BBC Nature Titles Head to ABC TV

LONDON: A host of series from the BBC Worldwide catalogue, among them Life and Nature’s Great Events, have been licensed to ABC TV in Australia.

BBC Worldwide Australia closed a deal for a package of titles to air on ABC1. This includes Life, a natural-history title, shot in HD, that explores the diversity of life on Earth. Each episode is entirely dedicated to one of the planet’s ten most important wildlife groups. Yellowstone follows the intertwining stories of the inhabitants of one of the world’s last wildernesses. The BBC/Animal Planet and Discovery co-production reveals the grandeur of this unique place as its animals struggle to survive over the course of three seasons. Nature’s Great Events, a BBC/Discovery Channel co-production in association with Wanda Films, looks at the power of nature as it witnesses the planet’s natural events, and follows the wildlife stories behind them. The factual series Human Journey explains how humans conquered the planet. Tracing the ancient routes of our early ancestors, the show reveals the challenges they faced. Human Journey is a BBC/Travel Channel co-production in association with France 5.

The third season of hit drama series Robin Hood, produced by Tiger Aspect, has also been acquired.

BBC Worldwide has licensed additional content to digital channel ABC2. Two seasons of the studio music show Later…with Jools Holland will air alongside the new Canadian drama series Being Erica, which stars Erin Karpluk (The L Word) as Erica, a 30-something failure who finds herself flung back into her teenage past in full possession of her adult mind. Being Erica is a Temple Street Productions production for CBC and BBC Worldwide.

“The strength of this slate reflects the creativity and talent of the independent production sector, as well as that of the BBC,” said Amber Knight, BBC Worldwide Australia’s head of television sales. "We are proud to bring this lineup to the ABC and to help make it a success for them.”

“Given the quality and the range of this lineup, I know it will play well to ABC audiences,” added Marena Manzoufas, ABC TV’s head of programming. “The natural-history slate in particular will be a huge drawcard for our viewers.”