A BBC presenter appeared to be visably shaken after he was forced to suffocate a live goat as a part of a new series. The Tribe with Bruce Parry landed on BBC iPlayer, with it first airing on BBC Two on Sunday night, as the 56-year-old found himself in a tricky situation quite quickly.
Episode two saw him meet an indigenous tribe called The Mucubal in Angola. Upon his arrival, one of the tribe’s leaders gifted Bruce a goat, when he asked what he should do with it. He looked aboslutely horrified when he was told that he must kill it – and it would be extremely rude not to. In a voiceover, he explained that animals are essential for the tribe for sustenance, currency and gifts, and is also a demonstration of the man’s wealth and generosity.
The presenter was forced to kill a goat by suffocation (Image: BBC)
The presenter asked which way would be best to do the dreaded deed and the men of the tribe told him to suffocate the farm animal – so they don’t waste the animal’s nutrient-rich blood.
They then proceeded to help him by holding the screaming goat down as Bruce placed his hands around the goat’s mouth and nostrils to suffocate it.
The goat jolted a few times in the horrific scene before coming to a stop and Bruce was informed that the goat was dead. He admitted: “This is the most gruesome thing I have ever done.”
Once the goat was dead, Bruce said it was ‘gruesome’ (Image: BBC)
“I wasn’t given any time to consider it or anything, it’s like they held it and said you have to hold this now…so I did,” he added. “It’s a very odd feeling, feeling the life force of an animal disappear in your own hands…not a feeling I’d necessarily want to have again.”
Speaking about the shocking moment in a new interview with Radio Times ahead of the show’s release, Bruce recalled how hard it was to carry out. He said: “It was difficult, suffocating a goat.
“But I could be the most ethically minded person at home in the UK but still by simply getting on a bus, I will have a much larger impact on the planet than any one of these people. Who am I to judge them?”
