Deadly (UK TV Series)

Deadly... is a strand of British wildlife documentary programming aimed principally at children and young people, which is broadcast on CBBC on BBC One and Two and on the CBBC Channel. It is presented by Steve Backshall, with Naomi Wilkinson as co-host on Live 'n Deadly. The strand began with a single series known as Deadly 60, and has subsequently expanded into a number of spin-offs, re-edits and follow-up versions.

Deadly 60

Two series of the main programme have been produced as of 2011. Each series had 26 episodes and in total there are 52 episodes. Series 3 is in production and due to transmit in the UK in March 2012.

Each series sees Backshall and his camera crew (who are often themselves seen on screen) travelling the world in an attempt to find the 60 "most deadly" animals in the world. Each episode of the series features several animals and each seqence sees Backshall tracking the animal in its habitat, and giving details of what makes the animal notable, with particular emphasis on its impact on the wider ecosystem and the manner of its predatory behaviour; thus, why it is "deadly". With two series so far produced, 120 animals have to date been featured in the programme.

Deadly 60 is distributed by BBC Worldwide to many other countries. Most prominantly to the US on NatGeo Wild from August 2011.

Deadly 60 episodes

Series 1:

1. South Africa
This episode is the first episode to look at South Africa. Steve Backshall first looks at hippopotamuses, and meets a very special hippo called Jessica before kayaking to look for some hippos. He gets trapped by two hippos in a river but his crew manages to save him. Next he goes to a Reptile Park and looks at Rock Pythons, Black Mambas and Rinkhals and chooses one for his list(the black mamba). Then Steve looks for invertabrates and sees Baboon Spiders and African Rock Pythons, but calls them pussy cats. He then finds the Fat-Tailed Scorpion and puts that on the Deadly 60.
Featured animals: Hippopotamus, Rock Python, Black Mamba, Rinkhal, Baboon Spider, African Rock Scorpion, Fat-Tailed Scorpion

2. South Africa
This time Steve continues exploring South Africa and goes to an animal sanctuary and looks at african fish eagles. One called Bonno which lives in captivity goes fishing for plastic fis. After Steve watches this he tries his own hand at fishing and massively fails. After this Steve puts the african fish eagle on the Deadly 60. As Steve starts leaving he picks up the local newspaper and reads about a girl getting attacked by a Nile Crocodile in her swimming pool Steve sees them close up and decides to look at them close up and see if they can make the Deadly 60. He decides they are deadly enough. Next he sneaks up on impala, giraffe and wildebeest and tries to see if he can match their ability to stalk and catch prey but fails. He decides to see if african hunting dogs are better. He goes in a plane searching for some dogs but doesn't find any. He puts them on the Deadly 60 anyway.
Featured animals: African Fish Eagle, Golden Orb Weaver, Nile Crocodile, African Hunting Dog

3. South Africa
This program is the last visit to South Africa of the season. Steve plans to look for great white sharks, and after a decision to head inland because of bad weather that would potentially frustrate his plans, and Steve goes inland and after walking with a honey badger called Buster he gets friendly with Buster and gets attacked(sort of), and after calling it fearless, puts it on the Deadly 60, then checks out a wildlife sanctuary where a meer-kat bites him, a springbok runs at him with it's horns extended out in front and then he meets a bat-eared fox, which he calls to cute to make the Deadly 60 and then he meets a caracal. He says these are great predators and after getting close to one and strokes it, being very careful as of his luck with the other animals, but the caracal attacks him anyway and Steve decides caracals deserve to be on the Deadly 60. Next he decides not to go out to look for sharks just yet, and looks at stingrays instead, close relatives of sharks. He feeds some off the coast of Cape Town, and explains that because they killed Steve Irwin, the last man who would want stingrays hated because of what happened to him, they won't be going on the Deadly 60, and instead after a while goes out on a boat looking for sharks. He goes shark-feeding with shark bait and sees one, but decides not to get wet with one. However, great white sharks manage to go on the Deadly 60.
Featured animals: Honey Badger, Meerkat, Springbok, Bat-Eared Fox, Caracal, Great White Shark

