| Planet Earth | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Nature documentary |
| Narrated by |
|
| Composer | George Fenton |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of episodes | 11 |
| Production | |
| Producer | Alastair Fothergill |
| Cinematography | Doug Allan |
| Editors | Martin Elsbury Andy Netley |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Production company | BBC Natural History Unit |
| Original release | |
| Network | |
| Release | 5 March (2006-03-05) – 10 December 2006 (2006-12-10) |
| Related | |
Planet Earth is a 2006nature documentary televisionminiseries produced as a co-production between theBBC Natural History Unit,BBC Worldwide,Discovery Channel andNHK, in association withCBC. Five years in the making,Planet Earth was the most expensivenature documentary series ever commissioned by theBBC and also the first to be filmed inhigh definition.[1] The series received multiple awards, including fourEmmy Awards, aPeabody Award, and an award from theRoyal Television Society.
Planet Earth premiered on 5 March 2006 in the United Kingdom onBBC One, and by June 2007 had been shown in 130 countries. The original version was narrated byDavid Attenborough, whilst some international versions used alternative narrators.
The series has eleven episodes, each of which features a global overview of a differentbiome orhabitat onEarth. At the end of each fifty-minute episode, a ten-minute featurette takes a behind-the-scenes look at the challenges of filming the series.
Ten years later, BBC announced a six-part sequel had been commissioned, titledPlanet Earth II, the first television series produced by the BBC inultra-high-definition (4K). David Attenborough returned as narrator and presenter.[2][3] A second sequel,Planet Earth III, was announced and aired in 2023.[4]
In 2001 the BBC broadcastThe Blue Planet, a series on the natural history of the world's oceans. It received critical acclaim, high viewing figures, audience appreciation ratings, and many awards. It also became a hugely profitable global brand, eventually being sold to 150 countries worldwide. Feedback showed that audiences particularly liked the epic scale, the scenes of new and unusual species and the cinematic quality of the series. Programme commissioners were keen for a follow-up, soAlastair Fothergill decided that the Natural History Unit should repeat the formula with a series looking at the whole planet. The idea forPlanet Earth was born, and the series was commissioned byLorraine Heggessey, then Controller of BBC One, in January 2002.[5]
Afeature film version ofPlanet Earth was commissioned alongside the television series, repeating the successful model established withThe Blue Planet and its companion film,DeepBlue.Earth was released around the world from 2007 to 2009. There was also another accompanying television series,Planet Earth: The Future, which looked at theenvironmental problems facing some of thespecies and habitats featured in the main series in more detail.[citation needed]
Planet Earth premiered on BBC One on 5 March 2006 in the United Kingdom. On the same day or in the subsequent weeks or months, the series also began airing in several other countries.
International broadcasters carrying Planet Earth include Australia onABC andGEM, Canada onCBC andCTV, New Zealand onPrime, the Philippines onGMA Network andGMA News TV, the U.S. onDiscovery Channel,Velocity,Science,Animal Planet,Destination America andBBC America.
The episodes are each an hour in length, comprising the main programme and a 10-minute featurette calledPlanet Earth Diaries, which details the filming of a particular event. In the UK,Planet Earth was split into two parts, broadcast in spring and autumn 2006. The first five episodes premiered onBBC One at 9:00 pm on Sundays, beginning on 5 March 2006. The programmes were repeated the following Saturday in an early evening slot onBBC Two. Along with its 2005 dramatisation ofBleak House, theBBC selectedPlanet Earth for its trial ofhigh-definition broadcasts.[6] The opening episode was its first-ever scheduled programme in the format, shown 27 May 2006 on theBBC HD channel.
The first episode in the autumn series,Great Plains, received its first public showing at theEdinburgh International Television Festival on 26 August 2006. It was shown on a giant screen in Conference Square.[7] The remaining episodes were broadcast from 5 November 2006 in the same primetimeBBC One slot, following a further repeat run of the spring programmes onBBC Four. The autumn episodes were broadcast simultaneously onBBC HD and were repeated onBBC Four the following week.
Besides beingBBC One's featuredOne to Watch programme of the day,Planet Earth was heavily trailed on the BBC's television and radio channels both before and during its run. The music that was featured in theBBC trailers for the series is the track "Hoppípolla" from the albumTakk... byIcelandicpost-rock bandSigur Rós. Following the advertisements, interest was so widespread that the single was re-released.[8] In the United States, the series was promoted using "The Time Has Come" fromtrailer music company Epic Score,[9] composed by Gabriel Shadid and Tobias Marberger.[10] TheAustralian trailers initially usedJupiter: The Bringer of Jollity fromGustav Holst's orchestral suiteThe Planets, but later reverted to "Hoppípolla".
