Inside the new must-watch David Attenborough documentary as the icon turns 100

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Okay, so picture this: it’s January 1978, and I’m filming what would become ‘Life on Earth’ – the series everyone now says cemented my place as, well, a pretty big deal in nature documentaries. Things got a little hairy, though. I was in a minibus when suddenly bullets started whizzing past my head! Some really angry soldiers flagged us down, and honestly, we were completely stuck. As I wrote in my diary later, there was just no way out. It was a crazy moment, but it became part of the story of making this iconic series.

The team had traveled all the way from the mountains of Rwanda, making their way to Kigali and ultimately hoping to catch a flight back to London. They carried with them incredible footage – David Attenborough with gorillas – which would become a legendary television moment. But now, everything they’d worked for was in danger.

Rwandan soldiers believed the BBC film crew was working with Dian Fossey to create a film that would criticize the government’s efforts to protect mountain gorillas. The crew was taken to the police station for questioning. After being held overnight in a hotel, David Attenborough and the episode’s director, John Sparks, were moved to an army base.

Sparks feared the group would be shot. Victoria Bobin, director of Making Life on Earth: Attenborough’s Greatest Adventure, explains they were led outside and lined up as if for execution. Fortunately, they were unexpectedly released before the situation escalated.

Bobin’s documentary, created to celebrate David Attenborough’s 100th birthday, reveals just how close the team came to disaster while making what is considered Attenborough’s greatest television achievement. The project was a 13-part BBC series from 1979, co-produced with Warner Brothers, and aimed to comprehensively explain the history of life on Earth. It took three years to film, with the crew traveling to over 100 locations worldwide as Attenborough sought to document all facets of animal behavior.

The show was a massive hit, captivating the entire nation. From the striking opening sequence with its memorable music to the incredible footage of animals, viewers were immediately drawn in. It became a cultural event – pubs reportedly emptied as people rushed home to watch, and each episode drew over 15 million UK viewers. An additional 500 million people tuned in from around the globe.

To create the new documentary, Bobin showed Attenborough clips from the original series in a small cinema and filmed his reactions, prompting him to share his memories with the help of his detailed diaries. Bobin notes Attenborough has an incredible memory and, even approaching 100 years old, remains enthusiastic and passionate about filmmaking. It’s easy to forget his age because his love for the craft hasn’t faded.

Even as he nears his 100th birthday, David Attenborough remains dedicated to his work on television, as seen in his recent series, Secret Garden, which explored the natural world right outside our homes. Mike Salisbury, who worked with Attenborough early in his career on Life on Earth and later produced shows like The Life of Birds and The Life of Mammals, notes that Attenborough is remarkably healthy.

He’s most afraid of losing his mental abilities. He has a remarkable memory, is a gifted writer, and deeply considers important issues like culture, conservation, and the future. Thankfully, his mind remains very sharp.

The new documentary not only showcases Earth’s incredible wildlife, but also looks back at how the series originated, featuring footage from David Attenborough’s early work. Attenborough first became known in the 1950s hosting ‘Zoo Quest,’ a show where the team traveled the world to collect animals for the London Zoo. However, his appearance on television was largely a matter of luck.

As Attenborough recounts in the documentary, Jack Lester, the reptile curator at London Zoo, became sick right after the first episode. The head of the television network then told Attenborough, ‘Since you’re the only other person who was there, you’ll have to take over.’ This meant Attenborough had to step in and present, as no one else was available to do the job.

David Attenborough’s adventurous spirit – he famously chased anteaters and even carried baby alligators in his coat – combined with his good looks and energetic personality, made Zoo Quest a huge hit with audiences.

By the mid-1960s, he moved into a management role at BBC Two, becoming a powerful figure behind the scenes. However, he never lost his passion for filming wildlife and continued to develop an idea for a series about the history of evolution. Whether as a channel controller or later as a director overseeing all of BBC programming, he was constantly thinking about the best way to use technology to bring this story to life.

