Natural World poster

TV series

Natural World

1983TV-G39 seasons7.4 / 10

Natural World is a nature documentary television series broadcast annually on BBC Two and regarded by the BBC as its flagship natural history brand. It is currently the longest-running series in its genre on British television, with more than 400 episodes broadcast since its inception in 1983. Natural World is produced by the BBC Natural History Unit in Bristol, but individual programmes can be in-house productions, collaborative productions with other broadcasters or films made and distributed by independent production companies and purchased by the BBC. Natural World programmes are often broadcast as PBS Nature episodes in the USA. Since 2008, most Natural World programmes have been shot and broadcast in high definition.

Streaming, rental and purchase options

Where to watch in United States

Checked Jul 22, 2026

Natural World is available to stream on Britbox in United States. Use the direct links below to open the provider.

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Synopsis

Natural World is a nature documentary television series broadcast annually on BBC Two and regarded by the BBC as its flagship natural history brand. It is currently the longest-running series in its genre on British television, with more than 400 episodes broadcast since its inception in 1983. Natural World is produced by the BBC Natural History Unit in Bristol, but individual programmes can be in-house productions, collaborative productions with other broadcasters or films made and distributed by independent production companies and purchased by the BBC. Natural World programmes are often broadcast as PBS Nature episodes in the USA. Since 2008, most Natural World programmes have been shot and broadcast in high definition.

Season 4 episodes

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Episode 1

Land of the Tiger

Land of the Tiger looks at the protected species of the Kanha and Ranthambore National Parks, celebrating these elusive and endangered big cats and exploring the delicately balanced ecosystem they inhabit. Interweaving footage of monkeys, deer and the tiger’s main competitor, crocodiles, the couple’s impressive cinematography brings the private world of tigers to life, as these magnificent creatures swim, play, mate, suckle their young and stalk their prey.

Episode credits

Guest stars Richard Kiley

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Episode 2

Namaqualand - Diary of a Desert Garden

50m

In all Africa there is no stranger riddle than the flowering of the land of the Nama. Those bushmen were the first to see their desert land burgeon into a blaze of color. But this paradise was always short-lived; a spectacular bloom that quickly withered away, not to be seen again for many years. RODNEY BORLAND filmed the most recent of these stupendous and mystifying displays. To a landscape already weird with huge halfmens plants, elephant ears and baboons' fingers, suddenly came vast arrays of nodding daisies and wave upon wave of mesembryanthemums, wild geraniums, gladioli and amaryllis. The landscape was bathed in brilliant hues, a natural garden whose glory may not shine again before the end of this century.

Episode credits

Guest stars Barry Paine

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Episode 3

Horns of Dilemma

Documentary on the illicit trade in Rhino horns, which is threatening the five kinds of rhinoceros with extinction.

Episode credits

Guest stars John Hedges

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Episode 4

On the Verge of Life

Documentary about wildlife which lives around Britain's motorways.

Episode credits

Guest stars Martin Jarvis

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Episode 11

Kingdom of the Ice Bear: The Frozen Ocean

First in a three part series examining Arctic ecology, The Frozen Ocean focuses on the spring to summer months, providing an intimate portrayal of life in a land of relentless ice and intense cold.

Episode credits

Guest stars Hywel Bennett

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Episode 12

Kingdom of the Ice Bear: The Land of Beyond

Hywel Bennett narrates the second of an award-winning trilogy of films about the Arctic. The winter is long and harsh, but for eight weeks of the year the midnight sun warms the frozen earth, nurturing lush vegetation and a rich variety of flowers, and transforming the barren wastelands into fecund breeding grounds so the life of the Arctic can renew itself.

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Episode 13

Kingdom of the Ice Bear: The Final Challenge

Documentary series about the Arctic and its inhabitants.

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Episode 14

Aspen - A Dance of Leaves

The wild life of the prairies of Canada during the winter months.

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Episode 19

Masked Monkeys

Documentary on Guenons, a species of African forest monkey, and their place in the evolutionary hierarchy.

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Episode information updated Jul 24, 2026

More about Natural World

Cast

John HannahNarrator (voice)
Juliet StevensonNarrator (voice)
Ian HolmNarrator
John HurtNarrator
Geraldine JamesSelf
Robert Lindsay
Anthony Hopkins
Tim Pigott-SmithNarrator

Production details

Status
Ended
Series type
Documentary
Episodes
543
Original language
English

Networks & production

  • BBC TwoUnited Kingdom
  • BBC StudiosUnited Kingdom
  • BBC Studios Natural History UnitUnited Kingdom
  • BBCUnited Kingdom

Themes

animalsenvironmentnaturenature documentarywildlife