4. Australia
Steve now goes to Western Australia to look for deadly animals. He starts on the outskirts of Perth and a local helps him search for tiger snakes. The local finds a large skink, but they haven't found tiger snakes. They go to a local park and find eight tiger snakes. He then shows a reconstruction of a man dying of a tiger snake bite, Steve catches one. He says they're more venomous than cobras, but they look like, cobras, they have a hood and are possibly very close to tiger snakes. The tiger snake then is put on the Deadly 60. Next Sreve goes out to sea to catch fish hunters and looks at Australian sea lions and pelicans, the latter going on the Deadly 60. Next Steve looks at bottlenose dolphins which have bigger brains than humans and Steve discovers they are good predators definitely going on the Deadly 60.
Featured animals: Skink, Tiger Snake, Australian Sea Lion, Pelican, Bottlenose Dolphin

5. Australia
Steve now travels to Queensland, Australia and starts by flying over the suffer canes and then shows cane toads, but doesn't put them on the Deadly 60. Featured Animals: Cane Toad Paralysis Tick Spectacled Flying Fox Stinging Nettle Catsnake Forest Bearded Dragon Lace Monitor Redback Spider

6. Australia
This program focuses on South Australia. Featured Animals: Yellowfin Tuna Duck-Billed Platypus Eastern Grey Kangaroo Trapdoor Spider Jack Jumper Ant Australian Giant Cuttlefish

7. Australia
The final program from Australia goes to the Northern Territory where Steve looks at nocturnals. Featured Animals: Saltwater Crocodile Whistling Kite Frilled Lizard Ghost Bat

8. India
Steve now goes to India to look for deadly animals. Featured Animals: Mugger Crocodile Russell's Viper King Cobra Saw-Scaled Viper Sloth Bear Languar Monkey Praying Mantis

9. India
Steve uses this episode to continue his studies of India. Featured Animals: Gharial Asian Elephant Bengal Tiger

10. Malaysia
Steve goes to Malaysia, and to start looks for animals in the Gomantong Cave System.

11. Malaysia
Steve now goes to the Malaysian sea and looks for deadly animals.

12. United Kingdom
Steve goes back home to the UK, and this time looks at the deadliest animals his home has to offer.

13. United Kingdom
This episode continues the search for deadly animals in the United Kingdom.

14. Alaska
Steve now goes to Alaska to look at deadly animals.

15. Arizona
Steve heads to the Arizonan desert.

16. Louisiana
Steve goes to Louisiana's swamp and looks at many deadly animals.

17. Bahamas-Shark Special Steve Backshall looks at sharks in a trip to the Bahamas

18. Brazil Steve goes to the Brazillian Savannah to meet deadly contenders for his list.

19. Brazil Steve goes to the Brazillian flooded forests to find the deadliest animals there.

20. Brazil Steve finishes his journey by looking for the last two Deadly 60 animals.

21. Killers Steve shows us the handfull of Deadly 60 animals which would kill a human.

22. Weapons Steve looks at the animals on the Deadly 60 and their weapons.

23. Unseen Steve Backshall shows all the deadly animals he just didn't put on the Deadly 60.

24. Behind the Scenes Steve now shows the viewers who tune in how his favourite animal encounters were made.

25. The Making of South America and Alaska Steve shows how the crew filmed the Brazil episodes and the Alaska episode.

26. Endangered Steve mets all the endangered Deadly 60 animals.

Series 2:

1. Baja California, Mexico Steve Backshall meets the deadly animals in Baja California, Mexico to start his new Deadly 60.

