BBC Earth

25-year-old sports fanatic Kerry dreams of becoming a Paralympian after a skiing accident changed her life.Roman Kemp wants to introduce her to an unlikely ally: the humble beetroot.

From the frozen poles to the searing deserts, this episode shows how animals have come up with strategies to survive the uneven amounts of sunlight that fall on our planet.

The adventurer meets Jeff and Rose and their five daughters who live in the vast wilderness of north-west Canada.It's late autumn, and before long the family will be locked in by two metres of snow.

Ben journeys to Ireland's rugged Atlantic coastline in the bleak midwinter.He stays with Judith, an 80-year-old who rejected a modern way of life for one closer to nature.

Sue Aikens faces a life-and-death challenge when she returns to camp to find that thieves have pilfered her winter fuel supply.

Lucy has a cunning plan to pair up dairy cows with motherless beef calves, Emma's parents are shown the ropes and left in charge, and signs of predation give Ally a tough decision.

How do some animals survive conditions so cold, they seem to defy the laws of nature.

What are the processes behind the building of complex structures and could we adapt spider silk to benefit us?

Michael Portillo travels east through the Balkans along the most exotic section of the Orient Express.His destination is Istanbul, a multi-ethnic city where Europe and Asia meet via an underground railway.

Michael Portillo travels the Habsburg imperial line from Vienna across the awe-inspiring Semmering Pass, a handmade railway line blasted through the Alps.His destination is the Adriatic port of Trieste.

Michael Portillo makes a grand tour of a favourite Edwardian destination - Italy - where he experiences first-hand the nation's need for speed in a state-of-the-art Maserati sports car.Michael ends his journey in futuristic style with a high-speed boat trip across Lake Garda.

The struggle for survival in Alaska continues for Sue, Jessie, Glenn and the Hailstones.

Ben meets the Powell family who are living an off-grid existence in a hidden valley in the Black Mountains in Wales.While there he helps plant the biggest new woodland in Wales for a generation.

Sue Perkins starts her journey in Tokyo, home to 36 million people.She trains with a female sumo wrestling team and meets a family who live with robots.

Steve Backshall is on a mission to create a new generation of shark saviours, but first he needs to find his team.Steve takes 12 young UK hopefuls to boot camp.

In the heart of Asia lie vast arid lands. These deserts and dry grasslands are so hostile, they push life to the limit.The animals that live here are some of the earth's toughest.

With limited daylight, Alaskans must brave cruel temperatures to secure their survival.Storms make essentials like finding water supplies and pelts urgent.

Adventurer Ben Fogle returns to the Pembrokeshire coast to catch up with Matthew and Charis Watkinson, and their two children.

Ex-navy pilot Rich has a massive 16cm tumour from his jaw to his heart.Meanwhile, nearly all of the organs in Tracy's pelvis need to be removed because of her stage 4 bowel cancer.

Professor Chris and some students investigate a glacier after the Arctic experiences its warmest winter ever recorded.Alex takes a tour group to a Russian mining settlement.

In the US a man and his dog take cover as a rare tornado outbreak rips through towns on the East coast.In Norway, a boxer has the fight of his life when a swim under the ice goes disastrously wrong and in Western Australia, a homeowner is in a faceoff with the flames.

Sue Perkins starts her journey in Tokyo, home to 36 million people.She trains with a female sumo wrestling team and meets a family who live with robots.

Steve Backshall is on a mission to create a new generation of shark saviours, but first he needs to find his team.Steve takes 12 young UK hopefuls to boot camp.

In the heart of Asia lie vast arid lands. These deserts and dry grasslands are so hostile, they push life to the limit.The animals that live here are some of the earth's toughest.