TheBBC pre-sold the series to several overseas broadcasters,[11] including theDiscovery Channel for the United States, theAustralian Broadcasting Corporation, theCanadian Broadcasting Corporation,China Central Television,WDR for Germany, Discovery Channel forIndia,Prime Television for New Zealand, and C1R for Russian broadcasts. The series was eventually sold to 130 countries.[12]
On 25 March 2007, the series began its run on American television on theDiscovery network, premiering on theDiscovery Channel andDiscovery HD Theater. There were a number of revisions to the original British programme. Actress and conservationistSigourney Weaver was brought in to replaceDavid Attenborough as narrator, as it was thought her familiarity to American audiences would attract more viewers. The Discovery programmes also used a slightly different script to the British original. The series was broadcast on Sundays in one 3-hour block followed by four 2-hour blocks. ThePlanet Earth Diaries segments were not shown immediately after each episode, but collectively inPlanet Earth: The Filmmakers' Story, a two-hour special which was broadcast after the series had finished its initial network run. Edited versions were later broadcast onThe Science Channel,Animal Planet, andPlanet Green.
In Canada, the series did not air on the Canadian Discovery Channel, as it is owned byCTV and theCanadian rights were exclusively sold to theCBC.[13]
"A hundred years ago, there were one and a half billion people on Earth. Now, over six billion crowd our fragile planet. But even so, there are still places barely touched by humanity. This series will take you to the last wildernesses and show you the planet and its wildlife as you have never seen them before."
— David Attenborough's opening narration
| No. | Title | Original air date | U.S. air date | UK viewers (millions) [14] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "From Pole to Pole" | 5 March 2006 (2006-03-05) | 25 March 2007 | 9.41 | |
The first episode illustrates a journey around the globe and reveals the effect of gradualclimatic change and seasonal transitionsen route. DuringAntarctica's winter,emperor penguins endure four months of darkness, with no food, in temperatures of −70 °C (−94 °F). Meanwhile, as spring arrives in theArctic,polar bear cubs take their first steps into a world of rapidly thawing ice. In northern Canada, 3 millioncaribou complete an overland migration of 3,200 kilometres (2,000 mi), longer than that of any animal, and are hunted by wolves during their journey. The forests of eastern Russia are home to theAmur leopard; with a population of just 40 individuals in the wild, it is now the world's rarest cat. This is primarily because of the destruction of its habitat, and Attenborough states that it "symbolizes the fragility of our natural heritage". However, in thetropics, the jungle that covers 3% of the planet's surface supports 50% of its species. Other species shown includeNew Guinea'sbirds of paradise,African hunting dogs in their efficient pursuit ofimpala,elephants in Africa migrating towards the waters of theOkavango Delta, a seasonal bloom of life in the otherwise aridKalahari Desert, and 300,000 migratingBaikal teal, containing the world's entire population of the species in one flock. The episode ends with Antarctica where the male Emperor penguins nurture their newly young chicks after four months of the Antarctic polar night. ThePlanet Earth Diaries segment,Eye in the Sky, shows how the wild dog hunt was filmed unobtrusively with the aid of theHeligimbal, a powerful,gyro-stabilised camera mounted beneath ahelicopter.[15] | |||||
| 2 | "Mountains" | 12 March 2006 (2006-03-12) | 25 March 2007 | 8.57 | |
 The second instalment focuses on themountains. All the main ranges are explored with extensiveaerial photography.Ethiopia'sErta Ale is thelongest continually eruptingvolcano—for over 100 years. On the nearby highlands ofSimien Mountains,geladas (the only primate whose diet is almost entirely grass) inhabit precipitous slopes nearly five kilometres (3 mi) up, in troops that are 800-strong: the most numerous of their kind. Alongside them live thecritically endangeredwalia ibex, the two species take turns to act as a lookout for predatoryEthiopian wolves. TheAndes have the most volatile weather andguanacos are shown enduring a flash blizzard, along with an exceptional group sighting of the normally solitarypuma. TheAlpine summits are alwayssnow-covered, apart from that of theMatterhorn, which is too sheer to allow it to settle.Grizzly bear cubs emerge from their den for the first time in theRockies, whileHimalayan inhabitants includeruttingmarkhor and the raresnow leopard. At the eastern end of the range, thegiant panda cannot hibernate due to its poor nutriment ofbamboo and one of them cradles its week-old cub. Also shown is the Earth's biggest mountainglacier—theBaltoro inPakistan, which is 70 kilometres (43 mi) long and visible from space. The episode ends with the flock ofDemoiselle cranes flying across the Himalayan mountain peak to avoid the hostile air currents and predatoryGolden eagles that threaten their migration. Planet Earth Diaries: Snow Leopard Quest explains how difficult it was to get close-up footage ofsnow leopards; it was a three-year process and is the world's first-ever video footage of snow leopards.[16] | |||||
