Planet Earth II

Planet Earth II is a 2016 British nature documentary series produced by the BBC as a sequel to Planet Earth, which was broadcast in 2006.[1] The series is presented and narrated by Sir David Attenborough with the main theme music composed by Hans Zimmer.[2][3]

Not to be confused with Earth-Two.

Planet Earth II
GenreNature documentary
Presented byDavid Attenborough
Composers
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of episodes6
Production
Executive producersVanessa Berlowitz, Mike Gunton, James Brickell, Tom Hugh-Jones
Running time60 minutes
Production companies
Release
Original networkBBC One
Picture format
Audio format
Original release6 November (2016-11-06) –
11 December 2016 (2016-12-11)
Chronology
Preceded byPlanet Earth
Followed byPlanet Earth 3
Related showsBlue Planet II
External links
Website

The first trailer was released on 9 October 2016, and the series premiered on 6 November 2016 in the United Kingdom on BBC One and BBC One HD.[4] Planet Earth II is the first television series produced by the BBC in Ultra-high-definition (4K).[5][6] A sequel titled Planet Earth III is currently announced and planned to air in 2022.

Production

The series was announced by the BBC in 2013 with the working title One Planet, but the title was later changed to Planet Earth II.[7][8][9]

The BBC trailer for the series used the same music featured in the trailer for the original Planet Earth, "Hoppípolla" by Icelandic post-rock band Sigur Rós.[10]

The original Planet Earth, airing in 2006, was one of the first natural documentary series to be made in high definition (HD) and Planet Earth II utilised new technologies developed since the first series, including ultra high definition (4K), improved camera stabilisation, remote recording and aerial drone technology.[9]

Broadcast

British television

The premiere of Planet Earth II took place at Bristol's Cinema de Lux on 2 November 2016 with special guest appearance by Attenborough. Bristol has been the global home of BBC's Natural History programme making for almost 60 years.[11] The series debuted on BBC One and BBC One HD the following Sunday (6 November) from 8pm to 9pm. Each of the six episodes included a 10-minute making-of documentary called Planet Earth II Diaries. The previous week's episode was repeated in an earlier time slot the following Sunday.[12]

International

The series was broadcast internationally on BBC Earth channel with a few exceptions for some countries.

The series aired in Belgium on the Flemish channel Canvas, narrated in Dutch by Vic De Wachter, with episodes airing each Wednesday from 7 December 2016.[13] In the Netherlands the series is airing on the Dutch channel NPO 1, narrated by Peter Drost, with episodes airing each Sunday from 1 January 2017.[14]

In Japan, the series aired on NHK – with four special episodes aired on 23 December 2016 and concluded on 19 February 2017 respectively,[15][16] while all the six original episodes were broadcast from 29 March 2017 until 6 May 2017.[17][18]

In Australia, the series premiered on 15 February 2017 on the Nine Network.[19] As for New Zealand, it aired from 9 July 2017 at Prime channel.[20]

The series debuted in Canada and the United States on 18 February 2017, with the Canadian broadcast on the local BBC Earth channel (which recently launched),[21][22] In the United States, the series premiered with a three-network simulcast across BBC America, AMC, and SundanceTV (owned by AMC Networks, who manages BBC America on behalf of BBC Worldwide).[23][24]

In Israel, the series premiered on 20 May 2017 on the new public broadcasting network KAN 11.[25]

In the Philippines, the series premiered on 17 June 2018 on GMA Network through its version Amazing Earth for the first season.[26]

In Greece, all the six original episodes were broadcast daily from 12 April 2020 until 17 April 2020 at 09.30pm on the free-to-air television network Skai TV.[27]

In India, all the episodes are available for streaming through Amazon Prime. All the episodes are also available in Discovery Plus.

Episodes

The series comprises six episodes plus the compilation episode "A World of Wonder".[28] Official episode viewing figures are from BARB.[29] The first episode gained 12.26 million viewers in the United Kingdom, the highest under the current system of viewing figures for a nature documentary.[30]

"It's been ten years since we explored these wonders in the first series of Planet Earth, and since then much has changed. We can now show life on our planet in entirely new ways; bring you closer to animals than ever before and reveal new wildlife dramas for the very first time. But that is not all; the planet has changed too. Never have our wildernesses been as fragile and as precious as they are today. At this crucial time for the natural world we will journey to every corner of the globe; to explore the greatest treasures of our living planet, and reveal the extreme lengths animals go to to survive."

