EXPLORE THE DEEP

Following on from the runaway success of Planet Earth II, The Blue Planet is the latest classic David Attenborough series to be given a modern-day makeover.

The new seven-part series, imaginatively titled Blue Planet II, will treat us to unprecedented footage of our planet’s most enigmatic environment. We’ll glimpse methane volcanoes erupting in the Gulf of Mexico, plunge into the 1km-deep Antarctic abyss, and meet a menagerie of sealife, including crafty, tool-using tuskfish, the hairy- chested Hoff crab, and giant trevally fish that catch birds in mid-air.

The technology has come a long way since the original 2001 series. This time around, ultra-HD tow cams capture predators head-on, suction cams allow us to ride on the backs of whale sharks and orcas, and low-light cams bring us the magical luminescence of Noctiluca ‘sea sparkles’, dancing to the wing beats of shoaling mobula rays. Could this prove to be Blue Planet II’s ‘iguana vs snakes’ moment?

Bottlenose dolphins surfing in South Africa

Giant cuttlefish mating off the coast of South Australia