| 3 | "Fresh Water" | 19 March 2006 (2006-03-19) | 15 April 2007 | 8.83 | |
Thefresh water programme describes the course taken byrivers and some of the species that take advantage of such a habitat. Only 3% of the world's water is fresh, yet all life on land ultimately depends on it. Its journey begins as a stream in the mountains, illustrated byVenezuela'sTepui, where there is a tropical downpour almost every day. It then travels hundreds of kilometers before formingrapids. With the aid of some expansive helicopter photography, one sequence demonstrates the vastness ofAngel Falls, the world's highest free-flowingwaterfall. Its waters drop unbroken for nearly 1,000 meters (3,000 feet) and are blown away as a mist before they reach the bottom. In Japan, the water is inhabited by the biggest amphibian, the two-meter longgiant salamander, while in the Northern Hemisphere,salmon undertake the largest freshwater migration, and are hunted en route by grizzly bears. The erosive nature of rivers is shown by theGrand Canyon, created over five million years by theColorado River. Also featured aresmooth coated otters repellingmugger crocodiles and the latter'sNile cousin ambushingwildebeest as they cross theMara River. East African Rift Valley holds three of the world's largest lakes:Malawi,Tanganyika, andVictoria. Lake Malawi contains 850 differentCichlids that originated from their same ancestors that were isolated thousands of years ago, along with nocturnal predatory dolphin fish. Deep in the dead zone of Malawi, swarms of fly midges emerge from larvae during the rainy season and begin their process of mating. In Lake Baikal of Eastern Siberia,Baikal seal and freshwater sponges thrive here despite the ice sheet that covers the lake. TheAmazon River, the biggest river in the world, flows from the Andes toward the Atlantic oceans carrying a billion tonnes of sediments. Its tributary,Rio Negro, contains a mixture of sediments and saltwater where it supportsbotos feeding habit. Between the border of Brazil and Argentina liesIguassu Falls, which is the widest waterfall ever known. InPantanal wetlands, 300 species of fish breed here, including theRed-bellied piranhas andDorados. Along with fish,Roseate spoonbills are numerous in thePantanal and are prey tospectacled caiman waiting for the chicks to fall from the tree. InBangladesh, theGanges andBrahmaputra join together to form the world'slargest river delta and create the largest mangrove forest known as theSundarbans. The mangroves ofIndonesia provide a home tocrab-eating macaques for their aquatic lifestyle. The programme ends in North America where 400,000 flocks ofsnow geese settle in the estuaries to rest and refuel on their long migrational journey. Planet Earth Diaries: Diving with Piranhas shows how a camera crew filmed a piranha feeding frenzy inBrazil—after a two-week search for the opportunity.[17] | |||||
| 4 | "Caves" | 26 March 2006 (2006-03-26) | 22 April 2007 | 8.98 | |
 This episode explores "Planet Earth's final frontier":caves. At a depth of 400 metres (1,300 ft), Mexico'sCave of Swallows is Earth's deepestpit cave freefall drop, allowing entry byBASE jumpers. Its volume could containNew York City'sEmpire State Building. In this episode divers explore the otherworldlycenotes of theYucatán Peninsula, appearing to be flying in water (because it is so clear), allowing viewers a glimpse of the hundreds of kilometers of caves that have already been mapped. TheWaitomo Caves with theArachnocampa luminosa is also shown. Also featured isBorneo'sDeer Cave andGomantong Cave. Inhabitants of the former include three millionwrinkle-lipped free-tailed bat, which have depositedguano on to an enormous mound. InGomantong Cave, guano is many metres high and is blanketed with hundreds of thousands ofcockroaches and other invertebrates. Also depicted are eyeless, subterranean creatures, such as theTexas blind salamander and (bizarrely) a species ofcrab.Carlsbad Caverns National Park is featured with its calcite formations. Mexico'sCueva de Villa Luz is also featured, with its flowing stream ofsulphuric acid andsnottite formations made of living bacteria. A fish species, the shortfin molly, has adapted to this habitat. The programme ends inNew Mexico'sLechuguilla Cave (discovered in 1986) where sulphuric acid has produced unusually ornate,gypsum crystal formations. Planet Earth Diaries: Into the Abyss reveals how a camera team spent a month among the cockroaches on the guano mound in Gomantong Cave and describes the logistics required to photograph Lechuguilla. Permission for the latter took two years and local authorities are unlikely to allow another visit.[18] | |||||
