BBC Earth

A behind-the-scenes look at the series that explores the most successful animal group on Earth, from the tiny Etruscan shrew to the largest mammal in existence, the blue whale.

Maitre d' and `Extraordinary Places to Eat' host Fred Sirieix and GP Zoe Williams open a restaurant with a difference, welcoming 20 unsuspecting diners for a slap-up meal. It all sounds normal enough, but this restaurant has something unexpected.

In Wigan, Gregg Wallace visits an enormous soup factory, which produces two million tins a day. He follows the production of vegetable soup, from a pea harvest in Yorkshire right through to the finished soup going into cans and being dispatched.

A magical mid-summer railway journey through central Sweden starts in Mora on the Inlandsbanan. This traditional town is in the county of Dalarna, the heart of Swedish traditional culture and often known as`Sweden in miniature'.

In Kavik, Sue heads to a nearby fishing hole to try and replenish her food supply and, in Nenana, Jessie does squirrel maintenance around camp to protect his dog food supply.

Ben travels to the Sierra Nevada mountains in the USA to meet Mike Basich, a snowboarder who left professional sport to reconnect with nature. Ben joins him in his hand-built log cabin and follows him as he embarks on a life changing project.

In the journey towards adulthood, a moment comes for all animals when they must strike out on their own. With their parents absent they must learn to survive in a dangerous world. Every small success may mean the difference between life and death.

In Wigan, Gregg Wallace visits an enormous soup factory, which produces two million tins a day. He follows the production of vegetable soup, from a pea harvest in Yorkshire right through to the finished soup going into cans and being dispatched.

Our journey begins in Anchorage, Alaska, where we board a luxury passenger train. Later, we head north to enter the vast wilderness of Alaska, which is America's largest and remotest state.

Unable to shoot from her right side due to injury, Sue Aitkens travels to Fairbanks to invest in some left-handed weaponry, while the Hailstones hunt for moulting ducks.

Ben journeys to South America to visit Rhona, an actress who left Hollywood to live alone in a remote valley in Uruguay after having become seriously disillusioned with her previous life.

Animals must find somewhere to live, a place that provides shelter from the elements and a refuge from enemies. Good homes are rare and competition can be intense, finding a home is one thing, but defending it is quite another.

Gregg Wallace is in Ireland at an enormous liqueurs factory that produces 540,000 bottles a day. He follows the production of cream liqueur from the arrival of maize to make Irish whiskey right through to dispatch of the finished liqueur.

An intense area of low pressure that forms over warm tropical waters, tropical cyclones are responsible for some of the most catastrophic extreme weather events. Their deadly winds and torrential rain wreak destruction on an unprecedented scale.

With the rivers flowing and the spring thaw, residents of the last frontier head into the wilderness to hunt and gather vital resources.

In Sri Lanka, Ben meets a vet who has swapped Tyneside for the south coast of Sri Lanka, where she has opened a clinic and also runs a charity that care for some of the island's many stray dogs.

The last leg of Joanna Lumley's journey takes her to Zanzibar, the spice island of Africa where merchants from around the world have left their mark on the architecture, religion and music.

A look into the British theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking. Detailing his childhood, education, marriage, family life, and his work on the Big Bang and black holes.

Our journey begins in Anchorage, Alaska, where we board a luxury passenger train. Later, we head north to enter the vast wilderness of Alaska, which is America's largest and remotest state.

With the rivers flowing and the spring thaw, residents of the last frontier head into the wilderness to hunt and gather vital resources.

In Sri Lanka, Ben meets a vet who has swapped Tyneside for the south coast of Sri Lanka, where she has opened a clinic and also runs a charity that care for some of the island's many stray dogs.

The last leg of Joanna Lumley's journey takes her to Zanzibar, the spice island of Africa where merchants from around the world have left their mark on the architecture, religion and music.

A look into the British theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking. Detailing his childhood, education, marriage, family life, and his work on the Big Bang and black holes.

Our journey begins in Anchorage, Alaska, where we board a luxury passenger train. Later, we head north to enter the vast wilderness of Alaska, which is America's largest and remotest state.