Original version

BBC Northern Ireland region started on 19th April 1955 as part of the BBC Television Service, before becoming BBC One Northern Ireland.

BBC One Northern Ireland

Blue Planet II

Documentaries

Factual: Science & Nature: Nature & Environment

Documentary series, presented by David Attenborough, exploring the planet's oceans.

Wildlife documentary series, presented and narrated by David Attenborough, exploring the planet's oceans.

Series 1

BBC Two

BBC Four

CBBC

The BBC West region started on 1st September 1957 as part of the BBC Television Service, before becoming BBC One West.

BBC One West

Simulcast of network BBC One in high definition. From 03/11/2010

BBC One HD

The BBC South West region started on 20th April 1961 as part of the BBC Television Service, before becoming BBC One South West.

BBC One South West

The BBC South region started on 5th January 1961 as part of the BBC Television Service, before becoming BBC One South.

BBC One South

Simulcast of BBC One Scotland in high definition. From 14/01/2013

BBC One Scotland HD

Simulcast of BBC One Northern Ireland in high definition. From 24/10/2012

BBC One Northern Ireland HD

Simulcast of BBC One Wales in high definition. From 29/01/2013

BBC One Wales HD

BBC One London

London

BBC One West Midlands

BBC One region covering Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire.

BBC One East Midlands

The BBC East region started on 1st May 1959 as part of the BBC Television Service, before becoming BBC One East.

BBC One East

BBC One North West

The BBC North East & Cumbria region started in 1959 (tbc) as part of the BBC Television Service, before becoming BBC One North East & Cumbria.

BBC One North East & Cumbria

BBC One Yorkshire

BBC One Oxfordshire

Formerly part of a wider BBC One South East region that included London and part of the South region. Separated from BBC One London 2001-09-03 following reorganisation of the South East region.

BBC One South East

BBC One Cambridgeshire

BBC One Channel Islands

BBC One Yorks & Lincs

BBC One Scotland

Scotland

BBC One Wales

Wales

Simulcast of network BBC Two in high definition.

BBC Two HD

BBC Two Scotland

BBC Two Northern Ireland

Until 03/01/2009 BBC Two Wales (analogue) was known simply as BBC Two Wales. BBC Two Wales (digital) was BBC 2W. From 03/01/2009 BBC Two Wales schedules on both analogue and digital became identical

BBC Two Wales

BBC Two England

England

Simulcast of BBC Two Northern Ireland in high definition

BBC Two Northern Ireland HD

Simulcast of BBC Two Wales in high definition

BBC Two Wales HD

BBC Four HD

CBBC HD

CBBC Channel

David Attenborough

James Honeyborne

Mark Brownlow

Miles Barton

Katie Hall

Blue Planet II: Series 1: Episode 6: Coasts

Coasts

Episode 6

Episode 6: Coasts

BBC One - Blue Planet II, Series 1, Coasts

Coasts are the most changeable of the ocean worlds, but they offer great riches.

The wildlife series narrated by David Attenborough explores the planet's coasts. They are the most changeable of the ocean worlds, but they offer great riches.

On the coast, two worlds collide. Coasts are the most dynamic and challenging habitats in the ocean - that brings great rewards but also great danger. The extraordinary animals that live here must find ingenious ways to cope with two very different worlds.

This episode is a rollercoaster ride of heart-stopping action and epic drama, peopled with characters from the beautiful to the bizarre. We meet fish that live on dry land and puffins that must travel 60 miles or more for a single meal, and witness a life-and-death struggle in a technicolour rock pool.

In a secluded cove in the Galapagos, sea lions feast on 60kg tuna. It should be impossible - tuna are usually far too fast for sea lions to catch. But here the sea lions club together to herd their prey inshore. Once trapped in the shallows, these huge fish are easy pickings.

As the tide recedes in Brazil, lightfoot crabs leap from rock to rock, desperately avoiding the water - their lives depend on it. Moray eels launch themselves from rock pools, jaw gaping. Then octopuses, too. Both crawl across dry rock to set their ambush. Elsewhere, the ever-changing tides create rock pools. But these temporary worlds are a battleground. Predatory starfish turn a magical garden into the stuff of nightmares. 

All around the world, immense waves pound the shore, and this episode reveals some of the largest on the planet, over 30 metres high. Over millennia these forces carve exquisite coastal sculptures and cliffs that are home to huge colonies of seabirds. Puffins fly up to 30 miles out to sea to find food for their chicks. A father returns with one precious beakful of food... then pirates attack. Desperate dads must escape the faster and more aerobatic skuas before finally delivering a meal to their young puffling.

Meanwhile, in the remote Pacific islands lives the most terrestrial fish on the planet. It lives in miniature caves above the tide lines and uses its tail like a coiled spring to jump from rock to rock. A male tries to attract a mate, but waves are a constant hindrance. These are fish that seem to hate water!

Once a year, king penguins return to the cold Antarctic shores of South Georgia for a month-long moult. First they must cross the biggest wall of blubber on the planet - thousands of gigantic elephant seals. Then they face a month with no food, before they can return to their natural home, the chilly Antarctic seas. 

The planet's coasts are changing fast as they are among the most built-up areas of the world. Just off the beaches of Miami, the largest gathering of coastal sharks on the planet can still be found. But today they must face the many challenges that come from our world too.

Accessibility links

Programme Index

Blue Planet II

Series 1

Episode 6: Coasts

Contributors

Genres

Formats

Brand

Series

BBC One Northern Ireland

About BBC One