— David Attenborough's opening words
No.TitleProduced byOriginal air dateUK viewers
(millions)
1"Islands"Elizabeth White6 November 2016 (2016-11-06)12.26
2"Mountains"Justin Anderson13 November 2016 (2016-11-13)13.14
3"Jungles"Emma Napper20 November 2016 (2016-11-20)11.60
4"Deserts"Ed Charles27 November 2016 (2016-11-27)11.88
5"Grasslands"Chadden Hunter4 December 2016 (2016-12-04)11.54
6"Cities"Fredi Devas11 December 2016 (2016-12-11)11.10
–"A World of Wonder"Elizabeth White1 January 2017 (2017-01-01)[31]12.02
A compilation of the wildlife series presented by David Attenborough.

"Now, over half of us live in an urban environment. My home, too, is here, in the city of London. Looking down on this great metropolis, the ingenuity with which we continue to reshape the surface of our planet is very striking. But it's also sobering. It reminds me of just how easy it is for us to lose our connection with the natural world. Yet, it's on this connection that the future of both humanity and the natural world will depend. And surely, it is our responsibility to do everything within our power to create a planet that provides a home not just for us, but for all life on Earth."

— David Attenborough, in closing

Reception

The Independent's Christopher Hooton said of the series: "It is undoubtedly the greatest TV nature documentary to date and there's a strong case for it being one of the best TV series full stop."[32] Michael Hogan from The Telegraph compared this series to the original Planet Earth series and said that "advances in technology have enabled intimate high-definition close-ups and gasp-inducing aerial shots" and said "It has become predictable to heap superlatives upon the BBC Natural History Unit and wax lyrical about Attenborough’s status. But both institutions should be treasured while we’re lucky enough to still have them."[33]

However, The Guardian's Martin Hughes-Games, while calling the series "spectacular and fascinating", accused programmes like of breeding complacency about the destruction of wildlife by painting a misleading picture of the planet. He wrote that series like Planet Earth had "become a disaster for the world's wildlife" and that while world animal populations are decreasing, "the producers [of this show] continue to go to the fast shrinking parks and reserves to make their films – creating a beautiful, beguiling fantasy world".[34]

The series is also currently the highest rated TV Show on IMDb's list of Top Rated TV Shows.[35] In 2019, Planet Earth II and its prequel were ranked 72nd on The Guardian's list of the 100 best TV shows of the 21st century.[36]

Awards and nominations
Year Award Category Nominee Result Ref.
2017 British Academy Television Awards Huw Wheldon Award for Specialist Factual Planet Earth II Won
[37]
Virgin's Must-See Moments Snakes vs. Iguanas chase Won
British Academy Television Craft Awards Best Photography -Factual John Aitchison, Rob Whitworth, Mark MacEwen (Episode: "Cities") Won
[38]
John Shier, Jonathan Jones, Barrie Britton (Episode: "Deserts") Nominated
John Shier, Mateo Willis, Barrie Britton (Episode: "Mountains") Nominated
Tom Crowley, Mark MacEwen, John Brown (Episode: "Jungles") Nominated
Best Editing – Factual Dave Pearce (Episode: "Deserts") Nominated
Matt Meech (Episode: "Islands") Nominated
Best Sound – Factual Graham Wild, Kate Hopkins, Tim Owens (Episode: "Cities") Won
Kate Hopkins, Graham Wild (Episode: "Jungles") Nominated
Best Original Television Music Hans Zimmer, Jacob Shea, Jasha Klebe Nominated
TCA Awards Outstanding Achievement in News and Information Planet Earth II Nominated
[39]
Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series Won
Outstanding Cinematography for Nonfiction Programming Cinematography team[note 1] (Episode: "Cities") Nominated
Cinematography team[note 2] (Episode: "Islands") Won
Outstanding Directing for Nonfiction Programming Fredi Devas (Episode: "Cities") Nominated
Elizabeth White (Episode: "Islands") Nominated
Outstanding Music Composition for a Series (Original Dramatic Score) Jacob Shea and Jasha Klebe (Episode: "Islands") Nominated
Outstanding Picture Editing for a Nonfiction Program Dave Pearce (Episode: "Cities") Nominated
Matt Meech (Episode: "Islands") Nominated
Outstanding Sound Editing for Nonfiction Programming (Single or Multi-Camera) Kate Hopkins, Tim Owens (Episode: "Cities") Nominated
Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Nonfiction Program (Single or Multi-Camera) Graham Wild (Episode: "Cities") Nominated

