Ted Ellis (Edward Augustine Ellis DSc FLS 1909-1986) the well-known writer and broadcaster died in 1986 after a lifetime devoted to natural history. Born in Guernsey of Norfolk parents who returned to Great Yarmouth in 1920, he was Keeper of Natural History at the Castle Museum, Norwich from 1928-1956. For forty years he lived with his family at Wheatfen Broad, Surlingham in a remote cottage amongst 130 acres of woodland and fen. He was one of the great characters of East Anglia. Although he was a naturalist with a national reputation and his research work was meticulous and highly respected by the academic world, he was a man who had the ability to communicate his enthusiasm to everyone.

Such a man deserves to be remembered and the Ted Ellis Trust was founded to do just that - by preserving Wheatfen. This is a strange primitive area recognised as a Site of Special Scientific Interest and is one of the last tidal marshes of the Yare Valley. The Trust wants to preserve its rich and fragile ecology, but above all, it wants to keep this land and its wildlife accessible for the enjoyment and education of children, students and everyone interested in Nature. That is what Ted would have wanted too.