Michaela Strachan nearly lost her life in a horrifying wildlife encounter involving what she described as a "whale threesome" in South Africa. As one of television's most beloved wildlife presenters, Michaela is likely accustomed to precarious situations—including an incident where she had to use a tranquiliser dart on a rampaging buffalo to rescue a vet trapped in a tree.

She now co-hosts BBC favourite Springwatch with her longtime colleague Chris Packham, with whom she also presented the nostalgic CBBC nature programme The Really Wild Show from 1993 to 2006. In a recent interview, she reflected upon another perilous moment from her career working with wildlife — one that seemingly came close to killing her, leaving her reflecting on the unusual engraving that may have ended up on her gravestone. It occurred in the waters off the coast of South Africa, where she lives with her husband, Nick Chevallier, and son, Olly.

Michaela was almost "squashed" by a pair of southern right whales attempting to mate with a female. She told The i Paper: "Squashed in a whale threesome. That would have made for an interesting gravestone."

She isn't alone, though, as fellow wildlife presenter Chris Packham has also experienced an unpleasant brush with wildlife, having received some painful bites from army ants while filming in Kenya.

It comes after Michaela detailed a hospital scare she endured after being bitten by an animal in the East African island nation of Madagascar; it was believed she had caught a deadly disease from the incident.

She told Bella magazine: "I was bitten by a lemur in Madagascar, and they thought it might have rabies, so I went to A&E for a jab, and I said to the nurse, 'Out of interest, why are you laying a bed out for me?'"

"She looked at her notes and said, 'Oh - bitten by a lemur! I thought it said, 'broken femur!'"

Meanwhile, in her family life, Michaela has become a grandmother for the second time. In October last year, the 59-year-old took to social media to share the news that her second grandson, Marley, had arrived. 

She wrote: "My 2nd grandson! Little Marley Chevallier Manning arrived into the world last week. So adorably cute. So precious.

"Unbelievably proud of my step daughter @jadiealice & @dale_manning, they are the most awesome parents already. 2 grandchildren in 5 months. Feeling very blessed." 

One fan wrote: "What an adorable little baby - he's a real sweetie - congratulations all."

Another said: "Beautiful congratulations. For us we have our first great granddaughter in July and a second great grandchild in a few weeks time."