David Attenborough filmography

Main article: David Attenborough

The following is a chronological list of television series and individual programmes where David Attenborough is credited as writer, presenter, narrator or producer. In a career spanning seven decades, Attenborough's name has become synonymous with the natural history programmes produced by the BBC Natural History Unit.

1950s

Year Title Duration Subject Credit(s) DVD Release
1952 Coelacanth 10 min Attenborough's first programme for BBC, which discussed the rediscovery of the prehistoric Coelacanth Presenter No
1954 Zoo Quest 6x30min An animal-collecting expedition to Sierra Leone with London Zoo curator Jack Lester and cameraman Charles Lagus, in search of the elusive Picathartes gymnocephalus Writer, presenter, sound-recordist and producer No
1955 Zoo Quest to Guiana 6x30min For the second Zoo Quest expedition, Attenborough and Lagus introduced British television viewers to the natural history of South America Writer, presenter, sound-recordist and producer No
1956 Zoo Quest for a Dragon 6x30min This Zoo Quest series features the first known footage of the Komodo dragon Writer, presenter, sound-recordist and producer No
1957 Quest for the Paradise Birds 6x30min Attenborough's first trip to the island of New Guinea in an attempt to film the courtship displays of the native birds of paradise Writer, presenter, sound-recordist and producer No
1959 Zoo Quest in Paraguay 6x30min For the fifth Zoo Quest, Attenborough and Lagus returned to South America and visited the grasslands and wetlands of Paraguay Writer, presenter, sound-recordist and producer No

1960s

Year Title Duration Subject Credit(s) DVD Release
1960 The People of Paradise 6x30min A series on the anthropology and natural history of the South Pacific. Episode list: “The Land Divers of Pentecost”, “Cargo Cult", “The Fire Walkers of Fiji”, “Outer Islands of Fiji” Writer, presenter, sound-recordist and producer No
1961 Zoo Quest to Madagascar 6x30min An expedition to film and collect animals in Madagascar, including lemurs, at the time little-known in Europe Writer, presenter, sound-recordist and producer No
1961 Japan A series on Japan its people and culture Writer, presenter, and producer No
1963 Attenborough and Animals 10x25min Attenborough's first series for children, in which different species were compared Presenter No
1963 Quest Under Capricorn 6x30min The final Zoo Quest series, filmed in the Northern Territory of Australia, was also Attenborough's final natural history series before moving into BBC management. Episode list: “The Desert Gods”, “Hermits of Borolloola”, “The Artists of Arnhem Land”, “Bush Walkabout”, “The First Australians"; Buffalo, Geese and Men”. Writer, presenter, sound-recordist and producer No
1965 Zambezi 3x50min During a break from studying for an anthropology degree, Attenborough filmed a journey down the Zambezi. Episode list: “Lord of the Land”, “The Ancient Highway”, “Livingstone's River” Writer and presenter No
1967 Life- East Africa 3 episodes Writer and presenter No
1969 The Miracle of Bali 3x50min Attenborough visited the Indonesian island of Bali to film the traditional music and culture. Episode list: “Midday Sun”, “Night”, “Recital of Music” Narrator and producer Yes