2. British Columbia Steve goes to British Columbia to see potentially deadly sea creatures. Featured Animals: Wolf Eel Pacific Giant Octopus Orca

3. Vancouver Steve Backshall visits Vancouver to see deadly creatures. Featured Animals: Steller's Sea Lion Orca Skunk Raccoon American Black Bear

4. Costa Rica Steve shows the audience the deadliest animals in Costa Rica. Featured Animals: Fer de Lance American Crocodile Jaguar Peccary

5. Costa Rica 2 Steve continues the studies of Costa Rica. Featured Animals: Boa Constrictor Eyelash Viper Bushmaster Poison Dart Frog Vampire Bat

6. Panama Steve now visits Panama on the search for the elusive harpy eagle. Featured Animals: Glossy Racer Snake Peccary Bullet Ant Harpy Eagle

7. Mozambique Steve visits the coast of Mozambique. Featured Animals: Zoo Plankton Whale Shark Solifuge Marlin Crown of Thorns Starfish

8. South Africa Steve revisits South Africa to show deadly animals not shown last series of Deadly 60. Featured Aniamls: Blacktip Reef Shark African Honeybee Ragged-Tooth Shark Dassie Black Eagle

9. Namibia Steve goes to Namibia's Namib desert and shows deadly Namibians. Featured Animals: Spoor Spider Dune Ant Shovel-Snouted Lizard Sidewinder Vulture

10. Namibia 2

11. Madagascar

12. Uganda

13. Thailand

14. Philippines

15. Philippines

16. Romania

17. Norway

18. UK

19. Argentina

20. Peru

21. Making of

22. Tracks and Signs

23. Inside Deadly 60

24. Special

25. Venom

26. Endangered Special

Series 3: In production and due to transmit in the UK in March 2012

Spin-off series

Live 'n Deadly

Live 'n Deadly is a spin-off series to Deadly 60, with 10 live shows and 3 non-live Specials. This series is a live magazine program hosted by Steve Backshall and Naomi Wilkinson, which features a range of magazine content, features and games relating to animals and wildlife, and also uses its live broadcast to encourage interactivity with the viewing audience. The program was a touring series, with episodes filmed live on location from areas around the UK.

The first series of Live 'n Deadly aired on BBC Two (simulcast with CBBC Channel) on Saturday mornings at 9am in between September and December 2010. In addition to the live Saturday show, a public roadshow event was also held the following day in the general area that the program had visited that week (though never in the exact same location). These roadshows were run by BBC Learning and featured a number of hands-on wildlife-related activities for children and families, and footage from the roadshow events was broadcast the following Saturday as part of the following live programme.

Series 2 of Live 'n' Deadly is currently on air between September and December 2011.

Deadly 60 Bites

This is a series of short filler programmes consisting of individual animals' segments of Deadly 60 cut down into a 5 to 10 minute standalone segment; this is often used as a filler between programmes on the CBBC channel.

Deadly Art

In 2011 a spin-off show was broadcast called Deadly Art, which airs as a short filler programme on weekdays.

Deadly Top 10s

The CBBC Channel has started airing 'Steve Backshall's Deadly Top 10s', which essentially is a clip show featuring a collection of material previously seen in Deadly 60.

Deadly 60 on a Mission

In 2011, a compilation series called Deadly 60 on a Mission began airing on Sunday evenings on BBC One; this took the place of Horrible Histories with Stephen Fry in the BBC One schedule, and, like the Horrible Histories spinoff, was designed to utilise content from the associated CBBC programme in a family-aimed mid-evening slot. As with Deadly Top 10s, much of the material in this strand had previously appeared in the main Deadly 60 series.

Deadly 360

A studio-based format show mixing BBC natural history archive displayed in 'Minority Report' style, presented again by Steve Backshall. The show is to broadcast on CBBC between September and December 2011.

Natural Born Hunters

A series in which Steve Backshall and Barney Harwood narrate various clips (mostly from Deadly 60)about predators and how they hunt. This serie could be considered a combination between the 'Deadly' series and the 'Barney's...' series

Deadly 60 Games

Several Deadly 60 Flash games have also been produced for CBBC. Deadly Dash (released September 2010) was one of the most popular games on the channel that year. Deadly Planet & Deadly Scramble were subsequently released in September 2012 to coincide with series 2 of Live 'n' Deadly.

External links

• CBBC Deadly 60
• CBBC Live 'n' Deadly
• CBBC Deadly 360
• NatGeo Wild Deadly 60
• Amazon book
• CBBC Deadly Planet Game
• CBBC Deadly Scramble Game
• CBBC Deadly Dash Game