Daily Mail: Sir David Attenborough's Dynasties will NOT return to the BBC

Story from Daily Mail:

The BBC has shelved plans for a third series of Sir David Attenborough's Dynasties, five years after it launched to critical acclaim.

The popular wildlife series, which follows the plight of endangered animals across the world, originally aired in 2018 along with Attenborough's co-authored book Dynasties: The Rise and Fall of Animal Families.

It returned with a second series in 2022, but BBC executives have opted to pass on the development of a third.

A source told The Sun: 'It will no doubt be a huge blow to fans of the series, who tuned in from the US to New Zealand for the second season.

'It was widely expected that a third would follow. But the programme has now been set aside while the team focus their efforts elsewhere.'

The BBC have instead announced an 'expansion' of the Attenborough narrated series - albeit under a different name.

The forthcoming Kingdom, understood to be the BBC Studio Natural History Unit's most ambitious project to date, was filmed in Zambia over a period of four years. filming six animal sagas in Zambia over a four-year period.

'Kingdom will expand upon the original idea for Dynasties,' the source added. 'It will focus on the conflicts and dynamics that exist across various different animal groups, in one location, rather than on just one particular family or tribe.'

Filmed across Zimbabwe, Senegal, Antarctica, Kenya and India, Dynasties followed animals and their “heroic struggle against rivals and against the forces of nature, fighting for their own survival and for the future of their dynasties."

But Attenborough, 97, did not travel to any of the locations to narrate the series after vowing to cut down on overseas work.

He told the Radio Times: 'It's probably a fact of age, but I was finding my heart was sinking deeper and deeper into my boots every time I walked up into an aircraft and looked down that long line and thought, "I'm going to be here for another 24 hours".'

Discussing the show's second series in 2022, Jack Bootle, head of commissioning, science and natural history at the BBC, said: 'Dynasties II will be a gripping look at the lives of four remarkable wild animals as they struggle to build a family against the odds.

'With characters you fall in love with, and genuine life-and-death stakes, this will be a series every bit as thrilling as the greatest drama.'

Executive producer Mike Gunton added: 'Being able to tell these stories is a wildlife film-makers dream - and just like in series one, they are going to be a gripping rollercoaster ride.'

Animals featured in the show included tigers, chimpanzees, pumas, elephants, hyenas and cheetahs.

Attenborough also closed his Instagram account exactly two months after he first signed up in 2020.

A spokesperson told MailOnline at the time: 'Sir David and the filmmakers of A Life On Our Planet had always intended for the account to be a series of special messages over a limited period of time.

'Primarily, they wanted to use the platform to explain the current problems facing our natural world and the solutions to help us deal with them.

'While there won't be any new posts going live, the account will remain open for people to watch Sir David's videos and read the posts that have been shared since the account was created.

'Sir David and the filmmakers hope that their messages will inspire others to speak up for nature and take positive action towards creating a sustainable future.'