Cotswold Wildlife Park celebrates 56 years of animal care

Cotswold Wildlife Park was established by John Heyworth on the Bradwell Grove Estate and opened on Good Friday, March 27, 1970.

Mr and Mrs Heyworth. Cotswold Wildlife Park was the brainchild of one man, John Heyworth (Image: Cotswold Wildlife Park)

It began with 341 animals and has since grown to house more than 1,500 animals across 250 species.

A spokesperson for Cotswold Wildlife Park said: “We hope you’ll join us in celebrating 56 wonderful years of Cotswold Wildlife Park & Gardens and we’d like to thank our visitors for their loyal support over the years.

Keepers moving a 19-foot-long Anaconda in 1971 (Image: Cotswold Wildlife Park)

“We must thank them for all their support for more than half a century.”

From its early days on a shoestring budget, the park has expanded to include giraffes, which arrived in 2010 for its 40th anniversary, and rhinos such as D’ora, named during its golden jubilee year in 2020.

A fearless Grévy’s Zebra chasing Bull – the park’s original male Rhino (Image: Cotswold Wildlife Park)

George the Aldabra giant tortoise is the park’s oldest and only original resident.

To mark the 50th anniversary, keepers made him a special cake during the lockdown.