| 5 | "Deserts" | 2 April 2006 (2006-04-02) | 1 April 2007 | 9.23 | |
This instalment features the harsh environment that covers one-third of the land on Earth: thedeserts. Due toSiberian winds,Mongolia'sGobi Desert reaches extremes of temperature like no other, ranging from −40 °C to +50 °C (−40 °F to 122 °F). It is home to the rareWild Bactrian camel, which eats snow to maintain its fluid level and must limit itself to 10 liters (2.6 U.S. gal; 2.2 imp gal) a day if it is not to prove fatal.Africa'sSahara is the size of the United States, and just one of its severedust storms could cover the whole ofGreat Britain. While some creatures, such as thedromedary, take them in their stride, for others the only escape from such bombardments is to bury themselves in the sand. Few rocks can resist them either and the outcrops shown inEgypt'sWhite Desert are being inexorably eroded. The biggest dunes (300 m or 1,000 ft high) are found inNamibia, while other deserts featured areDeath Valley inCalifornia andNevada, theSonoran inArizona, the deserts ofUtah, all in the United States, theAtacama inChile, and areas of the Australian outback. Animals are shown searching for food and surviving in such an unforgiving habitat:African elephants that walk up to 80 kilometres (50 mi) per day to find food;red kangaroos (which moisten their forelegs with saliva to keep cool); nocturnalfennec foxes, duellingNubian ibex, acrobaticflat lizards feeding onblack flies, andlions (huntingoryx). The final sequence illustrates one of nature's most fearsome spectacles: a billion-strong plague ofdesert locusts, destroying all vegetation in its path. Planet Earth Diaries: Wild Camel Chase explains how the hunt for the elusive Bactrian camels necessitated a two-month trek in Mongolia.[19] | |||||
| 6 | "Ice Worlds" | 5 November 2006 (2006-11-05) | 1 April 2007 | 6.37 | |
 The sixth programme looks at the regions of theArctic andAntarctica. The latter contains 90% of the world's ice, and stays largely deserted until the spring, when visitors arrive to harvest its waters.Snow petrels take their place onnunataks and begin to court, but are preyed on bysouth polar skuas. During summer, a pod ofhumpback whales huntkrill by creating a spiralling net of bubbles. The onset of winter sees the journey ofemperor penguins to their breeding grounds, 160 kilometres (99 mi) inland. Their eggs transferred to the males for safekeeping, the females return to the ocean while their partners huddle into large groups to endure the extreme cold. At the northern end of the planet, Arctic residents includemusk oxen, who are hunted byArctic foxes andwolves. A femalepolar bear and her two cubs head off across the ice to look for food. As the sun melts the ice, a glimpse of the Earth's potential future reveals a male polar bear that is unable to find a firm footing anywhere and has to resort to swimming—which he cannot do indefinitely. His desperate need to eat brings him to a colony ofwalrus. Although he attacks repeatedly, the herd is successful in evading him by returning to the sea. Wounded and unable to feed, the bear will not survive. Meanwhile, back in Antarctica, the eggs of the emperor penguins finally hatch while two adult Polar bear cubs from Arctic travels onward as they wander across vast track of frozen ocean independently from their mother. Planet Earth Diaries: Alive in the Freezer tells of the battle with the elements to obtain the penguin footage and of unwelcome visits from polar bears.[20] | |||||
| 7 | "Great Plains" | 12 November 2006 (2006-11-12) | 8 April 2007 | 6.72 | |
This episode deals withsavanna,steppe,tundra,prairie, and looks at the importance and resilience ofgrasses in such treeless ecosystems. Their vast expanses contain the largest concentration of animal life. InOuter Mongolia, a herd ofMongolian gazelle flee abush fire and is forced to find new grazing, but grass self-repairs rapidly and soon reappears. Over Africa's savanna, a swarm of 1.5 billionred-billed queleas are caught on camera, the largest flock of birds ever depicted.[21] On the Arctic tundra during spring, millions ofmigratorysnow geese arrive to breed and their young are preyed on by Arctic foxes. Meanwhile,time-lapse photography depicts moving herds of caribou as a calf is brought down by a chasing wolf. On theNorth American prairie,bison engage in the ritual to establish the dominant males. InVeld ofSouth Africa, flowers began to openly bloom every summer allowingOstriches andspringboks to thrive before nightfall. TheTibetan Plateau is the highest of the plains and despite its relative lack of grass, animals do survive there, includingyak andwild ass. However, the area's most numerous resident is thepika, whose nemesis is theTibetan fox. In tropical India, the tall grasses hide some of the largest creatures,such asIndian Elephants andIndian rhinoceros, and also the smallest, such as thepygmy hog andLesser florican. The final sequence depictsAfrican bush elephants that are forced to share a waterhole with a pride of thirty lions. The insufficient water makes it an uneasy alliance and the latter gain the upper hand during the night when their hunger drives them to hunt and eventually kill one of the pachyderms. Planet Earth Diaries: Shot in the Dark explains how the lion hunt was filmed in darkness usinginfrared light.[22] | |||||
