Don’t miss Blue Planet II, its the greatest nature series of all time
LONDON – The most-watched television program in Britain last year was not a singing competition, a period costume drama or even a baking show. It was a nature program about gender-bending fish and dolphins that like to surf.
The seven-part BBC documentary, presented by a beloved nonagenarian naturalist, was not unalloyed entertainment, though. It also zeroed in on the disastrous impact of plastic waste on the oceans, spurring government ministers to vow remedial action.
“Blue Planet II” enthralled British viewers, who lit up social media on Sunday nights with their favorite moments from the latest episode. The sumptuously shot series, which begins airing Saturday on BBC America, took four years to make, with filmmakers traveling to every continent and every ocean.
It could be that “the moment is right” for a documentary on the state of the oceans, said Sir David Attenborough, the show’s star, in a recent interview at the BBC’s gleaming offices in central London. “There are people worldwide talking about what we are doing about the seas.”
It also could be that the grandfatherly Attenborough is just the right man to deliver the message. At 91, he is a British national treasure – something like Jacques Cousteau, Carl Sagan and Jane Goodall rolled into one.
Attenborough, who was knighted in 1985 and is called “Sir David” by BBC colleagues, is a master storyteller. He has a shock of white hair and bright blue eyes, and he speaks with the same distinctive cadence and whispered confidences – whether about leaking submersibles or wondrous salamanders – that have entranced British viewers for decades.
He is also a born broadcaster, his velvety voice propelling footage of tool-using tusk fish and giant trevally fish that catch birds in midair.
Some of Attenborough’s previous programs have drawn criticism for pulling punches about human threats to the environment. Martin Hughes-Games, a fellow BBC producer, has argued that in one series, the footage was so jaw-dropping that it lulled viewers into a “false sense of security.”
“Blue Planet II,” a sequel to a 2001 series about marine life, is different. It features fish with transparent heads and a nail-biting chase scene involving a crab, eel and octopus that will make you think twice about your next frolic in shallow seas. But it also directly addresses issues such as plastic pollution, overfishing and climate change.
Attenborough insists the BBC did not set out to make an “ax-grinding program.” But, he added, “If you come across the situation that we have come across, you can’t just say, ‘Well, we don’t like that because it’s an uncomfortable or awkward truth.’ “
That hard-hitting approach appears to have struck a chord in Britain, where several media outlets are running campaigns to reduce marine plastic pollution, as an estimated 9 million tons of plastic ends up in the sea each year. The issue also has risen to the top of the global agenda. In December, 193 nations signed a U.N. resolution pledging to stop plastic waste entering the sea.
Michael Gove, Britain’s environment secretary, said he was “haunted” by “Blue Planet II,” and his department is looking at the possibilities of “bottle deposit return schemes, greater access to water fountains and incentives to encourage reusable coffee cups.” Britain recycles less plastic than many other European countries, including Norway and Germany.
Attenborough, who says he has swapped out plastic water bottles for a Thermos, is optimistic that the problem can be solved. “If we are clever enough to be able to invent it, surely we should be clever enough to be able to think of ways of destroying it,” he said.
David Attenborough’s ‘Blue Planet II’ takes a hard look at ocean pollution (Audun Rikardsen-BBC)
A herring boat in Norway, photographed during filming of Episode 7 of the series. Strict management of the country’s herring fishery has saved it from complete collapse, with numbers of the fish now so high they have attracted huge numbers of humpback whales and orca. MUST CREDIT: Audun Rikardsen-BBC
Sir David Attenborough narrates the BBC television series “Blue Planet II,” which airs in the United States beginning Jan. 20. MUST CREDIT: Alex Board-BBC
A herring boat in Norway, photographed during filming of Episode 7 of the series. Strict management of the country’s herring fishery has saved it from complete collapse, with numbers of the fish now so high they have attracted huge numbers of humpback whales and orca. MUST CREDIT: Audun Rikardsen-BBC
Sir David Attenborough narrates the BBC television series “Blue Planet II,” which airs in the United States beginning Jan. 20. MUST CREDIT: Alex Board-BBC
David Attenborough’s ‘Blue Planet II’ takes a hard look at ocean pollution (Audun Rikardsen-BBC)