David Attenborough’s Wild Isles review: ‘Life on Earth meets Wind in the Willows’
This is ‘beautiful, extraordinary, wonder-inducing’ television

Presented on location by the 96-year-old David Attenborough, Wild Isles gives Great Britain and Ireland “the full bells-and-whistles Planet Earth treatment”, said Carol Midgley in The Times. And the results are “breathtaking”. The series doesn’t always make for comfortable viewing – the killing starts barely six minutes in, with a “poor seal pup being tossed around and set upon by a pod of killer whales”. But we then move on to “eagles, dormice and badgers. Oh, and more killing.” Some viewers “won’t be as blown away” by this series as they were by, say, Planet Earth II’s “jaw-dropping scenes from the Galápagos”, but “as with all these films, the effort that has gone into it is first-class”.
The series is not short of the kind of “heart-pounding drama we expect of Attenborough”, said Christopher Stevens in the Daily Mail; the difference is, all that is set against “the gentle charm of our familiar countryside”. What you end up with feels like a lovely blend of “Life on Earth and The Wind in the Willows”.
The series is a triumph, agreed Rachel Cooke in The New Statesman. As the BBC cameras “roam from Shetland to Cornwall to Northern Ireland”, excitement rises “irresistibly” within you. “‘I live here!’ you think. In this astonishing place, where there are badgers and bluebells and barnacle geese!” This is “beautiful, extraordinary, wonder-inducing television” to stir the heart.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
A tall ship adventure in the Mediterranean
The Week Recommends Sailing aboard this schooner and exploring Portugal, Spain and Monaco is a 'magical' experience
-
How drone warfare works
The Explainer From Ukraine to Iran, it has become clear that unmanned aircraft are rapidly revolutionising modern warfare
-
The tourist flood in the Mediterranean: can it be stemmed?
Talking Point Finger-pointing at Airbnb or hotel owners obscures the root cause of overtourism in holiday hotspots: unmanageable demand
-
The tourist flood in the Mediterranean: can it be stemmed?
Talking Point Finger-pointing at Airbnb or hotel owners obscures the root cause of overtourism in holiday hotspots: unmanageable demand
-
Thai fish pie with crispy turmeric potatoes recipe
The Week Recommends Tasty twist on the Lancashire hot pot is given a golden glow
-
Lovestuck: a 'warm-hearted' musical with a 'powerhouse score'
The Week Recommends Team behind the hit podcast My Dad Wrote a Porno have created a hilarious show about a disastrous viral Tinder date
-
Outrageous: glossy Mitford family drama is full of 'fun, fashion and froth'
The Week Recommends Adaptation of Mary Lovell's biography examines the scandalous lives of the aristocratic sisters
-
F1: The Movie – a fun but formulaic 'corporate tie-in'
Talking Point Brad Pitt stars as a washed up racing driver returning three decades after a near-fatal crash
-
Lost Boys: a 'sobering' journey to the heart of the manosphere
The Week Recommends James Bloodworth examines the 'cranks and hucksters' making money through 'masculine discontent'
-
6 productivity-ready homes with great offices
Feature Featuring an office with a gas fireplace in Oregon and a shared workspace with wraparound windows in Massachusetts
-
Critics' choice: Carrying the flag
Feature The best barbecue in town, Bradley Cooper's cheesesteak restaurant, and more