1970s

Year Title Duration Subject Credit(s) DVD Release
1973 Eastwards with Attenborough 6x30min Attenborough's first natural history series after resigning as BBC Controller took him to South East Asia Writer and presenter No
1973 The Life Game 1x90min A "Science Special" on genetics and evolution, written by Nigel Calder and produced by Adrian Malone Presenter No
1973 Royal Institution Christmas Lectures 6x60min Attenborough joined a list of distinguished names who have presented the annual science lectures aimed at children, on the subject of The Language of Animals Writer and presenter No
1975 The Explorers 10x50min A series of drama-documentaries recreating the voyages of famous explorers, at the time the most expensive series ever commissioned by the BBC. Episode titles: The Story of Roald Amundsen”, “The Story of Charles Montague Doughty”, “The Story of Henry Morton Stanley”, “The Story of Burke And Wills”, “The Story of Mary Kingsley”, “The Story of Jedediah Strong Smith”, “The Story of Alexander von Humboldt”, “The Story of Captain James Cook”, “The Story of Francisco Pizarro”, “The Story of Christopher Columbus” Introducer and narrator No
1975 Fabulous Animals Unknown A series for children's television which featured Attenborough reading from books on mythological creatures Presenter No
1975 The Tribal Eye 7x50min A series on tribal art, of which Attenborough is a keen collector. Episode list: “Behind the Mask”, “Crooked Beak of Heaven”, “Sweat of the Sun”, “Kingdom of Bronze”, “Woven Gardens”, “Man Blong”, “Across the Frontiers” Writer and presenter Yes
1976 The Discoverers 6x30min A series on pioneering explorers, discoverers and scientists in the field of natural history. Episode list: The Bone Hunters”, “The Bug Collectors”, “The Wanderer and the Woodsman”, “The Unknown Ocean”, “The Rare and the Curious” Narrator No
1977 Wildlife on One 253x30min This series of half-hour natural history programmes for BBC One ran annually until 2005 Narrator No
1979 Life on Earth 13x55min Covering the history of life on Earth, this acclaimed series was three years in the making and notable for its groundbreaking footage. Episode list: “The Infinite Variety”, “Building Bodies”, “The First Forests”, “The Swarming Hordes”, “Conquest of the Waters”, “Invasion of the Land”, “Victors of the Dry Land”, “Lords of the Air"”, “The Rise of the Mammals”, “Theme and Variations”, “The Hunters and Hunted”, “Life in the Trees” Writer and presenter Yes

1980s

Year Title Duration Subject Credit(s) DVD Release
1980 The Spirit of Asia 8x60min The cultures and religions of the people of Asia Narrator No
1981 The Ark in South Kensington 1 episode A one-off programme to celebrate the centenary of the Natural History Museum in London Presenter No
1984 The Living Planet 12x55min The follow-up to Life on Earth was another ambitious global series looking at the variety of habitats on the planet. Episode list: “The Building of the World”, “The Frozen World”, “The Northern Forests”, “Jungles";Seas of Grass”, “The Baking Deserts”, “The Sky Above”, “Sweet Fresh Water”, “The Margins of Land”, “Worlds Apart”, “The Open Ocean”, “New Worlds” Writer and presenter Yes
1985 The Million Pound Bird Book 1x60min Attenborough presents a programme on the American naturalist John James Audubon, whose book of life-size bird paintings had recently fetched £1 million at auction Writer and presenter No
1987 The First Eden 4x60min A series on the Mediterranean, examining the natural history of the region and the impact that successive human civilisations have had on the environment- Episode list: “The Making of the Garden”, “Gods Enslaved”, “The Wastes of War”, “Strangers in the Garden”. Writer and presenter Yes
1989 Lost Worlds, Vanished Lives 4x40min A series on fossils, a passion that Attenborough has had since childhood. Episode list: “Rare Glimpses”, “Dinosaur”, “Putting Flesh on Bone”, “Magic in the Rock” Writer and presenter Yes

