With the finale of Planet Earth 2 airing on Sunday there is just one question on the lips of the show's 12-million-a-week viewers: will there be a next series? And, maybe more importantly, will David Attenborough be a part of it if there is?
Speaking to the Guardian, producer Mike Gunton said that they would like to make another series but it would not be on screen in the near future, as the amount of resources dedicated to making the programme means each episode takes more than three years to make.
"Part of it is the sheer logistical necessity of getting people from A to B," Mike said. "If you are going to spend a month or six weeks filming in Siberia, and then you have to get to Namibia, it physically takes you a long time."
The wait between the first and second series of the show was 10 years and it's likely it would take the time same time again to produce the next instalment.
At 90 years old, only time will tell if the BBC will feel David Attenborough is up to the challenge of another series at 100 years of age, or whether they'll feel the time is right for a younger replacement. Discussing the prospect of Sir David's retirement, Mike said he recalled his first departmental meeting after joining the BBC almost 30 years ago when there was talk of replacing the veteran broadcaster.
"That was almost 30 years ago," he said. "And if you had any unit meeting today you would probably ask the same question, and you would probably also have the same answer. Which is that you can't [replace him], and it's almost pointless trying to."
Irreplaceable.
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Featured image credit: PA
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