Natural World (1983)
Natural World is a nature documentary television series broadcast annually on BBC Two and regarded by the BBC as its flagship natural history brand. It is currently the longest-running series in its genre on British television, with more than 400 episodes broadcast since its inception in 1983. Natural World is produced by the BBC Natural History Unit in Bristol, but individual programmes can be in-house productions, collaborative productions with other broadcasters or films made and distributed by independent production companies and purchased by the BBC. Natural World programmes are often broadcast as PBS Nature episodes in the USA. Since 2008, most Natural World programmes have been shot and broadcast in high definition.
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Episode 1 - South Georgia: an Island All Alone
Release Date: 1998-10-11Focusing on the wildlife of the remote island of South Georgia in the South Atlantic.
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Episode 2 - Capybara: Swamp Hogs
Release Date: 1998-10-18This is the story of one Capybara group,whose territory spans a patchwork of of wildlife-rich swamp,grassland & forest in Venezuela's Orinoco flood plain -the "Llanos".
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Episode 3 - Secret Sharks
Release Date: 1998-10-25Includes footage of the gentle whale shark, and the perilous birth of a baby horn shark.
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Episode 4 - Mountain of the Sea
Release Date: 1998-11-01Wildlife documentary about South Africa's Table Mountain, home to a huge variety of animals, from black eagles at its peak to penguins at its shore-lined foot.
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Episode 5 - Orangutans: the High Society
Release Date: 1998-11-08Wildlife documentary series. Featuring the orangutans of Sumatra's Leuser National Park.
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Episode 6 - The Fatal Flower
Release Date: 1998-11-15This programme looks at orchids, the `femmes fatales' of nature, combining beauty and deceit in a way which ignites human and animal passions.
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Episode 7 - Vanishing Pools of the Zambezi
Release Date: 1998-11-22Herds of elephant, buffalo and impala graze on rich green grass by pools formed by the meandering Zambezi. But the short rainy season soon ends, and the battle for survival begins.
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Episode 8 - Manu: Amazon Paradise
Release Date: 1998-11-29The forest-dwelling creatures of the Amazon region of Manu, a treasure-trove of rare species, from jaguars and giant otters : which have earned a reputation for ferocity : to sloths and 13 different types of monkey.
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Episode 9 - Impossible Journeys
Release Date: 1998-12-06Using microscopy & animation,we journey into worlds previously beyond our reach.The familiar world hides incredible secrets that are revealed here.
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Episode 10 - Cheetahs in a Hot Spot
Release Date: 1998-12-13A look at the world's largest population of cheetahs - and their enemies - in Namibia, southern Africa.
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Episode 11 - Dolphins: The Wild Side
Release Date: 1999-01-17Explores the varied behaviour of wild dolphins around the world.
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Episode 12 - Year of the Jackal
Release Date: 1999-01-24This film, shot over the course of the year at the Ngorongoro crater in Tanzania, reveals some surprising facts about jackals.
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Episode 13 - Everglades: to Hell and Back
Release Date: 1999-01-31Wildlife documentary looking at some of the many species of life found in the Florida Everglades and the threat to the environment posed by nearby Miami.
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Episode 14 - Tough Ducks
Release Date: 1999-02-21Film revealing that there's more to the placid-looking duck than meets the eye. Including those that live in the Arctic and the Australian desert.
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Episode 15 - The Man-Eaters of Tsavo
Release Date: 1999-02-28Documentary about the lions of the Tsavo National Park in Kenya, and their current and future co-existence with humans.
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Episode 16 - Islands of the Vampire Birds
Release Date: 1999-03-14Wildlife documentary looking at the finches of the Galapagos Islands which have evolved to not only to eat seeds and pick ticks off tortoises but also to drink the blood of the latter.
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Episode 17 - The Farm That Time Forgot
Release Date: 1999-03-21Visits the Hosking family's farm in Devon where they farm traditionally and so help preserve local wildlife, especially in retention of old stone buildings and hedgerows.
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Episode 18 - Iran: Secrets of the North
Release Date: 1999-03-28The first of two programmes exploring the wildlife inhabiting this vast country, a natural crossroads that is home to animals from Asia, Europe and Africa.