Narrated by Academy Award-nominated and BAFTA-winning English actor Helena Bonham Carter (The Crown, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Fight Club, A Room with a View), BBC Earth‘s natural history series, Eden: Untamed Planet (6×60′; HD), takes Canadian audiences to the far corners of the planet to discover the secrets of Earth’s few remaining untouched lands, all brimming with life. From the Namib Desert to Patagonia, only a handful of places on Earth can claim to be largely unchanged. Positioned at the ends of the Earth, their remoteness and hostile climates have protected them from the most damaging effects of human interference. In these lands, life still exists as nature intended; they are delicately balanced, species-rich, unique ecosystems. Eden: Untamed Planet embarks on a breathtaking journey, showcasing these incredible landscapes using the latest technology, revealing new and thrilling behaviour from the world’s most iconic animals. Eden: Untamed Planet premieres Sunday, November 26 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on BBC Earth in Canada. The six-part series will simulcast on BBC First during the channel’s nationwide free preview event, running from October 30 – December 31, 2023.
Each episode explores a different Eden, from Borneo’s mysterious mist-shrouded forests to the lush beauty of Africa’s Luangwa flood plain. Isolated from the rest of the world, these places have been protected from the most damaging effects of human interference. As the heavy tread of humans falls ever closer to these beautiful and fragile lands, now is the time to reveal their captivating stories. This series embarks on a breath-taking journey to Earth’s last Edens.
Engage with Eden: Untamed Planet at: @BBCEarthCanada
Episodes of Eden: Untamed Planet include:
- Episode 1 – GalapagosNovember 26 at 9 p.m. ET/PT
The Galapagos Islands lie around 1,000 km from anywhere in the far-flung tropical Pacific. On a journey from the lava ramparts of its coast to its fiery heart, the episode uncovers how this place became one of the world’s most important areas of biodiversity.
- Episode 2 – NamibDecember 3 at 9 p.m. ET/PT
The Namib Desert is one of the oldest of all, giving rise to more indigenous species than any other. With 50-degree temperatures and annual rainfall that is measured in millimetres, how is this possible? In this episode, cameras reveal the Namib Desert’s hidden water sources – such as the mysterious sea fog that sweeps across its Skeleton Coast.
- Episode 3 – AlaskaDecember 10 at 9 p.m. ET/PT
In Southeast Alaska, there’s an ice-bound Eden. Home to possibly the richest temperate rainforest of all, it has the world’s densest concentration of grizzly bears. In a story that follows the seasons, viewers will see that the secret to its great abundance is nature’s greatest migration – the salmon run.
- Episode 4 – BorneoDecember 17 at 9 p.m. ET/PT
Borneo is the richest rainforest island of all, home to 60,000 species of plants and animals. Six thousand of them are unique – and more are discovered almost daily. But this ‘paradise’ is an illusion; the lush forest is effectively growing on a desert, the soil shallow and nutrient-poor, leeched by eons of incessant rain. We’ll discover how the intense competition for nutrients here has led to it becoming one of the most biodiverse places on the planet.
- Episode 5 – PatagoniaDecember 24 at 9 p.m. ET/PT
At the far tip of South America lies a magical realm that seems frozen in time. Known as ‘the end of the world, this is Patagonia. Voyaging from high Andes to coastal fjords, viewers will learn that to survive here you have to be as extreme as the country itself – either specialize in one habitat or be tough enough to live in all.
- Episode 6 – LuangwaDecember 31 at 9 p.m. ET/PT
At the very end of East Africa’s Great Rift Valley, there’s a ‘land that time forgot’ – the rolling grasslands of the Luangwa Valley. As cameras travel through the seasons, viewers find the secret to Eden’s great riches – the annual flood of the mighty Luangwa River.
Eden: Untamed Planet is a BBC Studios Natural History Unit production, co-produced with BBC America, bilibili and BBC Studios Distribution. The Series Producer is Steve Cole and the Executive Producer is Mark Brownlow.
