Planet Earth

Synopsis

All 11 parts of David Attenborough’s television series exploring the evolution of the Earth and the life which it supports. DVD extras include Planet Earth Diaries - Making Of; Planet Earth: THe Future - 3-part documentary series.

Language

English

Country

Great Britain

Year of release

2006

Year of production

2006

Notes

The first 5 programmes were broadcast weekly on BBC1 beginning 5/3/2006 and the last 6 programmes (beginning with ICE WORLDS) weekly from 5/11/2006

Subjects

Biology; Geography

Keywords

ecology; natural history; wildlife

Credits

Director

Alastair Fothergill

Contributor

David Attenborough

Distribution Formats

Type

DVD

Format

Region 2 PAL

Price

£39.99

Availability

Sale

Duration/Size

650 minutes

Year

2006

Sections

Title

From Pole to Pole

Synopsis

This episode journeys across the planet, following the influence of the sun and discovering how its seasonal journey affects the lives of all who live on earth. As spring arrives in the Arctic, a mother polar bear emerges from her den with two tiny cubs. At the other end of the planet winter arrives and Emperor penguins are plunged into darkness for four months

Duration

60 mins

Title

Mountains

Synopsis

This edition looks at mountains, beginning with the birth of a mountain at one of the lowest places on Earth, and ending at the summit of Everest. Experience the full force of an avalanche in the Rockies, where grizzlies survive the harsh winters deep inside the dangerous slopes, and fly alongside demoiselle cranes as they attempt to cross the Himalayas

Duration

60 mins

Title

Fresh Water

Synopsis

This edition takes an epic journey following the descent of the planet’s mightiest rivers from their mountain sources to the sea. Breathtaking river scenery is revealed by a revolutionary helicopter camera mount - from the world’s highest and broadest waterfalls to the awe-inspiring spectacle of the 10,000 strong flocks of greater snow geese in flight

Duration

60 mins

Title

Caves

Synopsis

This edition is all about Earth’s final frontier - caves. Deer Cave in Borneo is a daytime retreat for five million bats, and their droppings support an entire community of creatures. Troglodytes like the Texas cave salamander and Thailand’s cave angel have neither eyes nor pigment, and the entire populations of both are found in just a couple of caves

Duration

60 mins

Title

Deserts

Synopsis

This edition looks at deserts, which cover a third of the Earth’s land surface. From space they appear lifeless but a closer look reveals a different picture, from Mongolia’s Gobi desert where wild Bactrian camels have to eat snow in lieu of water, to the Atacama in Chile where guanacos survive by licking the dew off cactus spines

Duration

60 mins

Title

Ice Worlds

Synopsis

Although the frozen worlds of the Arctic and Antarctic experience the greatest seasonal extremes, it is the advance and retreat of the ice that is the real challenge to life. As the sea freezes, Antarctica doubles in size and all animals except for the Emperor Penguin flee. In the Arctic, the polar bear’s ice world literally melts beneath its feet, forcing it to swim vast distances and take on one of the deadliest adversaries on the planet

Duration

60 mins

Title

Great Plains

Synopsis

In this programme David Attenborough looks at the world’s great plains - immense wilderness areas that seem empty, but which support the greatest gatherings of wildlife on earth, including two million gazelles on the Mongolian steppes, three million caribou in North America and 1.5 million wildebeest in East Africa. At the heart of all this is single living thing - grass - able to survive in the baking savannahs of Africa, the frozen tundra of the Arctic and the floodplains of India

Duration

60 mins

Title

Jungles

Synopsis

Tropical rainforests cover just three per cent of our planet yet are home to a staggering 50 per cent of the world’s species. They are the richest environments on earth but also the most competitive. Travelling through this enchanted world we uncover the amazing strategies the inhabitants adopt in order to survive. Look out for the flying frog mating orgy and the sinister bodysnatching Cordyceps fungi that eat their victims alive

Duration

60 mins

Title

Shallow Seas

Synopsis

David Attenborough narrates the epic journey of a humpback whale and calf as they cross the richest seas that fringe our coasts. From tropical paradises, where the newborn calf takes his first faltering breaths, to the storm-ravaged icy polar seas, the whales’ great feeding grounds, we reveal seas of great contrast and surprise

Duration

60 mins

Title

Seasonal Forests

Synopsis

This programme looks at the greatest woodlands on earth, from the evergreen forests of the frozen north to the deciduous dry forests of the equator. The Taiga forest is a silent world of stunted conifers cloaked in snow and ice; by contrast the broadleaf forests of North America and Europe bustle with life, while the baobab forests of Madagascar are the strangest of all, with bizarre upside down trees

Duration

60 mins

Title

Ocean Deep

Duration

60 mins

Production Company

Name

BBC Television

Distributor

Name

2 Entertain Video

Email

DVDenquiryline@bbc.com

Web

http://www.2entertainvideo.co.uk/ External site opens in new window

Phone

020 7612 3000

Fax

020 7612 3003

Address

BBC Worldwide
33 Foley Street
London
W1W 7TL

Notes

Specialises in distributing archival film and television titles, predominantly licensed from the BBC (the principal shareholder is BBC Worldwide). Sale on DVD through retail outlets. As of 2016 2Entertain is being gradually wound down and its output reduced. If something is not available via them it is advisable to try the BBC Store at https://store.bbc.com/

 

Available from retail outlets