In 1967, David Attenborough was in charge of the first colour television broadcasts in the UK, starting with the tennis championships at Wimbledon. He then introduced two popular series in 1969: Pot Black, featuring snooker, and Kenneth Clark’s Civilisation. These programs were groundbreaking because viewers could finally see snooker balls and the Sistine Chapel’s ceiling in vibrant, realistic colours. This success led Attenborough to wonder if he could bring the same vividness to the natural world, showcasing creatures like leopards and jellyfish as they truly appear.

In the early 1970s, David Attenborough was considered for the BBC’s top job, Director-General. However, he felt he wasn’t suited for the role, admitting he lacked the necessary political skills and understanding of government. As he explained to Bobin, he knew a lot about wildlife, like birds of paradise, but very little about politics and prime ministers. In 1973, he stepped down from his position as director of programmes and successfully pitched ‘Life on Earth’ to the BBC, taking on the roles of both writer and presenter.

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With a budget exceeding £1 million, the series was filmed using state-of-the-art equipment at the time. Now, it feels like a glimpse into a bygone era of filmmaking. The crew didn’t have mobile phones to stay connected, and each scene had to be physically developed – film reels were sent to a lab in the UK and then to the Natural History Unit in Bristol – before anyone could confirm they had captured what they needed.

Filming wasn’t without its risks. During the mountain gorilla shoot, director John Sparks feared a gorilla might attack Attenborough. While exploring the Grand Canyon, Attenborough suffered a severe allergic reaction to a donkey, causing his eyes to swell shut. And in Iraq under Saddam Hussein, their hotel was taken over by a tank division. Despite these dangers, the crew always had complete faith in Attenborough.

Salisbury recalls that even in difficult situations – like when people were feeling defeated, the weather was terrible, or they faced setbacks like a plane unable to take off – David had a knack for making people laugh. He was incredibly good at lifting spirits and always found a silver lining, never complaining or giving up. Salisbury says he never once heard David express negativity or admit defeat.

When the Life on Earth team reached the Comoros Islands, located off the east coast of Africa, a recent coup had thrown the country into turmoil. The president had been killed by French mercenaries, and authorities immediately revoked filming permits for foreign crews. However, David Attenborough managed to convince officials to allow them to continue shooting.

Beyond the famous gorilla footage, the original Life on Earth series included several groundbreaking moments, such as a lion hunt, a frog ejecting a baby from its mouth, and footage of a living coelacanth fish in the Comoros Islands. Surprisingly, the series didn’t begin with dramatic scenes of gorillas or lions in Tanzania; instead, the first episode focused on simple, primitive algae. According to executive producer Mike Davis, this was a bold choice. One American co-producer questioned starting with “an episode about green slime,” worried about keeping viewers engaged for the entire 13-hour series. Davis believes today’s television executives might be too cautious to take such a risk with audience attention spans.

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David Attenborough has always been driven by a passion for sharing knowledge with everyone, and a strong belief in television’s ability to do so. He’s also remarkably brave, though he might not say so himself. It took real courage to confront armed soldiers and spend time with gorillas. Interestingly, a large part of one encounter – meant to show how important opposable thumbs are to evolution – wasn’t actually filmed.

Attenborough began to explain about the opposable thumb and forefinger when he felt a female chimpanzee place her hand on his head. She turned his head, made direct eye contact, and even put a finger in his mouth. He then went back to the director, John Sparks, and asked if they had captured the moment on film. Sparks replied that they had gotten some footage, explaining he’d been waiting for Attenborough and didn’t want to run out of film during the explanation.

The incredible legacy of David Attenborough’s nature programs – including classics like Blue Planet and The Life of Birds – actually started in a Rwandan forest, fundamentally shaping how we think about nature documentaries. Attenborough himself calls the experience one of the highlights of his life, and as we celebrate his 100th birthday, it feels like a special moment for all of us.

Authors

Michael Hodges

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2026-04-27 20:01