Wild Isles: The book of the BBC TV series presented by David Attenborough

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There are various technologies being used to film this series, can you tell us about some of these? Oh, isn’t it lovely to have a new David Attenborough series for a cosy Sunday evening. And one so close to home! For the next five weeks, Wild Isles offers an unparalleled look at the spectacular, miraculous and unique natural world of Britain and Ireland. It is a stunning portrait of breeding orcas, golden eagles, foxes and dormice; woodlands, meadows and rivers. Just beautiful. Something to be immensely proud of, something to nurture and to protect. We’re also focussed on protecting the natural world around us. Currently, we’re aligning to a framework set out by the Taskforce for Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) which guides organisations in reporting on the risks from biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation. As part of the project, the BBC is investigating its own operational impact on the environment and we have conducted an initial bio-diversity footprint study, in conjunction with a specialist team from the University of Oxford. Orca - Britain’s largest marine predator, can reach lengths of almost 10 metres and weigh up to 10 tonnes.Shetland is the only place in the British Isles where orca breed.We filmed a remarkable feeding strategy in which the orca appear to go silent as they approach the seals, in an apparent attempt not to scare them off.

We are still one of least biodiverse countries in the world, making it important that we protect and restore the wildlife we have [Source: Biodiversity Intactness Study] BBC Radio 2 with BBC Children’s and Education, supported by The One Show and others, are launching Let it Grow – an initiative to turn grey spaces into wild and colourful places, with a focus on tempting even the least green fingered to join in. Blue Peter viewers can earn their Blue Peter Green badges by getting involved and there will also be an OZT Goes Wild in Britain special on domestic wildlife. BBC Sport will be highlighting grassroots clubs up and down the country doing great work in preserving and promoting nature – as well as reflecting what is happening at the elite level – challenging more to get involved. The RSPB is protecting habitats, saving species and helping to end the nature and climate emergency. Nature is in crisis. Together we can save it. www.rspb.org.ukNicholson, Rebecca (12 March 2023). "Wild Isles review – David Attenborough's last hurrah makes for unmissable TV". The Guardian . Retrieved 15 September 2023.

a b "Attenborough's Wild Isles shows us our own 'spectacular' nature". BBC News. 2023-03-06 . Retrieved 2023-03-13. To accompany Wild Isles, through the Spring and Summer across the BBC there is a major focus on nature, designed to deepen audiences’ understanding and inspire them to get involved. This is shameful, but it doesn’t come from nowhere. In January, for the third year in a row, the UK government approved the “emergency” use of a banned insecticide on sugar beet; a single teaspoon of thiamethoxam is enough to kill 1.25 billion bees. Britain’s woodlands may be rare and complex, but a 2020 audit by the Wildlife Trusts reported that the environmental cost of the rail network HS2 had been vastly understated, particularly regarding ancient woodlands, which cannot simply be replaced. A pleasurable anthology that reflects nature writing over two centuries. Prose, not poetry. Many novelists appear, Hines, Lee, Hardy, Grahame, Williamson, Woolf (as novelists), Fowles and Maitland (as essayists). The real stars, however, are the nature writers. Jay Griffith's contributes a beautifully written essay on Clare -- "Kith". Excerpts from Clare's autobiographical writings are deeply moving. White-tailed eagles are a good example of how the restoration of habitats and the reintroduction of species has enabled us to film lost behaviours [Source: The Wildlife Trusts]We see the oldest oak tree in Britain, which has been standing for 1,046 years and so predates the Norman Conquest. Wild Isles makes many claims for these isles’ exceptional nature, from the mighty oaks to the chalk streams that are one of the rarest habitats on Earth. There are only 200 or so of these mineral-rich waters in the world and 85% are in southern England. We see kingfishers, tawny owls and badger cubs. A segment dedicated to how the common lords-and-ladies pollinates is surprisingly intricate and absolutely stunning.

Alastair Fothergill, Executive Producer, says: “I have always wanted to make a landmark series that really does justice to our own extraordinary wildlife. I am sure people will be amazed at what is happening right on their own doorstep”. The landscapes of Britain and Ireland, together with the creatures and plants that inhabit them, have penetrated deep in our collective imagination. From Gilbert White and Dorothy Wordsworth to Laurie Lee and Nan Shepherd, literature inspired by the natural world has become an integral part of our shared identity, and shaped our relationship with the islands we call home. Cooke, Rachel (2023-03-12). "David Attenborough's Wild Isles makes me proud to be British, despite everything". New Statesman . Retrieved 2023-03-12.The BBC will be inviting local communities to Get Into Nature, be that for their mental or physical health, for their community, for the environment or simply for fun. BBC Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland will also be reflecting the focus on nature in their output. You also filmed Lords and Ladies plants that release a foul-smelling scent to attracts flies, what technology did you use for this scene?

Singh, Anita (12 March 2023). "Wild Isles, BBC One, review: Attenborough's onscreen swansong is a Great British beauty". The Daily Telegraph . Retrieved 15 September 2023. Presented by Sir David Attenborough, co-produced by The Open University, the RSPB and WWF, and filmed over three years, the series uses the very latest technology to capture dramatic new behaviour, from battling butterflies to hunting sea eagles and killer whales - revealing a previously unseen wild side of the British Isles. Nature in our islands will prove just as spectacular as anywhere else on the planet, but it is increasingly fragile. With intricately connected species relying on habitats, and one another, for survival, we ask what can be done to protect them and the delicate ecosystems that remain, and to make our wild isles even wilder for future generations. Britain and Ireland have some of the most diverse and beautiful landscapes on Earth. We have more ancient oak trees than the rest of Europe put together; sixty percent of the world’s chalk streams flow in southern England; our remaining flower meadows are a vital refuge for breeding birds and butterflies; and our coasts are home to internationally important numbers of seabirds. Yet our wildlife is increasingly fragmented and fragile - this series explains the challenges nature faces today, and what can be done to make our wild isles even wilder in the future.Ever since I worked on the original Blue Planet, Planet Earth and Frozen Planet series, I have always wanted to cover the British Isles and our natural history with a similarly ambitious and epic approach. I knew that nobody had ever had the opportunity before to really do justice to the spectacular scenery and rich and varied wildlife found at home. I also have a personal passion for our natural history.