Blue Planet has dealt more than a few emotional blows over the years, but we had still hoped that the live version of the show would be somewhat kinder.
Readers, we were wrong.
The fourth and final episode of Blue Planet Live aired on Sunday night and one of the final scenes, which was intended to be heart-warming, saw baby turtles being released into the ocean.
After helping them out onto the sand, presenter Liz Bonnin said: “These hatchlings are going to spend 100 years in our oceans, if all goes well. Surely it’s our responsibility to safeguard their futures, scientists cannot do this alone.”
Unfortunately, an opportunistic seagull had other ideas for one of the turtle’s futures, swooping onto the shore and grabbing it from the sand as Liz was mid-sentence.
“This is our blue planet to protect,” she continued. “Through our actions and through making our voices heard.
“We hope we’ve inspired you to grab that responsibility with both hands.”
The producers did their best to stop the moment from being broadcast, switching camera angles midway through Liz’s closing words, but it wasn’t enough to stop viewers from spotting what happened:
The four Blue Planet live episodes were presented by Chris Packham, Liz Bonnin and Steve Backshall and, like the main series, celebrated the world’s oceans while drawing attention to the impact human behaviours have on them.
Sir David Attenborough did not take part in the shows, but he will be back on our screens on Friday (April 5), when his first ever Netflix series Our Planet arrives.