1990s

Year Title Duration Subject Credit(s) DVD Release
1990 The Trials of Life 12x50min The final part of the original Trilogy of Life deals with the animal behaviour, with each episode focusing on a particular stage of animals' lives. Episode list: “Arriving”, “Growing Up”, “Finding Food”, “Hunting and Escaping”, “Finding the Way”, “Home Making”, “Living Together”, “Fighting”, “Friends and Rivals”, “Talking to Strangers”, “Courting”, “Continue the Line”. Writer and presenter Yes
1993 Q.E.D. "Gallop to Freedom" 1x45min Attenborough talks about release of Prezewalski horses into wilderness of central France Narrator No
1993 Life in the Freezer 6x30min A collaboration with Alastair Fothergill, this was the first series devoted to the natural history of Antarctica. Episode list: “The Bountiful Sea”, “The Ice Retreats”, “The Race to Breed”, “The Door Closes”, “The Big Freeze”, “Footsteps in the Snow”. Writer and presenter Yes
1994 Heart of a Nomad 1x60min Attenborough interviews the British explorer and writer Wilfred Thesiger for a Channel 4 documentary Presenter No
1995 The Private Life of Plants 6x50min In the first of his more specialised Life series, Attenborough brought the world of plants to life using innovations such as timelapse photography. Episode list: “Travelling”, “Growing”, “Flowering”, “The Social Struggle”, “Living Together”, “Surviving”. Writer and presenter Yes
1996 Winners and Losers 2x45min A look at how the subjects of early wildlife filmmaker Eugene Schumacher's 1960s documentary The Rare Ones have fared in the intervening years Narrator No
1996 Attenborough in Paradise and Other Personal Voyages Various Collection of seven documentaries recorded between 1971-2004. Episode list: “A Blank on the Map” (1971); “Attenborough in Paradise” (1996), “The Lost Gods of Easter Island” (2000), “Bowerbirds: The Art of Seduction” (2000), “The Song of the Earth” (2000), “Life on Air: David Attenborough’s 50 Years in Television” (2002), “The Amber Time Machine” (2004) Writer and presenter Yes
1998 The Life of Birds 10x50min For this series, infrared cameras were employed for the first time to film nocturnal birds such as kiwis and shearwaters. Episode list: “To Fly or Not to Fly”, “Mastery of Flight”, “Insatiable Appetite”, “Meat Eaters”, “Fishing for a Living”, “Signals and Songs”, “Finding Partners”, “Demands of the Egg”, “Problems of Parenthood”, “Limits of Endurance” Writer and presenter Yes
1998 The Origin of Species: An Illustrated Guide 1x30min Broadcast as part of a BBC season on evolution, this programme used library footage to help explain Charles Darwin's theory Narrator No
1999 Sharks - The Truth 1x50min A programme which seeks to dispel some of the received wisdom surrounding shark behaviour, broadcast as part of BBC One's Shark Summer season Narrator No
1999 They Said It Couldn't Be Done 7x60min On the eve of the millennium, Attenborough interviews a series of leading wildlife film-makers in front of an audience at the Royal Geographical Society to discover the secrets behind some of their most famous programmes Presenter No

