PBS's 'Nature' Turns the Camera on "Attenborough's Life Journey"

Few are left of those who pioneered television as we know it today, and those who are still with us will not be around for much longer. However, it speaks to the original dream for the medium as a way to provide educational and heartwarming television that two of the eldest, Dick Van Dyke and David Attenborough, are PBS legends. Both are 98 this year, and both (somehow) are still going, with Van Dyke taking home his second-ever Daytime Emmy in 2024 and Attenborough's next series, Asia, arriving stateside in 2025. However, while Van Dyke has had lots of specials about his life, Attenborough not so much, which is why Nature has finally turned the camera around and made him their next subject.

“For over 40 years, Sir David Attenborough took us by the hand and walked us through the natural world with an ease and grace that we will probably never see again,” said Fred Kaufman, Executive Producer for Nature, when explaining why the series decided to document the foremost nature documentarian. “There will never be another Attenborough, and Nature is fortunate to have worked with him on so many iconic films and series.”

Attenborough started his TV career in 1954 as host of the BBC's original Nature program, Zoo Quest, but the 1979 landmark special Life on Earth turned him into a household name on both sides of the pond. The new Nature special will begin with what led Attenborough to Zoo Quest in the first place and how it took him around the world before putting him into nearly every living room on his beloved planet.

Here's the episode's synopsis:

This intimate portrait follows Attenborough’s years on the road, from the islands of the Galapagos to the mountains of Canada to the jungles of Borneo. Combining exclusive behind-the-scenes footage, candid interviews from David on location, and stunning footage from his pioneering documentaries, this film chronicles an Attenborough never seen before.

Witness Sir David’s love of fossils as a young boy in Leicester transforms into a passion for the natural world in his field of study at Cambridge. From his early days as a presenter on BBC’s Zoo Quest, Attenborough rose through the ranks to become the foremost natural history presenter in the world, a beloved figure known for his cheeky remarks and remarkably timed footage. An avid advocate for climate change, Attenborough never settled down and continues to work on groundbreaking productions.

Director Oliver Twinch helmed the Nature episode "Attenborough’s Life Journey," with narration by Tom Park; Anthony Geffen executive produced the installment. Bill Murphy is Nature's series producer, Janet Hess is the series editor, and Fred Kaufman executive produces. Nature is a production of The WNET Group; this episode is a collaboration between Atlantic Productions and The WNET Group.

Nature: Attenborough's Life Journey debuts on most PBS stations, the PBS app, and Amazon's new PBS Documentaries Prime Video Channel on Wednesday, November 20, 2024, at 8 p.m. ET.