| 8 | "Jungles" | 19 November 2006 (2006-11-19) | 15 April 2007 | 7.04 | |
 This episode examinesjungles andtropical rainforests. These environments occupy only 3% of the land yet are home to over half of the world's species.New Guinea is inhabited by almost 40 kinds ofbirds of paradise, which avoid conflict with each other by living in different parts of the island. Some of their elaborate courtship displays are shown. Within the denseforest canopy,sunlight is prized, and the death of atree triggers a race by saplings to fill the vacant space.Figs are a widespread and popular food, and as many as 44 types ofbird andmonkey have been observed picking from a single tree. The sounds of the jungle throughout the day are explored, from the early morning calls ofsiamangs andorangutans to the nocturnal cacophony of courtingtree frogs. The importance offungi to theAmazon rainforest is illustrated by a sequence of them fruiting, including aparasite that infested insects, calledcordyceps. InBorneo, nocturnalcolugo is one of the rare species ever discovered and travels two miles while foraging for young leaves. The mutual benefits of the relationship between carnivorouspitcher plants and redcrab spiders is also discussed. In theCongo, roamingforest elephants are shown reaching a clearing to feed on essentialclay minerals within the mud. Finally,chimpanzees are one of the few jungle animals able to traverse both the forest floor and the canopy in search of food. InUganda, members of a 150-strong community of the primates mount a raid into neighbouring territory in order to gain control of it. Planet Earth Diaries: Trouble in Paradise looks at filming displaying birds of paradise, focusing mainly on the filming of thesix-plumed bird of paradise.[23] "Jungles" served as a major inspiration in developing the video gameThe Last of Us, which features a mutated strain of the cordyceps fungus infecting humans and almost destroying mankind. | |||||
| 9 | "Shallow Seas" | 26 November 2006 (2006-11-26) | 8 April 2007 | 7.32 | |
This programme is devoted to the shallow seas that fringe the world'scontinents. Although they constitute 8% of the oceans, they contain most marine life. Ashumpback whales return to breeding grounds in the tropics, a mother and her calf are followed. While the latter takes in up to 500 litres of milk a day, its parent will starve until it travels back to the poles to feed—and it must do this while it still has sufficient energy left for the journey. The coral reefs ofIndonesia are home to the biggest variety of ocean dwellers, including thePygmy seahorses, andfile clam. Other ocean dwellers such as banded seakraits, which ally themselves withgoatfish andtrevally in order to hunt. Beyond the coral stretches the world of shifting sands, ocean dwellers, such asGurnard,Jawfish,Green sea turtle, andWonderpus octopus, are forced to cope with their environment through crucial camouflage and foraging where they have nowhere else hide. InShark Bay ofWestern Australia,Dugongs forage across the largest aquatic grassland eating tons of seagrasses a day whilebottlenose dolphins perform their "hydroplane" in the shallowest waters to catch a meal. Meanwhile in the desert shores ofBahrain, 100,000Socotra cormorants rely onshamals that blow sand grains into the nearbyPersian Gulf, transforming it into a rich fishing ground. The appearance ofalgae in the spring starts a food chain that leads to an abundant harvest ofSalps,Krills, andcomb jellies. As shoals of migratory fish feasts on the krills,sea lions anddusky dolphins are among those taking advantage of it. Within the coastline ofCalifornia,Giant kelps fertilizes algaes making them the tallest kelps ever recorded which causes group ofSea urchins to infest them creating urchin barrens. Within the urchin barrens, group ofstarfishes,sand dollars, andbrittle stars scavenge across the barrens while facing against their fierce predator, theSunflower sea star. InSouthern Africa, aschokka squid are preyed on byshort-tail stingray andsand tiger shark, theCape fur seals that share the waters are hunted by the world's largest predatory fish—thegreat white shark. OnMarion Island in theIndian Ocean, a group ofking penguins must cross a beach occupied by neighboringsouthern elephant seals that are harmless to them and predatoryAntarctic fur seals that do not hesitate to attack them. In spring, The humpback whales ended their winter migration as they travel to the polar seas of theBering Sea along with five millionshearwaters, migrated from Australia, as they flourish across the shallow waters for krills. The programme ends with the mother and calf, who is now old enough to separate with its mother and continues its epic journey across the ocean. Planet Earth Diaries: Shark Quest shows the difficulties of filming the one-second strike of a great white shark, filmed bySimon King.[24] | |||||
