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Natural World

  • TV-PG
  • 1983–2020
  • 39 seasons
  • Documentary
  • 7.4

Natural World is a nature documentary television series broadcast annually on BBC Two and regarded by the BBC as its flagship natural history brand. It is currently the longest-running series in its genre on British television, with more than 400 episodes broadcast since its inception in 1983. Natural World is produced by the BBC Natural History Unit in Bristol, but individual programmes can be in-house productions, collaborative productions with other broadcasters or films made and distributed by independent production companies and purchased by the BBC. Natural World programmes are often broadcast as PBS Nature episodes in the USA. Since 2008, most Natural World programmes have been shot and broadcast in high definition.

Episodes

12 episodes · 2 still to air
  1. 1On the 8th Day

    Sep 24, 1984

    The effect on the natural world of a nuclear war, reporting on reseacrh in America, Russia and Britain which suggests that for thirty years the world has had the capacity to cause `a nuclear winter'. A Natural World special transmitted in 1984.

  2. 2Vanishing Earth - Soil

    Aug 4, 1986

    Filmed in Nepal, Ethiopia and China investigates how the misuse of land and not drought lies at the root of famines in Ethiopia and elsewhere. The programme reveals how government policy and international trade conspire to cause starvation.

  3. 3Vanishing Earth - Water

    Aug 5, 1986

    Burkino Faso, the edge of the Sahel in west Africa, is one of the poorest countries in the world. It has been gripped by drought since 1968, yet simple techniques are helping to conserve their rainfall. In the western USA, massive and expensive irrigation schemes are bringing a harvest of subsidised yet unsaleable crops.

  4. 4Animals: The Inside Story - Fight For Life

    Jan 1, 2002

  5. 5Animals: The Inside Story - New Lives

    Jan 1, 2002

    In this fascinating new three-part documentary, viewers can look inside animals to see what makes them tick. Fusing exciting computer animation, thermal imaging and compelling science, Animals: The Inside Story puts creatures under the microscope to expose the hidden mechanisms that drive their actions. Part 2, New Lives, unravels the mysteries of animal reproduction from courtship and mating through to the creation of new life. The virtual world of the elephant womb allows us to see a baby elephant develop over 22 months. Emperor penguins produce eggs in the harshest climate on earth. Go inside this life support capsule and see how the shell is made and the chick grows. Metamorphosis is one of nature's miracles. From the inside, watch a total transformation as a land-based caterpillar becomes a graceful aerial athlete.

  6. 6Animals: The Inside Story - Extreme Lives

    Jan 1, 2002

    Extreme Lives, the final episode of Animals: The Inside Story, explores the limits of animal endurance. A polar bear uses its thick fur coat to turn light into heat and survive the Arctic cold. Hibernation is one way to endure winter but the rare Vancouver Island Marmot is on a knife-edge between life and death. Wood frogs enter a state of suspended animation, freezing 65% of their bodies to stay alive. The camel survives extremes of desert heat with amazing blood cells and a nose designed to conserve every drop of moisture.

  7. 7Symphony

    Jan 1, 2005

  8. 8Echo of the Elephants: Africa's Forgotten Elephants

    Apr 6, 1997

  9. 9100 Years of Wildlife Films - Cinema

    Aug 25, 2007

  10. 10100 Years of Wildlife Films - Television

    Date to be announced

  11. 11Making of Empire of the Ants

    Date to be announced

  12. 12Queen of the Savannah

    Mar 29, 2012

Where to watch Natural World

Stream

Included with a subscription

Availability from JustWatch, via TMDB. Full listing for United States

Series cast

David AttenboroughNarrator (voice)61 episodes
Barry PaineSelf - Narrator21 episodes
Juliet StevensonNarrator (voice)14 episodes
Andrew SachsSelf - Narrator (voice)13 episodes
John HannahNarrator (voice)12 episodes
John ShrapnelNarrator10 episodes
Ian HolmNarrator7 episodes
Tim Pigott-SmithNarrator6 episodes
Colin Stafford-JohnsonPresenter6 episodes
Jeremy NorthamNarrator (voice)5 episodes
Paul McGannNarrator5 episodes
Simon KingPresenter4 episodes
Sean Pertwee4 episodes
Ian McShaneNarrator3 episodes
Stephen FryNarrator3 episodes
Martyn ColbeckParticipant3 episodes
Anthony Valentine3 episodes
Cynthia MossNarrator3 episodes

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