Cub scouts across south Bucks celebrated 100 years of adventure on Saturday with a BAFTA award-winning wildlife presenter, and Scottish Rugby Union star.

Around 180 scouts from High Wycombe and Chesham got the chance to meet Deadly 60 presenter and Cubs100 ambassador Steve Backshall, and Scotland talent Thom Evans, on a surprise visit to their camp.

The celebrations, dubbed the scouts’ ‘Wildest Birthday Ever’, has seen Steve tour the country to meet and congratulate cub scouts on their growing numbers.

Steve, 43, said: “Today 150,000 girls and boys are enjoying the fun and friendship of Cubs. They’re learning new skills, trying new things and having the best possible start in life.”

“Like me, Cub Scouts love adventure and the outdoors. That’s why I’m so excited to be the Ambassador for Cubs100, the 2016 centenary of Cubs.

“With thousands of adventure camps, parties and other activities taking place right across the UK, we’re calling it the Wildest Birthday Ever.”

“Happy Birthday Cubs!”

He urged former cub scouts to give their time as volunteers, saying they would have “incredible fun” and “help inspire a new generation”.

The Cub Scouts section was founded in 1916 and is now the most popular scouting section with around 2,800 girls and boys joining in Buckinghamshire. Figures from the Scout Association show a two per cent increase in total membership in Bucks with an increase of more than eight per cent in girls.

James Palin, lead volunteer for Buckinghamshire Scouts said scouting provided opportunities to participate in new activities for the first time.

He said: “It might be a Beaver Scout on a sleepover, a Cub Scout getting to the top of a climbing tower or an Explorer Scout attending a World Scout Jamboree with 30,000 people from nearly every country in the world.”

Cub scouts across the county have also been getting involved in a new initiative which is enlisting scouts to volunteer for some of the UK’s biggest charities. Issues include improving the lives of those affected by dementia and the mental wellbeing and resilience of families, and making sure everyone everywhere has access to clean water and sanitation.