The Green Planet – David Attenborough's latest BBC natural history series – has been called "gobsmacking" and "awe-inspiring". From the world's deadliest flower to a 1000-year-old tropical tree, The Green Planet shows you things no eye has ever seen. The five-part series concludes this Sunday. It's free to watch and stream on BBC iPlayer in the UK and in 4K too. Not in the UK? Follow this guide to watch The Green Planet live stream from anywhere with a VPN.
Premiere date: 9th January 2022
New episodes: Every Sunday at 7pm GMT / 2pm ET / 5am AEST (Monday)
FREE stream: BBC iPlayer (UK)
Watch anywhere: ExpressVPN
Despite reaching the ripe old age of 95, Sir David Attenborough is as passionate about the natural world as ever. He may not venture far from his London home these days, but his production team traveled to 27 different countries and employed cutting-edge camera technology to capture breathtaking footage for The Green Planet.
Each episode of the five-part BBC series looks at a particular habitat, and documents the incredible 'lives' of the flora that fight for water, sunlight and food. Episode 1 of The Green Planet, Tropical Worlds, takes viewers deep into the rainforests of Costa Rica, "where a single life can last a thousand years". Viewers are even treated to a gigantic underground fungus that survives by enlisting an army of ants to feed it.
Episode 5, Human Worlds, airs at 7pm GMT on Sunday, 6th February, on BBC One and streams live on BBC iPlayer (free of charge). Make sure you know how to watch The Green Planet live stream from anywhere.
- How to watch a Premier League 2021/22 live stream
The Green Planet official trailer
Watch The Green Planet for free
In the UK, BBC iPlayer will stream every episode of The Green Planet free of charge.
Simply sign up for a BBC account with an email address and a UK postcode (e.g. W1A 1AA). Done? You're good to go!
Of course, BBC iPlayer is ONLY available within the UK (and with a valid TV licence).
Outside the UK? Simply use a VPN to access BBC iPlayer from overseas. Using a VPN is easy – simply follow the step-by-step instructions below.
Watch The Green Planet from abroad using a VPN
Even if you have a BBC account, you won't be able to access BBC iPlayer when outside the UK. The service will know your location based on your IP address, and will automatically block your access.
A Virtual Private Network (VPN) helps you get around this obstacle. It creates a private connection between your device and the internet. There are lots of VPNs to choose from, but we think ExpressVPN is one of the very best...
How to use a VPN
Using a VPN is incredibly simple.
1. Install the VPN of your choice. ExpressVPN is the one we recommend.
2. Open up the VPN app and choose the location of the service you wish to access. For The Green Planet, you may wish to choose 'UK' for BBC iPlayer.
3. Then head over to BBC iPlayer on your browser or device and enjoy The Green Planet live stream free of charge.
If, for whatever reason, you can't get it working, do remember that you have the comfort of a 30-day money back guarantee with ExpressVPN. You could also try NordVPN, which also comes with a 30-day money back guarantee, and Surfshark which offers 24 hour assistance.
The Green Planet live stream in the USA
The Green Planet was produced in concert with PBS, America's public broadcasting corporation. However, there's no word on when the series will air in the US.
Remember: UK nationals who are outside the UK can watch The Green Planet free of charge on BBC iPlayer right now, using a VPN. Details just above.
- Today's best cheap VPN deals for Netflix, BBC iPlayer and more
The Green Planet live stream in Australia
Channel Nine has purchased the rights to The Green Planet in Australia. It's due to stream on 9now in February 2022 alongside existing offerings such as David Attenborough's A Perfect Planet.
Remember: UK nationals who are outside the UK can watch The Green Planet free of charge on BBC iPlayer right now, using a VPN. Details above.
- How to watch Yellowstone season 4 from anywhere
The Green Planet: episode guide & air dates
All times GMT
Episode 1: Tropical Worlds – 7pm, 9th January 2022 (BBC One/iPlayer)
The greatest trees of the rainforest rise above the canopy, monarchs of all they survey and favoured targets of the sunlight. When a giant tree falls, it’s disaster for the fallen tree (albeit one that comes at the end of a long life) but it is the opportunity of a lifetime for many other species that seek to fill the space. With the wet warmth of the rainforest, a giant’s fall sparks a detonation of new life.
Episode 2: Water Worlds – 7pm, 16th January 2022 (BBC One/iPlayer)
Life on land was made possible for animals because the plants got there first. But as life developed some animals returned to the water, becoming otters and whales, and some plants made the same journey, giving us lotuses, lake-covering duckweed and rolling spheres of algae.
Episode 3: Seasonal Worlds – 7pm, 23rd January 2022 (BBC One/iPlayer)
Those of us who live in the seasonal lands take the annual rhythm for granted, reserving our wonder for deserts and rainforests. But the top-to-bottom change of a wild British landscape from one season to the next is one of the greatest miracles of life on Earth: from a frozen hell to a lush green heaven in the course of a few weeks.
Episode 4: Desert Worlds – 7pm, 30th January 2022 (BBC One/iPlayer)
Plants die without water, as anyone who has ever grown a geranium in a pot knows. So how do plants survive in deserts? Many hoard water inside themselves, such as cacti, which protect this most precious of resources with their spines. But others have different strategies that make the impossible lifestyle work.
Episode 5: Human Worlds – 7pm, 6th February 2022 (BBC One/iPlayer)
The relationship between humans and plants is the story of life on Earth. We are now close to believing that we can move outside the natural processes: that we have outgrown nature. The extent to which that is a) true, and b) desirable is the subject of the final episode, in which despair and hope fight for mastery.
What other BBC natural history shows are due out in 2022?
Liked The Green Planet? There's plenty more BBC natural history shows to due out in 2022 including The Mating Game, Serengeti II and Animals with Cameras (Series 2).
We can also recommend Eden: Untamed Planet, a six-part BBC Natural History Unit production for BBC America. Helena Bonham Carter presents this examination of Earth’s last Edens – places so isolated from the rest of the world they are protected from human interference. US viewers can watch it on Amazon ($2.99 per HD episode).
- Fancy an upgrade? Here are the best TVs
- Or save money with these unmissable cheap TV deals