Television
Discovery Channel celebrates David Attenborough’s 100th birthday with special programming
The world’s most beloved natural historian turns a century old and Warner Bros. Discovery marks the occasion with two films on Discovery Channel and Animal Planet
He has narrated the birth of glaciers, the courtship of birds of paradise and the slow death of coral reefs. On 8 May, David Attenborough turns 100, and Warner Bros. Discovery is marking the occasion with a special programming tribute across Discovery Channel and Animal Planet in India, anchored by the premiere of a brand new film narrated by the man himself.
Leading the lineup is Life in Colours, premiering on Discovery Channel at 9pm and on Animal Planet at 3pm and 9pm. The film explores Attenborough’s lifelong fascination with the natural world, using groundbreaking filming techniques to reveal how animals use colour for survival, communication and courtship in ways invisible to the human eye. It is, in other words, exactly the kind of thing Attenborough has been doing for eight decades, and still does better than anyone alive.
Also airing is Parenthood, a re-release narrated by Attenborough, which traces the universal and often brutal business of raising young in the wild, from tentative first steps to daring first hunts, across species. It airs on Animal Planet at 2pm and 8pm.
Sai Abishek, head of factual entertainment, lifestyle and kids for South Asia at Warner Bros. Discovery, said the celebration carried particular resonance for Indian audiences. “Sir David Attenborough’s storytelling has shaped the way generations connect with nature and understand the world around them,” he said. “As he turns 100, we are honoured to celebrate a living legend who continues to inspire curiosity and love for the natural world. His work has held a special place for audiences in India through Animal Planet and Discovery Channel, building a deep and lasting affinity for natural history storytelling over the years.”
Discovery Channel and BBC Studios’ Natural History Unit have collaborated over the decades to produce some of the most iconic natural history titles ever made, including Planet Earth and Life, both fronted by Attenborough, series that did not merely document the natural world but taught millions to care about it.
A hundred years old, and the planet’s most persuasive advocate for the planet is still at it. If that is not worth a prime-time slot, nothing is.
