Aimee Walker
Ross Kemp will meet the UK’s ‘tiger kings’ in a brand new two-part ITV series.
The documentary will show the former Eastenders actor going on a journey to discover how an estimated 4,000 dangerous exotic animals are kept in homes across the UK.
Opening up about the new show in a statement, Kemp said: “When I first started making these films I didn’t think it was possible to privately own a lion or a tiger in this country.
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“I’ve found it truly eye-opening and disturbing to discover just how easy it is to source one and get permission to keep it legally.”
During one episode, Kemp is introduced to Reece Oliver who keeps a lioness and a puma in his back garden in Nottinghamshire.
He told Kemp: “All you have to do is tick a few boxes.
“I rescued them from eastern Europe. They were going to euthanise a lot of the cats and they asked did I want the lion cubs?
“I brought them up like they were my children, from 10 to 11 days old.”
But when Kemp quizzed him on whether or not it’s ethical to keep his big cats as pets, Reece argued that the creatures would be a lot worse off without him.
He said: “If you take those lions away from me or from the setting they know. It is going to be stressful for them.
“They’re happy here and love me… when I’m not there they kind of miss me.”
Britain’s Tiger Kings: On the Trail with Ross Kemp will air on Tuesday 30 March at 9pm on ITV.
Featured Image Credit: ITV
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