LOOK me in the eye and say that again… It’s the look that shows this lioness means business, and quite possibly has lunch in mind – with me on the menu.

Back in 2010, my wife Sheila and I were lucky enough to bag a VIP day at Woburn Safari Park in Bedfordshire, going off-road in the reserves in the keepers’ safari jeep.

When we arrived in the lion reserve, we cut the engine and silently rolled to a halt. After a while members of the pride arrived to take a look at us, prowling around the vehicle.

Growing in confidence, they came up, close and personal, one even clambering onto the roof of the jeep as we sat, breath bated, inside. They were so close we could have touched them.

Sheila snapped this shot though a tiny gap in the window, and it’s long been one of my favourites from the family travel album, run close by this outrageous ostrich…