Official poster for The Blue Planet

Miniseries · BBC One

The Blue Planet

A NATURAL HISTORY OF THE OCEANS.

8.4IMDb399 votesStrongly recommended
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20011 season · 8 episodes~51 min per episodeLimited series — complete
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Who's in it

Cast

The principal ensemble across the run of the series.

The Nutevio profile

TV DNA

How The Blue Planet actually feels to watch, measured on the traits our editors track across every series.

Signature profile

The Blue Planet reads strongest on Character Depth, Bingeability and Emotional Weight.

Character DepthDefining8.7

How fully written and psychologically layered the ensemble is.

BingeabilityVery strong8.2

How hard it is to stop after one episode.

Emotional WeightPresent5.2

How much the series is designed to affect you.

SerializedPresent5.0

How much each hour depends on the one before it.

Cliffhanger IntensityPresent4.0

How often an episode ends on a hook you can't ignore.

TensionPresent4.0

The sustained pressure the series keeps you under.

World BuildingLight3.5

The scale, internal logic and texture of the world.

HumourLight2.5

How often the series is genuinely funny, by design.

SpectacleLight2.5

Visual ambition — scale, craft and set-piece filmmaking.

The story

What it's about

Sir David Attenborough narrates this critically acclaimed series that dives deep into the marine environment of Planet Earth. Although two-thirds of the world's surface is covered with water, scientists know less about the oceans than they do about the surface of the moon. This limited series travels from various coasts to the poles to examine watery denizens ranging from the gigantic blue whale to microscopic coral polyps.

The run

Seasons

1 season · 8 episodes.

  • Official poster for Specials

    Season 0 · Complete

    Specials

    200123 episodes

  • Official poster for The Blue Planet

    Season 1 · Complete

    The Blue Planet

    20018 episodes

    7.9IMDb

    The Blue Planet is a British nature documentary series created and produced by the BBC. It premiered on 12 September 2001 in the United Kingdom. It is narrated by David Attenborough. Described as "the first ever comprehensive series on the natural history of the world's oceans", each of the eight 50-minute episodes examines a different aspect of marine life. The underwater photography included creatures and behaviour that had previously never been filmed.

    Best episode · S01E02 The Deep

Where the series peaks

Best Episodes

The hours that define the show, ranked by audience response and editorial signal.

Still from The Deep

S01E02 · Signature episode

The Deep

8.5IMDb12 votes

A place of mountain ranges, perpetual night, pressures extremes and cold... and the weirdest life forms on our planet. Dive into the depths of the ocean, an eerie world where predators with teeth so large they can't even close their mouths, chase bio-luminescent creatures of the deep. Discover the spectacular smoking chimneys of the hydrothermal vents. Go deeper down than you have ever been...

19 Sept 200150 min
Still from Coral Seas

S01E06 · Signature episode

Coral Seas

8.0IMDb9 votes

Bathed in bright sunlight and warm clear water, the coral reef is a rich oasis of life - the rainforest of the sea. Bizarrely adorned harlequin shrimp carry off a starfish several times their size, while haunting songs reverberate around the reef, heralding the arrival of humpback whales. Shimmering schools of brightly colored fish battle for territory in this competitive world where you have to stand out to survive.

17 Oct 200150 min
Still from Tidal Seas

S01E07 · Signature episode

Tidal Seas

7.9IMDb9 votes

The sun and moon move billions of tons of water with every turn of the tide. The strongest tides empty entire bays, smash trees on riverbanks, and strand sea creatures on suddenly dry land. Weaker tides control the movements of huge numbers of fish, coaxing stingrays though astounding underwater arches. And as the water recedes, the tide can create unbelievable landscapes - like a sparkling world of salt crystals inhabited only by tiny shrimp and bright pink flamingos.

24 Oct 200150 min
Still from Frozen Seas

S01E04 · Signature episode

Frozen Seas

7.9IMDb9 votes

An environment where only the toughest survive, the Arctic and Antarctic are unrelenting habitats. Only in spring does life begin again. Plankton blooms and feeds fast hordes of migrating fish, walruses rake the seabed for clams, and minke and humpback whales gorge themselves on gigantic swarms of krill. But it is a brief spring feast - the ice soon returns and pushes life back into the ocean.

3 Oct 200150 min
Still from Coasts

S01E08 · Signature episode

Coasts

7.9IMDb9 votes

From rocky cliffs to gentle dunes, the coasts are always changing. Day in and day out, they are battered by crashing waves. Seabirds come here by the thousands to nest, while baby turtles hatch and race to the sea, pursued by hungry predators. Young sea lion pups are born and play on the sand - until a killer whale attacks, crashing in on the surf. But when breeding season is over, life returns to the sea and the shores are empty once again.

31 Oct 200150 min
Still from Open Ocean

S01E03

Open Ocean

7.8IMDb9 votes

In the immense space of the open ocean the sea bed is a staggering five miles below the surface and the nearest island is over 300 miles away. Yet here live many of the most spectacular predators in the ocean. Marvel as you experience ruthless and beautiful battles between hunter and prey.

26 Sept 200150 min

Recently aired

Latest Episodes

Still unavailable

S00E15

Being There: Between the Tides

2 Oct 200710 min
Still unavailable

S00E14

Being There: Antarctica

2 Oct 200710 min
Still unavailable

S00E13

The Blue Planet: Amazon Abyss

3 Oct 200550 min
Still unavailable

S00E12

The Blue Planet: Dive to Shark Volcano

3 Oct 200550 min
Still unavailable

S00E11

The Blue Planet: The Abyss

3 Oct 200550 min
Still unavailable

S00E10

The Blue Planet: Deep Trouble

10.0IMDb1 votes
5 May 200250 min

Behind the series

Created by

Showrunners, creators, executive producers and the writers who set the voice of the series.

The craft

Key Crew

Directing, writing, production, camera, music and editing.

Executive production

Direction

Music

Where to watch

Streaming

Availability verified against regional listings.

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  • Discovery+ Amazon ChannelStreaming
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  • Discovery +Streaming
  • Planet Earth Amazon ChannelStreaming

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