The award-winning, world-famous nature documentary series Planet Earth is heading back to Manchester with a live concert experience.
The hit BBC series, narrated by the legendary David Attenborough, will be at the AO Arena in October with a full live orchestra.
Audiences will be whisked away to forests, oceans and deserts with breath-taking footage from the latest series shown on an enormous 4K LED screen.
We’ll see animal dramas that are funny and thrilling (and yes, sometimes a little sad – who could ever recover from the cliff-jumping baby goslings?).
The latest Planet Earth series and the concert will document how the natural world is adapting to an ever-changing planet, where humans play a critical role.
And the Planet Earth III Live in Concert experience will be further heightened with a music score by Oscar-winning composer Hans Zimmer, plus Jacob Shea and Sara Barone for Bleeding Fingers Music, performed by the City of Prague Philharmonic orchestra.
Hans Zimmer also worked in collaboration with Brit-winning and Grammy-nominated Bastille, and Mercury Prize Award nominated singer-songwriter RAYE.
There’ll be just three special performances across the UK this year, including the spectacle arriving at Manchester’s AO Arena.
The announcement of the new show comes off the back of successful runs for Blue Planet II and Planet Earth II Live in Concert arena tours.
As always, the stunning footage will come from the multi-award-winning team at BBC Studios Natural History Unit.
Hans Zimmer commented: “Creating scores for any of the BBC’s Natural History series is always an honour for me as there are no more epic stories than those occurring naturally every day in our own planet’s ecosystem.
“For Planet Earth III it’s been a further privilege to work with the incredible world class talents of Bastille who created wonderful vocals on the soundscape for the series, and RAYE with her a beautiful, poignant prequal track.”
The series itself was filmed over 1,904 days, in 43 countries and across six continents.
Mike Gunton, the Executive Producer of the Planet Earth III television series says: “Planet Earth III is about the resilience and adaptability of nature, and the remarkable animals that are changing their lives to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing world dominated more than ever by a powerful force: us. It’s full of surprise and wonder but seen from a new perspective”.
Dominic Walker, Global Business Director at BBC Studios said: “After the successful Blue Planet II and Planet Earth II Live In Concert tours, we are delighted to continue our partnership with FKP Scorpio and bring the amazing Planet Earth III to London and Manchester, showcasing the BBC’s ground breaking natural history content on the stage for fans to enjoy once again.”
Planet Earth III will be at Manchester AO Arena on Sunday 6 October, 2024.
Pre-sale tickets are available from Wednesday 20 February 2024 and general on sale tickets available from Friday 23 February 2024. For further ticket information go to www.Planetearth3concert.com
Star of hit CBBC show Operation Ouch! to host live Q&A and meet and greets in Manchester this summer
Emily Sergeant
Little Mancs can meet the star of one of their favourite TV shows at the Science and Industry Museum this summer.
In case you hadn’t heard, Operation Ouch! is back in Manchester again with a fresh new experience for 2025, and this time around, visitors can journey through an ear canal covered in gooey wax, squeeze past sticky snot, and delve deeper into how our brains interpret the world.
Thousands of families from across Greater Manchester and beyond have already visited the city centre museum make the most of the new exhibition, and get stuck into the wide range of immersive and interactive activities it has on offer.
But for those who haven’t been able to pay a visit yet, this summer couldn’t be a more ideal opportunity to do so.
That’s because Dr Xand Van Tulleken – who is one of the presenters of the BBC showOperation Ouch! – will be at the museum in a couple of weeks time to meet visitors as part of his myth-busting mission to answer some of the public’s deepest questions about our senses.
The Science and Industry Museum has unveiled its ‘summer of senses’ programme / Credit: Science Museum Group
Dr Xand Van Tulleken will be at the Science and Industry Museum for one day only, and will not only join mini medics on their voyage through the senses, but will also be on-hand to answer brain teasers from the audience during a series of live Q&As.
Whether it’s banging on a super-sized eardrum, venturing into a massive eyeball, or even taking a whiff of a ‘smell library’, this world-premiere exhibition dives into the science behind hearing, sight, touch, taste, and smell – and Dr Xand will be there every step of the way.
Dr Xand’s visit comes amid a senses-themed summer programme at the city centre museum, where visitors can enjoy everything from silent discos and science shows, to a ‘bogie lab’, brain-boggling challenges, and loads more during six weeks of activities inspired by its latest exhibition.
Book your tickets to visit Operation Ouch! Brains, Bogies and You on Tuesday 12 August, for any of the time slots between 11:30am – 1pm, and 2:45 – 4:15pm for the opportunity to grab a selfie with Dr Xand from inside the exhibition.
Tickets will cost visitors £10 each, with those under three going free, and a range of family discounts available.
Find out more about the exhibition and get tickets here.
Featured Image – Science Museum Group
What's On
Road to Victory returns for massive Euro 2025 final screening at AO Arena
Danny Jones
England are in another final, and you know what that means: Road to Victory is returning to Manchester for another massive screening at the AO Arena as England’s women’s team prepare to defend their Euros trophy.
Sarina Weigman’s side made it to their second consecutive European final on Tuesday night following more late drama for the Lionesses against Italy.
The squad, which has seen a number of personnel changes since Euro 2022, managed to make it through to the final in the eleventh hour thanks to another stoppage-time equaliser from Michelle Agyemang and even more tense follow-up from a scuffed spot-kick by Chloe Kelly.
Will they ever stop giving us heart palpitations at major tournaments? Probably not, but the big watchalong party inside the AO Arena, which will see thousands turn up to watch the Euro 2025 final, is sure to deliver plenty of excitement either way.
For anyone unfamiliar with the massive fan zone – one of THE biggest in all Europe, in fact – Road to Victory is the unparalleled supporter party by AIX (Amplified Immersive Xperiences) Live, who specialise in the top-end of audio-visual matchday viewing vibes.
Having hosted huge screenings for the previous men’s Euros and the Qatar World Cup, and even inspiring a massive watchalong of last season’s Europa League final at the venue, Road to Victory (RtV) is just about as big and bold as it gets.
Think BOXPARK in London only bigger, more interactive and, dare we say it… better?
Yes, we do dare say it; having attended RtV on multiple occasions since it landed here back in 2022, we can confirm you won’t find an atmosphere quite like it anywhere else. At least not in Greater Manchester, anyway.
Case and point:
With doors to the women’s Euros screening opening at 4pm, there’ll be plenty of time for pre-match build-up before the game gets underway, and there’ll be plenty of entertainment, light displays, food, drinks and more – it’s just up to Manchester fans to be in full voice.
The Women’s European Championships certainly have a more all-ages, family-friendly feel to them, but Road to Victory and the AO Arena are still ensuring they deliver a palpable match-day energy.
Tickets are already live following England’s place in the last two of the Women’s Euros now confirmed, it’s merely a matter of securing yours and finding out who, out of Germany and Spain, will meet them in the final this weekend.
Once again, the 2025 Women’s Euros final kicks off at 5pm on Sunday, 27 July, and you can grab your tickets for the Road to Victory screening at the AO Arena in Manchester right HERE.
Daisy Jackson -
13th February 2024 
