C5 goes Wild, Nocturnal in Britain

The UK’s Channel 5 has ordered two natural history programmes, with one focusing on the country’s wildlife in obscure areas and the other on animal activity at night.

Ben Frow

Wild Britain (8×60′), which the Viacom-owned broadcaster describes as one of its most ambitious wildlife projects ever, will be produced by Grant Mansfield’s Bristol-based indie Plimsoll Productions.

The series, which will feature the voice of Hugh Bonneville (Downton Abbey), will be filmed across one year to reveal the unseen lives of both familiar and the more unusual animals that inhabit the UK.

Nocturnal Britain (3×60′), meanwhile, will be produced by Tinopolis-owned UK prodco Pioneer Productions. Using new low-light camera technology to explore lives of Britain’s animals after dark, it will air across three consecutive nights later this year.

Ben Frow, C5’s director of programmes, said: “Natural history has an important place on the channel and these new commissions underline our ambition to deliver high-quality and innovative programming across a range of genres.”

Wild Britain was commissioned by Frow and C5 commissioning editor Sean Doyle. It is executive produced by Martha Holmes and Andrew Jackson, and the series producer is Bill Markham for Plimsoll Productions.

Nocturnal Britain was commissioned by Frow and commissioning editor Lucy Willis. The exec producers are Thomas Viner and Helen Williamson for Pioneer Productions, while Adrian Cale series produces.