Expand Collapse

About BirdGuides Ltd

BirdGuides staff on Holy Island, March 2009

BirdGuides Limited is a British company that produces videos, books and multimedia computer software for birdwatchers. Over the years we have built up what is most probably the world's most comprehensive library of quality footage of European and American birds. This is made available via our DVD videos, CD- and DVD-ROMs.

The company also offers bird news services via the web, email and mobile phones, and has recently launched audio and video products for mp3 players and iPods.

Directors

Max Whitby

John Cromie

Max co-founded BirdGuides with Dave Gosney in 1994. Prior to that he studied Philosophy at Oxford University and then joined the BBC as a graduate trainee. He worked on Newsnight, directed the live Tomorrow's World studio and went on to produce numerous Horizon documentaries as well as 100 or so other films, mainly about science. He became involved in the BBC's pioneering Interactive Television Unit and headed up an early collaboration with Apple in San Francisco. Subsequently he co-led a management buyout (at the time the BBC felt interactive media was decades away) and the resulting spin-out company floated on AIM in 1995. In 2004 he took the radical decision to train formally as a scientist and completed with distinction a masters in nanomaterials at Imperial College, which he followed with a PhD. The skills he acquired have come in useful at RGB, his scientific research and communications business where BirdGuides' London office is also based. Max is widely travelled, having filmed for the BBC, Channel 4 and BirdGuides in over 30 countries, including six memorable weeks in North Korea. He has received four BAFTA nominations and two BAFTA awards. At BirdGuides Max is responsible for strategic direction of the company and oversees all aspects of our media production.

John is a software and digital business professional with 20+ years of experience delivering successful projects on leading desktop, web and mobile platforms. He runs his own software development and consulting business, Skylark Associates, with clients in Europe and the US.

At BirdGuides, John is responsible for overall technical direction and for the software which powers BirdGuides' desktop and mobile products, together with the website architecture and news processing engine.

John is a keen naturalist and is active in conservation and research in Ireland, both locally and nationally. He is involved in volunteer surveys such as IWeBs and the Bird Atlas project, as well as monitoring the small Irish population of Red-throated Diver, and some of the recently established Golden Eagle territories. A moth enthusiast, John helps to run the Donegal Biodiversity Project - a long-term study aiming to record and map the distribution of flora and fauna in the county. John serves on the Board of BirdWatch Ireland, and is currently Chairman.

Staff

Fiona Barclay	Dave Dunford

Fiona has a PhD in Chemistry, and after a spell in research, moved into sales and marketing. In 2001 she joined Sigma-Aldrich in a business development role, heading up a major scientific brand for the UK. Fiona arrived at BirdGuides in 2006, initially in a support capacity, providing sales and marketing expertise. Her business development background was put to good use, fostering key relationships with the RSPB, BTO and several other relevant organisations. Fiona took over operational management of BirdGuides in 2008 and has driven many innovations on the website. As well as running the business, Fiona has editorial, production, filming and editing skills. She is an early adopter of new technology, and is abreast of the latest web and gadget developments, providing strategic direction for BirdGuides. She has long been a birder and keen naturalist. In recent years she has developed a strong interest in lepidoptera, acquiring an expensive collection of moth traps.	Dave joined BirdGuides in June 2000. His main role at BirdGuides is to look after this website. Before moving north, Dave was Chairman of the Oxford Ornithological Society, also designing their website and helping with the local annual report. As well as maintaining the website, Dave is responsible for the technical aspects of our bird news services; and as a former copy-editor he also helps out checking articles for the webzine and making sure our communications aren't too littered with mistakes.
Andy Hirst	Pete Ellison

Andy rejoined BirdGuides in 2005 as Office Manager. He's responsible for the BirdGuides Office, ensuring the orders and enquiries are processed efficiently, occasionally sneaking out to film for our archive using our new High Definition camera. He first joined BirdGuides in 1994 as Office Manager and latterly Production Manager. Andy is the person you speak to when you call the office. Andy runs Gone Birding, leading tours plus wildlife video services in his spare time, as well as being Group Recorder and Producer for SK58 Birders. He spends most of his time birding in SK58, a 10km square near Sheffield.	Pete started working in Technical Support for BirdGuides in 2003. He was a Radio Electronics Officer in the Merchant Navy for 14 years, then Technical Support Engineer for Reuters on their PC and Sun Unix networks for 16 years. His hobby is sailing.