Merchandise

DVD and Blu-ray

The series was released as a two-disc DVD[40] and Blu-ray sets[41][42] on 5 December 2016, while a four-disc 4K UHD Blu-ray + Blu-ray sets were released later on 13 March 2017.[43] It was distributed by BBC Worldwide in the UK.

In the US and Canada, the DVD,[44][45] Blu-ray[46][47] and 4K UHD Blu-ray[48][49] sets were released on 28 March 2017 and distributed by BBC Worldwide Americas. They also contain the documentary Planet Earth II: Diaries which consists of the six 10-minute making-of documentaries that followed the broadcast of each episode.

In Australia and New Zealand, the DVD, Blu-ray and 4K UHD Blu-ray sets were released by ABC DVD/Village Roadshow on 29 March 2017.[50][51][52]

Books

An accompanying hardback book was written by Steven Moss with a foreword by David Attenborough and published by BBC Books (ISBN 978-1849909655). It was released on 6 October 2016 in the UK,[53] and on 15 February 2017 for the US release.[54]

Soundtrack
Planet Earth II
Soundtrack album by
Hans Zimmer, Jasha Klebe, Jacob Shea
Released11 November 2016 (Digital)
2 December 2016 (Audio CD)
GenreSoundtrack, Classical music
Length2:13:09
LabelSilva Screen Records
ProducerBBC Worldwide
BBC Earth
Hans Zimmer, Jasha Klebe, Jacob Shea chronology
Planet Earth
(2006)		 Planet Earth II
(2016)

The soundtrack was released with a compilation of the incidental music specially commissioned for Planet Earth II. The main theme was composed by Hans Zimmer, with the original music for each episode composed by Jacob Shea and Jasha Klebe for Bleeding Fingers Music.[55] A digital soundtrack was released worldwide on 11 November 2016,[56][57] while a two-disc soundtrack became available on 2 December 2016 in the UK.[58]

Track listing

Notes
  1. John Aitchison, Rob Whitworth, Kevin Flay, Mark MacEwen, Gordon Buchanan, Gavin Thurston, Mateo Willis, Michael Kelem, Mark Smith, Sandesh Kadur
  2. Mark MacEwen, Max Hug Williams, Jonathan Jones, Mateo Willis, Richard Wollocombe, Pete McCowen, Warwick Sloss, Paul Stewart, Derek Frankowski, John Shier, Tom Fitz

