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Natural World

1983 Ended 60m episodes

7.4/10 32 votes

Documentary

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.

Cast:: David Attenborough, John Hannah, Juliet Stevenson
Language:: English
Country:: United Kingdom, France
Network:: BBC Two

Episode guide

Seasons

40 available

Specials

Episodes

Episode 1 selected

E01

Episode 1

On the 8th Day

1984-09-24

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.

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E02

Episode 2

Vanishing Earth - Soil

1986-08-04

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.

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E03

Episode 3

Vanishing Earth - Water

1986-08-05

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.

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E04

Episode 4

Animals: The Inside Story - Fight For Life

2002-01-01

Episode overview is not available yet.

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E05

Episode 5

Animals: The Inside Story - New Lives

2002-01-01

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.

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E06

Episode 6

Animals: The Inside Story - Extreme Lives

2002-01-01

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.

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E07

Episode 7