for Granada and his hour long epic "Eater of Souls" about the life of the jaguar in the Amazon jungle was televised for the first time last year.
He spent 10 years in the Amazon region, but it wasn't the dangers posed by wildlife that finally forced him to leave.
He had suffered five attacks of malaria and each one had been getting progressively worse.
He said at the time: "They reckoned it was from a very rare form of malaria hosted by monkeys.
"One of the doctors told me if I didn't leave there I'd die. That really frightened me."
During his career, Nick who had homes in St Anne's and Portugal, had several near escapes, including incidents when a boat he was travelling in capsized in an alligator-filled lake.
He married twice, the second time to a Brazilian girl he met while filming in the country.
His latest book is due to go on sale this year.
Indiana Jones
Despite his success, Nick never forgot his roots and would return from all corners of the world just to play a game of snooker and enjoy a pint in his local ex-servicemens' club in St Anne's.
Gordon, dubbed a real life Indiana Jones, moved with his family to Blackpool when he was nine.
His parents ran a restaurant and he was educated at Lindisfarne College in North Wales.
His life changed at the age of 19, when he joined a sub-aqua club which inspired him to begin a career as a wildlife cameraman.
He and his first wife Ann ran a fish and chip shop in Blackpool but he also made a number of amateur wildlife films.
When he was 26 he got his first big break when he was given a job as a news cameraman for the BBC in Manchester.
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There is a huge hole in my heart, we were close like brothers, I will greatly miss my friend.
Rick West
www.birdspiders.com
I spent a weekend with Nick last year, where he taught us wildlife film-making. Not only did he do this, but he also showed us his passion, enthusiasm, humour, compassion, sincerity and friendship. A great man, who will be sorely missed.
Nick and I studied together at Lindisfarne College, N. Wales.I exchanged emails with him recently and am very saddened by his sudden passing away. On behalf of all ex-Lindisfarnians may I extend our heartfelt sympathies to all his beloved ones. He was a wonderful person who loved Nature...and he was one of the best in his field. May God rest his soul.