| 10 | "Seasonal Forests" | 3 December 2006 (2006-12-03) | 22 April 2007 | 7.42 | |
 The penultimate episode surveys theconiferous anddeciduous seasonalwoodland habitats—the most extensive forests on Earth. Conifers begin sparsely in thesubarctic but soon dominate the land, and thetaiga circles the globe, containing a third of all the Earth's trees. Few creatures can survive the Arctic climate year round, but themoose,capercaillie, andwolverine are exceptions. 1,600 kilometres (990 mi) to the south, on thePacific coast of North America, conifers have reached their full potential. These include some of the world'stallest trees: theredwoods. Here, apine marten is shown stalking asquirrel, andgreat grey owl chicks take their first flight. Further south still, inChile'sValdivian forests, a population of smaller animals exist, including thepudú and thekodkod. During spring in a European broad-leafed forest, amandarin duck leads its day-old family to leap from its tree trunk nest to the leaf litter below. TheBialowieza Forest typifies the habitat that characterised Europe around 6,000 years ago: only a fragment remains inPoland andBelarus. On a summer night on North America's east coast,periodical cicadas emerge en masse to mate—an event that occurs every seventeen years. After revisiting Russia'sAmur leopards in winter, a time-lapse sequence illustrates the effect of the ensuing spring on the deciduous forest floor. In India's teak forests, alangur monkey strays too far from thechital that act as its sentinels and falls prey to atiger. InMadagascar,mouse lemurs feed on the nectar of floweringbaobab trees. Planet Earth Diaries: Forest Fliers explains how aerial shots of thebaobab were achieved by the use of a cinebulle, an adaptedhot air balloon.[25] | |||||
| 11 | "Ocean Deep" | 10 December 2006 (2006-12-10) | 25 March 2007 | 6.02 | |
The final instalment concentrates on the least explored area of the planet—thedeep ocean. It begins with awhale shark used as a shield by a shoal ofbait fish to protect themselves fromyellowfin tuna. Also shown is anoceanic whitetip shark trailing rainbow runners. Meanwhile, a 500-strong school ofdolphins head for theAzores, where they work together to feast onscad mackerel along with a flock ofshearwaters. Down in the ocean's furthest reaches, some creatures defy classification. Beneath the dark seafloor,Deep sea creatures such as thesea spider filtering on marine snow,sawtooth eel gazing upward for prey shimmering from above the surface,Dumbo octopus roaming through the dark void,Vampire squid performing a special display of defense and predation,Monkfish luring prey for necessities, and thespider crab bid their time, awaiting carrion from above along with eels andgiant isopods. The volcanic mountain chain at the bottom of theAtlantic Ocean also sustains life through the bacteria that surround its sulphide vents which allows shrimps to feed. Within the Western Pacific borderingJapan lies the Dragon chimneys erupted from thermal vents where different forms of baterias thrives. InAtlantic,Squat lobsters settle near the hydrothermal vents grazing on bacterias. From the depths of Galapagos Island at the site of the Nine North, the chimneys provides energy fortube worms to grow and support settlement, but after nine months the chimneys turns cold causing the tube worms to wither and extinguished. There are thought to be around 30,000undersea volcanoes, some of them taller thanMount Everest. Their sheer cliffs provide anchorage for several corals and sponges. Nearer the surface, the currents that surround theseseamounts force nutrients up from below and thus marine life around them is abundant, which allows theNautilus to forage freely before retreat to the depth. Thirty miles away, the shoal of squids jets upwards to the stream to hunt small fish and planktons while avoiding thepacific spotted dolphins as they use sonar to confuse their prey. The giantMola Mola settle at reef for cleaning viabutterfly fish feeding parasites and cool temperature.Ascension Island is a nesting ground forfrigatebirds andgreen turtles. Off theMexican coast, a large group ofsailfish feed on another shoal of bait fish, changing colour to signal their intentions to each other, allowing them to coordinate their attack. The last sequence depicts the largest animal on Earth—theblue whale, of which 300,000 once roamed the world's oceans with 3000 individuals roam the planet which they are now fewer than 3% remain. Planet Earth Diaries: Ocean Wanderers shows the search in theBahamas for oceanic whitetip sharks.[26] | |||||
"Our planet is still full of wonders. As we explore them, so we gain not only understanding, but power. It's not just the future of the whale that today lies in our hands: it's the survival of the natural world in all parts of the living planet. We can now destroy or we can cherish. The choice is ours."
