TO A remarkably accurate degree of prophecy, this 1968 photograph from Calderpark Zoo not only presents an uncanny likeness to the opening scene of Disney’s The Lion King but even manages to feature a cub named Simba as its star – 32 years before the film’s release, how’s that for the circle of life!
Before we get ahead of ourselves, Disney certainly did not select the name of a main character in their $45m animation on the basis of a wee cub in a Glaswegian zoo. Simba is, of course, the Swahili word for lion; which surely inspired both.
There’s confusion on the reverse of this photograph, with our archivist seemingly unsure as to whether the image is of a "pre-show" or the "main-show" for holidaymakers in the zoo’s lion enclosure. Judging by the expression on the girl at the front-left, it’s to be hoped that it is only the warm-up because she’s not looking particularly impressed.
Established in 1947, Calderpark Zoo closed its gates for the final time in August 2003, with a debt of around £3.5m and a wave of animal cruelty allegations.
Back in 1962, however, Simba was hand-reared by head keeper Joe and his wife Margaret, in the family home and alongside their six-month-old daughter. He would later move to a new home further south, before returning to defeat his uncle and reclaim Pride Rock. Or perhaps that’s just the film?
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here