Frozen Planet (Photo credit: JanetR3)

Frozen Planet is the latest nature series from the BBC Natural History Unit, the same people that produced Planet Earth etc. The series ran in the UK, but, at last, Canadians will see it. Episode One airs March 18, 2012 at 8 PM Eastern on Discovery Channel.

My first inkling that the series was in production occurred when I received a phone call from the production office in Bristol with a request for help. The NHU had a pair of cameramen stranded in Antarctica unable to get home. Would I help facilitate their return to the UK? At the same time, they requested that I assist with the transfer to Antarctica of a new cameraman. I was working in a job that made it possible to help them, and check another item off my bucket list – working with the NHU on a major international series.

I admit that I stretched the definition of working…just a phone call and a requisition…What I did not realize at the time was that logistical support would lead to something bigger. For about 18 months I acted as the liaison between the NHU and the company for which I worked at the time. Names on credits became real people, and I had the vicarious adventure of a lifetime.

There is one episode in particular that I am anticipating: Tourism in the Polar Regions is a theme. There should be plenty of Emperor Penguins and travelers in yellow parkas. That was the episode with which I was most heavily involved – again only slightly in comparison to the actual production team. There are other episodes I am anticipating almost as eagerly. I remember when I heard about the orca footage they shot in Antarctica. They captured for the first time footage of a behaviour that only a handful of people on the planet had ever witnessed.

If you are as passionate about the Polar Regions as I am, then you won’t want to miss Frozen Planet. That’s appointment TV!