2000s

Year Title Duration Subject Credit(s) DVD Release
2000 State of the Planet 3x50min Attenborough's first overtly environmental series examines the detrimental impact that modern man is having on the natural world. Episode list: “Is there a Crisis?”, “Why is there a Crisis?”, “The Future of Life”. Writer and presenter Yes
2000 Living with Dinosaurs 1x50min A profile of crocodiles, turtles and other modern reptiles whose ancestry can be traced back to the dinosaurs Narrator No
2000 The Greatest Wildlife Show on Earth 1x50min A Christmas special in which Attenborough travels to some of the world's wildlife hotspots to view spectacular natural events Presenter No
2001 Dingoes: Outlaws of the Outback 1x30min A short documentary about the Dingo, a free-ranging dog found mainly in Australia, produced by Holly Spearing. A BBC/Animal Planet co-production. Narrator Yes
2001 The Blue Planet 8x50min A landmark series on the natural history of the world's oceans, executive-produced by Alastair Fothergill. Narrator Yes
2002 The Life of Mammals 10x50min To follow up The Life of Birds, Attenborough turned his attention to the mammals, the most successful group of modern animals. Episode list: “A Winning Design”, “Insect Hunters”, “Plant Predators”, “Chisellers”, “Meat Eaters”, “Opportunists”, “Return to the Water”, “Life in the Tree”, “Social Climbers”, “Food for Thought”. Writer and presenter Yes
2002 Great Natural Wonders of the World 1x60min A sequel to The Greatest Wildlife Show on Earth, this programme featured natural wonders such as the Grand Canyon and was again screened at Christmas time Presenter No
2004 Satoyama: Japan's Secret Water Garden 2x52min Documentary about how the local residents of a village in 'Satoyama' live in harmony with nature. Narrator No
2005 Animal Crime Scene 5x60min A series which combined the traditional wildlife documentary format with that of a crime drama. Episode list: “Outback Assasin”, “Ocean Assasin";Arctic Assasin”, “Amazon Assasin” Narrator No
2005 Life in the Undergrowth 5x50min Developments in macro and close-up film technology enabled the world of invertebrates to be brought to the screen for the first time. Episode list: “Invasion of the Land”, “Taking to the Air”, “The Silk Spinners”, “Intimate Relations”, “Supersocieties”. Writer and Presenter Yes
2006 Planet Earth 11x50min Billed as "the ultimate portrait of our planet" by the BBC, this is the most expensive documentary series ever made- Episode list: “From Pole to Pole”, “Mountains”, “Fresh Water”, “Caves”, “Deserts”, “Ice Worlds”, “Great Plains”, “Jungles”, “Shallow Seas”, “Seasonal Forests”, “Deep Oceans". Narrator Yes
2006 The Truth about Climate Change 2x60min Attenborough is convinced by the evidence for man-made global warming, and uses archive footage from his previous series along with contemporary film to show how climate change is affecting the world Writer and presenter Yes
2006 Gorillas Revisited 1x60min The story of Rwanda's mountain gorillas reunites Attenborough with the crew who filmed his famous encounter in Life on Earth Presenter No
2007 Climate Change: Britain Under Threat 1x60min Following his recent documentary on the global issue of climate change, Attenborough fronted this programme on the implications for Britain Presenter No
2007 Tom Harrisson: The Barefoot Anthropologist 1x60min Part of a season on anthropologists screened on BBC Four, this programme profiled Tom Harrisson, famous for discovering early human remains in Borneo Presenter No
2007 Attenborough Explores... Our Fragile World 1x60min Broadcast on digital channel UKTV Documentary, this specially commissioned programme saw Attenborough again tackle the global environmental crisis Writer and presenter No
2008 Life in Cold Blood 5x50min Attenborough concluded his globetrotting documentaries with the final part of the specialised Life series, featuring reptiles and amphibians. Episode list: “The Cold Blooded Truth”, “Land Invaders”, “Dragons of the Dry”, “Sophisticated Serpents”, “Armored Giants”. Writer and Presenter Yes
2008 Humpbacks: From Fire to Ice 1x50min A documentary made for Australian television on the humpback whale Narrator No
2008 Tiger: Spy in the Jungle 3x60min David Attenborough narrates the lives of four growing tiger cubs using footage collected by hidden-camera-carrying elephants Writer and presenter Yes
2009 Charles Darwin and the Tree of Life 1x60min Attenborough presents a personal study of the theory of evolution Writer and presenter Yes
2009 Nature's Great Events 6x50min The film techniques of Planet Earth are deployed to dramatise some of the greatest annual wildlife events on the planet. Episode list: “The Great Melt”, “The Great Salmon Run”, “The Great Migration”, “The Great Tide”, “The Great Flood”, “The Great Feast”. Narrator Yes
2009 Uncovering Our Earliest Ancestor: The Link 1x60min A special documentary to coincide with the announcement of a 47 million-year-old primate fossil Writer and narrator Yes
2009 Life 10x50min A landmark series documenting some of the more unusual survival strategies that animals and plants around the globe have evolved. Episode list: “Challenges of Life”, “Reptiles and Amphibians”, “Mammals”, “Birds”, “Fish”, “Insects”, “Hunters and Hunted”, “Creatures of the Deep”, “Plants”, “Primates”. Writer and narrator Yes

