Attenborougheducatesbywayofawe

• Published date: 18 April 2023
• Publication title: Signal

OH, isn’t it lovely to have a new David Attenborough series! Wild Isles offers an unparalleled look at the spectacular, miraculous and unique natural world of Britain and Ireland. It is a stunning portrait of breeding orcas, golden eagles, foxes and dormice; woodlands, meadows and rivers. Just beautiful. Something to be immensely proud of, something to nurture and to protect

There is nothing like an Attenborough-led nature documentary, and this is likely to be his last on location. From its majestic score to its pioneering cinematography and its clever narratives, this is education by way of awe.

“The British Isles are globally important for nature,” he says, before we follow an orca pod as they strategise ways of hunting their favourite food: a nice, juicy seal. They swim on their sides to hide their dorsal fins as they approach, which is amazing to see, then teach their young how to drown their prey. Fine family entertainment.

We see the oldest oak tree in Britain, which has been standing for 1046 years and so predates the Norman Conquest. Wild Isles makes many claims for the UK’s isles’ exceptional nature, from the mighty oaks to the chalk streams that are one of the rarest habitats on Earth. There are only 200 or so of these mineral-rich waters in the world and 85% are in southern England. We see kingfishers, tawny owls and badger cubs. A segment dedicated to how the common lords-and-ladies pollinates is surprisingly intricate and absolutely stunning.

There is usually one headline set piece, a talking point. Although there are plenty to choose from, I suspect it may be between the golden eagles fighting the barnacle goose — so thrilling it reminded me of Top Gun: Maverick (only without the military propaganda) — or the gulls versus the puffins, which had a strong air of Whac-A-Mole.

After the wonder and majesty, though, you know what’s coming. Attenborough usually doles out the bad news carefully, gradually, before ending each episode on more of a doomsday warning. The idea, I think, is that this makes it more palatable. Celebrate, then hit hard. He throws wonder after wonder at the screen, before gently informing us that, despite the preciousness of hay meadows, 97% of them have been lost in the past 60 years; that, despite the sheer beauty of design that allows a specific moth with a specific proboscis to extract pollen from a specific flower, 60% of the British Isles’ flying insects have vanished in the past 20 years.

There has...