ARLINGTON VA; March 3, 2026 – In 1976, Sir David Attenborough embarked on an ambitious three-year global odyssey to film Life on Earth, an innovative documentary of unprecedented scale. Attenborough and his team traveled to 40 countries to document over 600 species and faced extraordinary challenges along the way, including a coup in the Comoros, gunshots in Rwanda, and threats from Saddam Hussein’s army in Iraq. Written and presented by Attenborough, Life on Earth set out to “tell the greatest story in all the world”: how life on our planet evolved.
Fifty years after production began, and in celebration of Attenborough’s 100th birthday, LIFE ON EARTH: ATTENBOROUGH’S GREATEST ADVENTURE offers rare, behind-the-scenes insight into the making of the groundbreaking series. Featuring exclusive interviews with Attenborough and his original crew, the special captures the triumphs and setbacks of filming the series during a pivotal era in television history, when jet travel and color filming were relatively new. LIFE ON EARTH: ATTENBOROUGH’S GREATEST ADVENTURE premieres Wednesday, May 6, 2026, 8:00 -9:00 p.m. ET (check local listings) on PBS,PBS.organd the PBS app.
"Few series have made an impact the way Life on Earth did, truly reshaping our understanding of the natural world,” said Paula Kerger, PBS President and CEO. “Sir David Attenborough's vision set a standard we're still reaching toward fifty years later. We are so proud to share this new film, and to celebrate his unparalleled contribution to our shared understanding of the planet we call home."
Life on Earth was the first series to combine cutting-edge camera technology and techniques. Time-lapse, microphotography, and filming speeds of up to 10,000 frames per second were used to capture animal movement in ways never before seen — from striking rattlesnakes to leaping lemurs and hovering hummingbirds. New Kodak film stock allowed the team to produce some of the sharpest and most colorful wildlife footage at the time, while the new Canon 300 lens enabled the camera crew to film at dawn and dusk and document new animal behavior previously thought impossible to record.
Life on Earth became the first worldwide natural history blockbuster, mesmerizing viewers with incredible photography and transforming public perception of the natural world. The documentary details how the team captured some of the series’ most astounding moments — a lioness ferociously taking down a wildebeest, the rare moment a male Darwin’s frog “gives birth” by mouth, and Attenborough’s unforgettable encounter with mountain gorillas in Rwanda, often voted one of the greatest television moments of all time.
Upon its broadcast on PBS in 1982, Life on Earth quickly became a global phenomenon, commanding the attention of over 500 million people in more than 100 territories. Its extraordinary success launched five decades of ambitious wildlife storytelling and cemented Attenborough’s legacy as the most successful and influential wildlife filmmaker of our time.
LIFE ON EARTH: ATTENBOROUGH’S GREATEST ADVENTURE will stream simultaneously with broadcast and be available on all station-branded PBS platforms, including PBS.org and the PBS app, which is available on iOS, Android, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Samsung Smart TV, Chromecast and VIZIO.
LIFE ON EARTH: ATTENBOROUGH’S GREATEST ADVENTURE, a 1x60’ for BBC One and iPlayer, is made by BBC Studios Natural History Unit and co-produced by PBS. It was commissioned by Jack Bootle, Head of Commissioning, Specialist Factual and the Commissioning Editor was Sreya Biswas, former Head of Commissioning, Natural History. The Executive Producer is Mike Davis, Production Executive is Sue Aartse-Tuyn and Producer Director is Victoria Bobin. Diana El-Osta is the Executive in Charge for PBS. BBC Studios is handling global sales.
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