2010s

Year Title Duration Subject Credit(s) DVD Release
2010 David Attenborough's First Life 2x60min BBC Two series on the earliest-known complex organisms, referencing the latest fossil evidence. Episode list: “Arrival”, “Conquest”. Writer and presenter Yes
2010 David Attenborough's Death of Oceans 1x60min Attenborough warns that with Earth’s population is approaching seven billion, the drain on the denizens of the world’s oceans is becoming insupportable, many aquatic species are hurtling towards extinction, and at this rate the international commercial fishing industry will collapse by 2050. Writer and presenter Yes
2010 Flying Monsters 3D 1x70min Attenborough's first collaboration with Sky, a 3D film about pterosaurs Writer and presenter Yes
2011 Madagascar 3x60min The natural history of Madagascar Episode list: Island of Marvels; Lost Worlds; Land of Heat and Dust Narrator Yes
2011 Attenborough and the Giant Egg 1x60min The story of Aepyornis and its implications for the modern-day conservation efforts Writer and presenter Yes
2011 Desert Seas 1x60min Wildlife filmmakers are given unprecedented access to the coastal seas off Saudi Arabia Narrator No
2011 Frozen Planet 7x60min The natural history of the polar regions. Episode list: “To the Ends of Earth”, “Spring”, “Summer”, “Autumn”, “Winter”, “The Last Frontier”, “On Thin Ice”, “The Epic Journey”. Narrator/presenter Yes
2011 The Bachelor King 3D 1x75min Sky 3D film charting the lives of king penguins on South Georgia Writer and narrator Yes
2012 Secrets of Wild India 3x60min Indian wildlife series, broadcast on Nat Geo Wild. Episode list: “Desert Lion”, “Elephant Kingdom”, “Tiger Jungles”. Narrator No
2012 Superfish: Bluefin Tuna 1x60min National Geographic documentary following cameraman Rick Rosenthal's attempts to film bluefin tuna in the wild Narrator No
2012 Kingdom of Plants 3D 3x60min Sky 3D series filmed at the Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew. In this sensational series, David Attenborough uses the latest time-lapse and macro photography filming to reveal a wholly unseen dimension in the lives of plants, from the most bizarre to the most beautiful. David traces plants from their beginnings on land to their vital place in nature today, exposing new revelations along the way. Episode list: “Life in the Wet Zone”, “Solving the Secrets”, “Survival”. Writer and presenter Yes
2012 Attenborough's Ark: A Natural World Special 1x60min David Attenborough picks his top ten endangered animals that he thinks should be saved from extinction. Writer and presenter No
2012 Attenborough: 60 Years in the Wild 3x60min Attenborough looks back at the unparalleled changes in natural history that he has witnessed during his 60-year career. Broadcast in the US as Attenborough's Life Stories. Episode list: “Life on Camera”, “Understanding the Natural World”, “Our Fragile Planet”. Writer and presenter Yes
2012 Hummingbirds: Jewelled Messengers 1x45min Documentary on hummingbirds, the ultimate creatures of the air. Presenter No
2013 Plants Behaving Badly 2x45min 2-part special on plants. Episode list: “Murder and Mayhem”, “Sex and Lies”. Presenter No
2013 Galapagos 3D 3x45min Sky 3D series in which Attenborough explores the history of the Galapagos Islands two hundred years after Charles Darwin set foot on the shores of this wild and mysterious archipelago. Journey with Attenborough to explore how life on the islands has continued to evolve in biological isolation, and how the ever-changing volcanic landscape has given birth to species and sub-species that exist nowhere else in the world. Episode list: “Origin”, “Adaptation”, “Evolution”. Presenter Yes
2013 David Attenborough's Natural Curiosities: Series 1 5x30min David Attenborough has spent a lifetime documenting the natural world. He's met a great number of nature's most extraordinary creatures yet there are certain stories of bewildering animals that continue to intrigue him – from the peculiar patterns of a zebra's stripes to the evolutionary quirk of the egg-laying platypus. Each episode of this captivating five-part series explores the stories behind two natural curiosities, linked together by a common theme. Filmed on location in the UK, David's gift for storytelling combined with wonderful images of the animal subjects creates a documentary series unlike any other he has made before. Episode list: “Stretched To The Limit”, “A Curious Hoax?”, “Young Wrinklies”, “A Curious Twist”, “Seeing the Pattern”. Writer and presenter Yes
2013 Africa 6x60min BBC series in which Attenborough explores life in Africa.This is the world’s wildest continent as you’ve never seen it before – an intense sensory adventure from the Atlas Mountains, through the Savannah lands to the Cape of Good Hope and from the Roof of Africa and the Kalahari to where the dark rainforests of the Congo meet the Atlantic Ocean. Each episode shifting the focus onto a different region as it contrasts the epic power of the landscape with the dramatic struggles of individual creatures living there. The series has been four years in production, involving 79 filming expeditions in 27 different countries with a total of 1,600 days spent on location – and 6,500 malaria tablets for crew members. Each episode looks to a different region, with the first being called Kalahari – focusing on the wildlife of two deserts in Africa’s southwest corner. The second episode, Savannah, looks at the unique and constantly changing landscape of east Africa, featuring crocodiles catching pelicans in Mozambique’s Gorongosa National Park. Gorongosa, known as ‘Africa’s lost Eden’, is featured again in the final hour of the series, The Future of Africa, and considered a beacon of hope by a pensive Attenborough, musing over the threats to Africa’s wild future. Episode list: “Kalahari"; Savannah"; Congo”, “Cape”, “Sahara”, “The Future”, “The Greatest Show on Earth”. Narrator/presenter Yes