References
  1. Hurley, Laura (22 February 2016). "Planet Earth 2 Is Happening, Here's What We Know". CinemaBlend.com. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
  2. Barra, Leo (22 February 2016). "David Attenborough to Narrate BBC Documentary Series 'Planet Earth II'". Variety. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
  3. "'Planet Earth II' Soundtrack Details". Retrieved 13 November 2016.
  4. "Planet Earth II – Islands". BBC Media Centre.
  5. "BBC captures nature in 4K for 'Planet Earth II'". engadget.co.uk. 23 February 2016. Retrieved 19 October 2016.
  6. "Planet Earth 2 from BBC will debut in 2016 in beautiful 4K UHD video quality". 4k.com. 24 February 2016. Retrieved 19 October 2016.
  7. "BBC commissions Blue Planet follow up". BBC News.
  8. "MIPTV '14: ZDF to coproduce BBC series 'One Planet'". Realscreen.
  9. "Sir David Attenborough to present brand new landmark natural history series for BBC One". BBC Media Centre.
  10. "Sigur Rós rework Hoppipolla for the BBC's Planet Earth II trailer". BBC Media Centre. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  11. "BBC Bristol welcomes Sir David Attenborough 'home' for Planet Earth II Premiere and you're invited!". BBC Media Centre. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
  12. "TV Listings". tvguide.co.uk. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  13. "Planet Earth II on Canvas". Canvas.be. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  14. "EO start het nieuwe jaar met Planet Earth II". Radio.nl. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
  15. "NHKスペシャル プラネットアースⅡ" (PDF) (in Japanese). NHK. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
  16. "NHKスペシャル プラネットアースⅡ – 第３集: 新天地への挑戦" (in Japanese). NHK. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
  17. "プラネットアースⅡ – 第1集: 島 生命の小宇宙" (in Japanese). NHK.
  18. "プラネットアースⅡ – 第6集: 都市 新天地への挑戦" (in Japanese). NHK.
  19. Knox, David (6 February 2017). "Airdate: Planet Earth II". TV Tonight. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  20. "Planet Earth II Unearthed at Last". ScreenScribe. Retrieved 28 June 2017.
  21. "BBCWW raids Globo for Brazil". C21Media. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  22. Yeo, Debra (6 December 2016). "BBC Earth channel to debut in Canada". The Toronto Star. ISSN 0319-0781. Retrieved 10 October 2017.
  23. "Announcing: 'Planet Earth II' Premieres Saturday, February 18 on BBC America". BBC America. Retrieved 26 October 2016.
  24. "'Planet Earth II' To Be Simulcast On AMC, Sundance & BBC America – TCA". Deadline.com. Retrieved 13 January 2017.
  25. "התאגיד רכש לשידור את סדרת הטבע "עולם מופלא" ותוכניות נוספות של בי־בי־סי". 20 May 2017. Retrieved 20 May 2017.
  26. "Dingdong Dantes, bibida sa bagong Kapuso infotainment show na 'Amazing Earth'". GMA Network Portal. 5 June 2018. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  27. "Planet Earth II — Blue Planet ston SKAÏ: Premiéra Kyriakī́ 12 Aprilíoy" Planet Earth ΙI — Blue Planet στον ΣΚΑΪ: Πρεμιέρα Κυριακή 12 Απριλίου. SKAI.gr (in Greek). 9 April 2020. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  28. "BBC One - Planet Earth II - Episode guide". BBC.
  29. "Weekly Top 30 Programmes". Broadcasters' Audience Research Board. Retrieved 14 November 2016.
  30. "David Attenborough's Planet Earth II becomes most-watched nature show". The Daily Telegraph. 14 November 2016. Retrieved 14 November 2016.
  31. "BBC One – Planet Earth II, A World of Wonder". Retrieved 12 December 2016.
  32. "We've published the names of everyone who worked on #PlanetEarth2 in recognition of a phenomenal achievement". The Independent. 12 December 2016. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  33. Hogan, Michael (11 December 2016). "David Attenborough brings Planet Earth II to a spectacular end – review". The Telegraph. Retrieved 16 February 2017.
  34. Hughes-Games, Martin (1 January 2017). "The BBC's Planet Earth II did not help the natural world". the Guardian. Retrieved 15 February 2017.
  35. Users, IMDb. "IMDb Top Rated TV Shows". IMDb. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
  36. "The 100 best TV shows of the 21st century". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
  37. "Bafta TV awards 2017: full list of winners". Guardian. 14 May 2017. Retrieved 16 May 2017.
  38. "Bafta Television Craft Awards Shortlist 2017". BAFTA. 26 March 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  39. Stanhope, Kate (19 June 2017). "'Handmaid's Tale,' 'This Is Us' and 'Atlanta' Lead 2017 TV Critic Awards Nominations". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 19 June 2017.
  40. "Planet Earth II (DVD)". Amazon.co.uk.
  41. "Planet Earth II (Blu-Ray)". Amazon.co.uk.
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  43. "Planet Earth II (4K UHD Blu-Ray + Blu-Ray)". Amazon.co.uk.
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  50. "Planet Earth II (DVD Standard Edition)". ABC Shop.
  51. "Planet Earth II (Blu-Ray with Bonus Poster)". ABC Shop.
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  53. Planet Earth II (Hardback). ASIN 1849909652.
  54. Moss, Stephen (6 October 2016). Planet Earth II (Hardback). ISBN 978-1849909655.
  55. "'Planet Earth II' Soundtrack Details". Film Music Reporter. Retrieved 26 October 2016.
  56. "Planet Earth II (Digital Music Soundtrack)". Amazon.co.uk.
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