— David Attenborough, in closing
The latter episodes were supplemented byPlanet Earth: The Future, a series of three 60-minute films that highlight the conservation issues surrounding some of the featured species and environments. The programmes are narrated by Simon Poland and the series producer wasFergus Beeley. The series began transmission onBBC Four after the ninth episode, "Shallow Seas".[27]
Alongside the commissioning of the television series,BBC Worldwide and GreenLight Media secured financing for a US$15 million film version ofPlanet Earth.[27] This followed the earlier success ofDeep Blue, the BBC's 2003 theatrical nature documentary which used re-edited footage fromThe Blue Planet.[28] The film was co-directed byAlastair Fothergill andMark Linfield and produced by Alix Tidmarsh and Sophokles Tasioulis. Only 30% of the footage shown inEarth is new, with the remainder being reworked from the television series to suit the narrative of the film.[29] David Attenborough was replaced as narrator by high-profile actors:Patrick Stewart for the UK market andJames Earl Jones for the United States.[30][31]
Earth had its worldwide premiere in September 2007 at theSan Sebastián International Film Festival inSan Sebastián, Spain, inBasque Country.[32]Lionsgate released the film in several international markets over the following year. In the United States, it became the first film to be released byDisneynature, theWalt Disney Company's new nature documentary arm.[31] When released onEarth Day 2009 it set the record for the highest opening weekend gross for a nature documentary, and went on to become the third highest grossing documentary of all time.[33][34] It has grossed more than $108 million worldwide; in the nature documentary genre, onlyMarch of the Penguins has achieved greater box-office success.[34]
Planet Earth received widespread critical acclaim. On review aggregation websiteRotten Tomatoes, the miniseries has an approval rating of 100% based on 21 reviews, with an average rating of 9.8/10. The critical consensus reads "Planet Earth weaves innovative camera techniques and patient observation to deliver viewers an astounding glimpse of the world's perils and wonders, capturing jaw-dropping scenery and animals on both an epic and intimate scale."[35]Time magazine'sJames Poniewozik named it one of the Top 10 New TV Series of 2007, ranking it at No. 4.[36] In 2019,Planet Earth and its sequel were ranked 72nd onThe Guardian's list of the 100 best TV shows of the 21st century.[37] As of 2023,Planet Earth is ranked third onIMDb's Top 250 TV Shows.[38]
Planet Earth: From Pole to Pole won the Science and Natural History award at theRoyal Television Society Programme Awards in 2007.[39] The RTS also awarded it a Judge's Award and a Photography Award at its Craft and Design Awards.[40] The series picked up two awards from theBroadcasting Press Guild for Best Documentary Series and Innovation in Broadcasting,[41] and won Best Documentary Series at the 2007 Broadcast Awards.[42] At the 2007BAFTA Television Awards,Planet Earth was nominated in the Specialist Factual[43] and Pioneer Audience Award categories, but lost out toNuremberg: Goering's Last Stand andLife on Mars respectively.[44] It received three nominations at the BAFTA Television Craft Awards later the same year. George Fenton's original score won him Soundtrack Composer of the Year at the 2007Classical BRIT Awards.[45] Planet Earth was also nominated for the NTA for Most popular Factual program but lost toTop Gear (Supernanny andBad Lad's Army: Officer Class were also nominated).
