Sign language

BBC Two

Knowledge, drama, comedy and the arts for a broad adult audience.

BBC Two is a lively channel of depth and substance, carrying a range of knowledge-building programming complemented by great drama, comedy and arts.

BBC Two England

BBC Two is a TV channel that started broadcasting on the 20th April 1964.

BBC 2

BBC2

BBC Two (England)

England

Planet Earth III

Documentaries

Factual: Science & Nature

David Attenborough shares amazing stories of the wonders of the planet.

Our home - thrilling, mind-blowing, and full of hope. David Attenborough shares amazing stories of the wonders of the planet. There's always more to discover.

Series 1

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

BBC One East

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

BBC One South HD

BBC One East HD

BBC One region covering Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire.

BBC One East Midlands HD

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

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

BBC One HD

BBC One Yorkshire

BBC One Nightlight

BBC One East Midlands

BBC One South East 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

BBC One North West HD

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

BBC One West HD

BBC One Channel Islands HD

BBC One West Midlands

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 West

BBC One Yorks & Lincs

BBC One Cambridgeshire HD

BBC One Cambridgeshire

BBC One North West

BBC One London

London

BBC One Yorkshire HD

BBC One West Midlands HD

BBC One Channel Islands

BBC One Yorks & Lincs HD

BBC One South West HD

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

BBC One London HD

BBC One South

BBC One Oxfordshire

BBC One Oxfordshire HD

BBC One North East & Cumbria HD

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

BBC One Scotland HD

BBC One Scotland

Scotland

BBC One Wales

Wales

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 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

Simulcast of network BBC Two in high definition.

BBC Two HD

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

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

David Attenborough

Bronwen Thomas

Michael Gunton

Matt Brandon

Jonny Keeling

Kiri Cashell

Planet Earth III: Series 1: Deserts and Grasslands

Deserts and Grasslands

BBC One - Planet Earth III, Series 1, Deserts and Grasslands

David Attenborough explores earth’s great wildernesses as nature puts on a dramatic show.

David Attenborough explores earth’s greatest wildernesses, where extraordinary life survives in unexpected ways, and nature puts on its most dramatic show.

In the baked Namib desert, a pair of ostriches raise their family in the searing heat to keep them safe from predators – but time is ticking as the chicks begin to hatch. Outside of the egg, the newborns won’t survive long in these temperatures, but not all of the clutch hatch at once. For the whole brood to survive, the parents need to time their departure perfectly, but tragically they are forced to leave behind a single unhatched egg. As the family depart, the newborn emerges and the lone chick wanders the vast Namib desert calling for its family.

In the desert, life exists in a world with almost no water, and it drives one troop of desert baboons on a continual quest to find it. A young mother who is low in the pecking order must battle for her right to drink – her newborn’s life depends on it. Without water, her milk will run dry.

As climatic change causes deserts around the world to expand, dust storms towering up to a mile high and travelling at speeds of up to 70mph overwhelm entire cities in an instant.

Where rain falls regularly, it can transform a desert, turning it into one of earth’s most productive landscapes – grasslands. Grasslands support the biggest concentrations of large animals on the planet. This wealth of life, in turn, attracts predators. Leopards are the most adaptable of the big cats, and a handful of special individuals have learned to hunt by hiding and leaping from treetops, some higher than the roof of a two-storey house. Their lives depend on them getting this unique game of hide-and-seek right, and when they do, their prey doesn’t see them coming. 

Grasslands are one of the most widespread habitats on earth, and in the frozen north, herds of alien-like saiga antelope fight for their chance to win mating rights. Seventy per cent of rutting males die every year in battles that have been taking place since the ice age. 

Closer to the equator, a grassland paradise can be found – the Cerrado in Brazil. This is the richest grassland on earth and home to the rare, fruit-eating maned wolf. Little is known about this bizarre creature, and for the first time, we glimpse inside the den of wild maned wolf. A mother raises her three puppies, but their future is uncertain. The Cerrado is a vitally important grassland – home to thousands of species of plants and animals found nowhere else – and it is in danger of being lost forever. This grassland is being destroyed more than two times faster than the Amazon rainforest to clear land for farming.  Reduced to 50 per cent of its former size, some predict it could disappear completely in the next 30 years.

But there is hope. In central Africa, one of the world’s most spectacular wildlife gatherings is testament to what can happen if we help protect these precious ecosystems and allow nature to restore its own balance.

Planet Earth III: Series 1

BBC One

Sir David Attenborough tells amazing stories of the wonders and fragility of the planet.

Our home, our future. Sir David Attenborough tells amazing stories of the wonders and fragility of the planet – thrilling, moving, but full of hope. There's always more to discover.

Accessibility links

Programme Index

Planet Earth III

Series 1

Deserts and Grasslands

Contributors

Genres

Formats

Brand

Series

BBC Two England

About BBC Two