2013 Micro Monsters 3D 6x60min Sky 3D series looking at Insects. David Attenborough takes you on an amazing journey into the hidden world of bugs. Micro Monsters uses pioneering macroscopic camera techniques to get closer than ever to the fascinating, beautiful, scary and downright alien world of arthropods – spiders, scorpions and insects. David reveals how and why bugs became the most successful group of animals on the planet and shows the tactics these amazing creatures use to survive and thrive. Episode list: “Conflict”, “Predator”, “Courtship”, “Reproduction”, “Family”, “Colony”. Narrator/presenter Yes
2013 David Attenborough's Rise of Animals: Triumph of the Vertebrates 2x60min From the triple Emmy-winning producers of David Attenborough’s First Life comes the sensational follow up David Attenborough’s Rise of Animals. This landmark series charts the complex and fascinating evolutionary path that connects us, and all other vertebrates living on Earth today, to the very first life forms with a backbone. It is a remarkable journey that spans the ages, and reaches to the far corners of the modern world. Episode list: “From the Seas to the Skies”, “Dawn of the Mammals”. Writer and presenter Yes
2014 David Attenborough's Natural Curiosities: Series 2 10x30min Attenborough profiles the curious animals that continue to baffle and fascinate him. Series 1 was broadcast on Eden in 2013 and Series 2 on Watch in 2014. Episode list Season 2: The 10-part series follows Sir David as he travels across the UK to explore animal oddities that other TV programmes simply do not cover. Each episode features two different animals with curiously distinctive evolutionary quirks, linked together by a common theme. Series two features creatures that have attracted the attention of great scientists and explorers. Episode list: 1) Virgin Births – Naturalist David Attenborough shines the spotlight on some of nature's evolutionary anomalies and how these curious animals continue to baffle and fascinate. In this edition, he examines the unusual ways in which Komodo dragons and aphids reproduce. 2) Armoured Animals – Sir David Attenborough attempts to get in behind the armour of two incredible animals; rhinos and hedgehogs. 3) Life in the Dark – David Attenborough looks at the eyes of squid and owls and how they've managed to maximise their vision. 4) Curious Imposters – Cuckoos and death's head hawkmoths may just be some of the most cunning creatures on our planet. 5) Bad Reputations – In Bad Reputations, we'll see how the gorilla and the vampire bat both gained frightening reputations when first discovered by explorers and scientists. 6) Shocking Senses – Plants and animals have some curious super senses that we find hard to fathom in our world of only five senses. 7) Life on Ice – Emperor penguins and wood frogs have remarkable adaptations to survive the most challenging of conditions. 8) Spinners and Weavers – Nature's inventiveness is expertly highlighted in the artistry of weaving and the unique properties of silk. 9) Strange Parents – David Attenborough reveals why male seahorses give birth, and looks at how hyena packs are dominated by the female members. 10) Magical Appearances – "Magical Appearances" explores how swallows magically appear each spring and asks how did complex and beautiful insects like butterflies suddenly arrive in the summer.The discovery of the swallow's epic migration and the revelation that butterflies could metamorphose into totally different looking adults were scientific stories both cloaked in mystery and controversy. Writer and presenter Yes
2014 David Attenborough's Natural History Museum Alive 1x60min Sky 3D one-off special. Attenborough looks at some of the more intriguing extinct specimens at the Natural History Museum in London by bringing them to life. He comes face to face with extinct creatures, as they magically come alive in front of his eyes for one night only. He interacts with dinosaurs, sabre toothed tigers, giant snakes, ancient marine animals and even the famous dodo bird, all revived through stunning photo-realistic CGI. Writer and presenter Yes
2014 Life Story 6x60min Sir David Attenborough takes us on the journey through life, a story that unites each of us with every animal on the planet, because we all set out on this journey from the moment we are born. For animals there is just one goal in life – to continue their bloodline in the form of offspring. They are an animal’s legacy for the future. The story of their journey is about hope, facing danger, actions of breath-taking boldness, extraordinary behaviours and, ultimately, success against the odds. This series follows that journey through its six crucial stages. Episode list: “Steps”, “Growing Up”, “Home”, “Power”, “Courtship”, “Parenthood". Narrator/presenter Yes
2015 David Attenborough's Conquest of the Skies 3D 3x60min Sky 3D series telling the story of nature's greatest aeronauts and the intricate engineering that has allowed them to conquer the skies. Through the combination of new 3D macroscopic and high-speed filming techniques, David Attenborough examines the evolutionary story from the very first insects to the incredible array of creatures which rule the skies today. From the steaming rainforests of Borneo to the frozen fossil beds of China, the arid canyons of Spain to the cloud forests of Ecuador, this series spans the globe to explore the story of how the flying animals came to conquer the skies. In Conquest of the Skies, Attenborough travels back in time to unravel the astonishing 300-million-year story of how these animals first appeared, and then evolved into the huge variety of aeronauts that fill our skies today. Episode list: “The First to Fly”, “Rivals”, “Triumph”. Writer and presenter Yes
2015 Attenborough's Paradise Birds 1x60min David Attenborough learns about the remarkable story of how 'birds from paradise' have captivated explorers, naturalists, artists, filmmakers and royalty throughout the years. Writer and presenter TBA
2015 David Attenborough's Natural Curiosities: Series 3 6x30min Sir David Attenborough returns to UKTV with an all-new and exclusive third series of the acclaimed Natural Curiosities.