Planet Earth was recognised by the American television industry, collecting the award for Nonfiction Series at the59th Primetime Emmy Awards in September 2007 and winning a further three prizes in technical categories at theCreative Arts Emmy Awards.[46] It also collected two awards from theTelevision Critics Association inLos Angeles in July 2007[47] and aPeabody Award in April 2008.[48]
The series was also fêted at wildlife film festivals around the globe, collected multiple prizes at theWildscreen Festival 2006, the International Wildlife Film Festival 2007 and the Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival 2007.
The credentials of the filmmakers, the size of the production, a high-profile marketing campaign and a primetime BBC One timeslot all resulted inPlanet Earth attracting large audiences when it debuted in the UK in March 2006. The first episode, "From Pole to Pole", was watched by more people than any natural history programme since Attenborough and Fothergill's previous series,The Blue Planet, in 2001.[54] The first five episodes drew an average audience of 11.4 million viewers, including the early evening repeats, outperforming evenThe Blue Planet.[55] When the series returned to British screens after a six-month break, it remained popular but viewing figures did not reach the same levels. The final six episodes attracted an average audience of 6.8 million viewers, appreciably lower than the spring episodes, but still higher than BBC One's average for the timeslot.[56] The BBC's 2007 Annual Report revealed that the series "received the highest audience appreciation score of any British programme on TV this year".[57]
In the United States,Planet Earth drew equally impressive ratings when it premiered on Discovery and Discovery HD Theater on 25 March 2007. The first three episodes (screened back to back) averaged 5.72 million viewers with a peak of 6.07 million viewers, giving the network its third highest audience ever. It was also the most watched Discovery programme sinceThe Flight That Fought Back in 2005.[58][59]
In February 2016, the BBC announced a six-part sequel had been commissioned, titledPlanet Earth II, for release in late 2016, with Sir David Attenborough returning as narrator and presenter.[60] As with the 2006 series, the trailer features the track 'Hoppípolla' by Sigur Rós.
The popularity of the television series around the world translated into strong sales of associatedPlanet Earth merchandise. In the United States, it became the fastest and bestselling documentaryDVD in Discovery Channel's history, and thehigh-definition (HD) discs generated US$3.2 million in sales in just two months.[61][62] By the end of 2007, U.S. sales had topped 3 million units, making it the highest-grossing HD title and one of the top ten DVD titles of the year.[63]
In addition, the brand was licensed to other companies to produce children's books, calendars, a board game,jigsaws, stationery, cards, and more.[64]
A five-disc DVD box set of the complete series (BBCDVD1883) was released in the UK forRegions 2 and 4 (PAL) on 27 November 2006 by2 Entertain. It is presented in 5.1-channelDolby Digitalsurround sound and16:9 widescreen video. The bonus features includePlanet Earth Diaries (presented immediately after each episode as for the original TV broadcast) andPlanet Earth: The Future.[65]
In the United States, two versions of the same five-disc set were released as aRegion 1 (NTSC) DVD on 24 April 2007. TheBBC Warner release retained David Attenborough's narration from the original British television broadcasts, but the Discovery Channel edition used the alternative Sigourney Weaver voice-over. Even in the United States the Attenborough version was much the better for sales.[66]
Except for a small amount of extremely hard-to-obtain footage,[67]Planet Earth was filmed entirely inhigh-definition, and consequently became one of the first television series to take advantage of the new HD disc formats.
The series was released in bothBlu-ray andHD DVD formats as a five-discRegion B box set on 12 November 2007. On the fifth disc, the bonus features from thestandard-definition DVD set were replaced by two episodes from the BBC'sNatural World series, "Desert Lions" and "Snow Leopard: Beyond the Myth", both also presented in high-definition.[68]
In the United States, the series was released as a four-disc set in both high-definition formats,[69] the Blu-ray version onsingle-layer BD-25 discs[70] and the HD DVD set ondual-layer HD DVD-30 discs.[71] The first U.S. high-definition releases omitted the extra disc of bonus features from the standard-definition boxed set, though these extras were included with new material in a special-edition Blu-ray released in 2011.[72]
Four official tie-in volumes were published byBBC Books in 2006 and 2007:
On 20 November 2006, a two-discsoundtrackCD was released with a compilation of theincidental music specially commissioned forPlanet Earth. The award-winning score was composed byGeorge Fenton and performed by theBBC Concert Orchestra and has been performed during "Planet Earth Live" events in the United States and the United Kingdom.
