Sir David Attenborough’s new documentary series seems timelier than ever. In a month where climate change protests have spread across the capital and hundreds of thousands of people across the world continue to take a stand for the planet, the release of Seven Worlds, One Planet is a powerful reminder of what protesters are campaigning for.

Speaking at the launch of the series, which will begin next Sunday at 6:15pm on BBC One, Attenborough spoke honestly about the impact humans have had on the world: and shared his advice for how we can tackle that problem together.

“At last nations are coming together and recognising we all live on the same planet,” he said. “All these seven worlds are actually one and we are dependent on it for every mouthful of food we eat and every breath of air we take.

“We have it in our hands and we’ve made a tragic, desperate mess of it so far,” he added. 

“The best motto to think about is not to waste things,” he continued. “Don’t waste electricity, don’t waste paper, don’t waste food – live the way you want to live, but just don’t waste. 

“Look after the natural world, the animals in it and the plants in it too. This is their planet as well as ours.”

The show’s director and executive producer Jonny Keeling also went on to highlight the change that is possible when people come together, referencing how whales have come back from the brink of extinction since whaling was banned in 1986. 

“In a matter of two decades we can turn things around - we can stop the whales disappearing or we can save sharks,” Keeling said.

“The best solution to climate change is preserving the natural world, preserving forests and oceans and looking after the animals,” he continued.

“It’s a huge cliché but there are seven billion people on earth and if seven billion all start doing the right thing…”

The buzz surrounding the upcoming documentary greatly increased at the beginning of the month when a new trailer was released.

The clip, which is accompanied by a haunting cover of Eurythmics’ Sweet Dreams, features the beautiful, up-close wildlife shots we’ve come to expect from Attenborough’s documentaries. Then, as the music fades, we hear his iconic voice emerge.

“Seven extraordinary continents, each one full of life. Seven Worlds, One Planet,” Attenborough narrates, as the tag line “There’s no place like it” appear on screen.

The iconic documentarian first announced his latest project on stage at Glastonbury festival earlier this year, only further confirming his legendary status. Walking on stage to the sound of whale noises which echoed through the crowd, Attenborough praised the festival for going plastic-free before revealing the new documentary series.

“There are seven great continents on which we human beings live,” he said. “Each of them has its own marvellous creatures – birds and mammals, animals of all kinds. Each of them has its own glory, each of them has its own problems.”

He continued: “We have been making – for the last four years – a series about those things, about those seven very different continents. It starts later on this year. It’s called Seven Worlds, One Planet.”

The news comes less than two weeks after we found out that Attenborough is working on another new documentary series for BBC Two – Life In Colour. The series is set to explore the role colour plays in the natural world, and is due to air early in 2021.

Seven Worlds, One Planet begins on BBC One at 18:15 on Sunday 27 October.

Images: BBC/Getty