The natural world is full of extraordinary animals with amazing life histories. Some were surrounded by myth and misunderstandings for a very long time; others have only recently revealed their secrets. David Attenborough once again reveals another group of creatures that have baffled or fascinated us for centuries. In the new series Sir David examines the wonderful creatures that are famous for what seem impossible feats, such as the super fast cheetahs, jumping fleas, clever crows, the enduring hump of the camel, regenerating salamanders and more. You'll even find that some of these extraordinary creatures are linked in very strange ways! Uncovering the truth which is often stranger than fiction and Sir David's new series of Natural Curiosities will leave you astonished.

Episode list: “Impossible Feats”, “Curious Minds”, “Expandable Bodies”, “Curious Feeders”, “Curious Cures”, “Remarkable Regeneration”.

Writer and presenter TBA

Other programmes

In addition to writing, presenting, narrating and producing his own documentaries, David Attenborough has made regular appearances as an on-screen and off-screen participant in other film-makers' documentaries and on other numerous television programmes. The following list includes some of his more notable appearances plus long-running shows:

Year Title Duration Subject Credit(s) DVD Release
1955 The Trans-Antarctic Expedition 1955-58 6x30min An occasional series following the progress of Vivian Fuchs and his Commonwealth expedition's successful overland crossing of Antarctica Presenter and producer No
1961 Adventure Over 150 episodes The BBC's flagship travel series from the early 1960s, for which Attenborough is credited as narrator or producer of over 30 programmes Narrator and producer No
1973 Natural Break 15x10min A series of short programmes based on archive footage, produced by John Sparks Presenter No
1982 Omnibus 1 episode Series 16, Episode 6. Attenborough interviews Lucie Rie about her studio pottery Presenter No
1983 Natural World Unknown BBC Two series still on air, for which Attenborough has narrated or presented 60 episodes Occasional narrator, writer or presenter No
1993 Wildlife 100 Unknown To mark the 100th episode of Wildlife on One, Attenborough selected his favourite episodes from past series for this special Narrator No
1995 BBC Wildlife Specials 22x50min A series of BBC nature documentaries Narrator Yes
1996 Q.E.D. "The Secret Life of Seahorses" 1x45min Attenborough lends his voice to an episode of BBC One's regular half-hour science series, featuring seahorses Narrator No
2002 Attenborough the Controller Unknown — Archive footage and interviewee No
2002 Attenborough in Conversation with Mark Lawson Unknown — Interviewee No
2003 Great Wildlife Moments Unknown — Archive footage Yes
2006 Favourite Attenborough Moments Unknown — Archive footage No
2006 Planet Earth: The Future Unknown — Interviewee Yes
2007 Sharing Planet Earth Unknown — Presenter No
2009 Horizon Unknown "How Many People Can Live on Planet Earth?" Investigation into whether the world is heading for a population crisis. "The Death of the Oceans?" Investigation into whether it is too late to save their remarkable biodiversity. Presenter No
2010 Genius of Britain 5x60min A Channel 4 series celebrating the achievements of British scientists. Attenborough contributed pieces on Christopher Wren and Joseph Banks Guest presenter Yes
2010 Attenborough's Journey 1x60min Attenborough tells anecdotes from his broadcasting career as the cameras follow him filming First Life Presenter Yes
2013 When Björk Met Attenborough 1x60min Attenborough collaborates with Björk on this Channel 4 documentary which looks at music in the natural world Co-presenter Yes

Sources

External links

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