Summary of complaint
We received complaints from people following inaccurate press reports that a ‘sixth episode’ of Wild Isles was being shown on BBC iPlayer and not BBC One.
Our response
Wild Isles is, and has always been, a five-part series, as can be seen from the announcement last August:
https://bbc.com.im/mediacentre/2022/sir-david-attenborough-to-present-major-new-series-on-uk-wildlife-for-bbc-one%3C/a%3E.%3Cbr%3E
The series, co-produced with the RSPB and WWF, does not shy away from environmental concerns which are addressed throughout the five episodes. There is no sixth episode.
In addition to the Wild Isles series, the RSPB and WWF, in conjunction with the National Trust, commissioned their own documentary called ‘Saving Our Wild Isles’, inspired by Wild Isles. It is about people working to preserve and restore the biodiversity of the British Isles. It is a standalone film and isn’t part of the Wild Isles series, and it was not commissioned or paid for by the BBC. We are however acquiring the documentary and are planning to show it on BBC iPlayer.
The RSPB, WWF, the Open University, the National Trust and Silverback Films have all publicly put out messages confirming this.