Eyewitness (British TV series)


Eyewitness is a natural history television series produced by BBC and DK Vision. The series is based on the Dorling Kindersley Eyewitness Books series of children's books. Guy Michelmore composed the theme music, with Guy Dagul writing additional music in later seasons.

Format

Eyewitness is a documentary series. Each half-hour episode focuses on a single subject in the field of natural science, such as the Solar System or the various functions of the human body. The information is presented in the "Eyewitness Museum", a CGI science museum made to replicate the white and empty style of the books. Various exhibits are shown, and stock footage is usually seen through large windows or other depressions in the wall. The book series and the show share a striking visual style making notable use of the color white. In addition, almost every episode features a "Hero". The Hero is a character or object which drives the action of the show and is continually referred back to. These include the weathervane rooster from Weather, Legs the claymation Tyrannosaurus from Dinosaur, the paper boat from Pond and River, the hyena from Monster, the salmon from Fish, the crab from Seashore, the cockroach from Prehistoric Life, and the robotic human mime artist from Human Machine.
The series in the United Kingdom was originally narrated by the late Andrew Sachs, but was taken over by Martin Sheen for American audiences during the first two seasons. However, Sachs took over narrating both versions in the final season. The series producer was Bill Butt for the first season, Briget Sneyd for the second season, and Martin Mortimore for the third season.
When the series was released on video, episodes from the first two seasons featured brief behind-the-scenes clips after the main program. In 2003, eight episodes of the program were released onto "interactive DVDs". The UK narration was kept in the American releases of these interactive DVDs.
There are also four Eyewitness Virtual Reality software based on the show: "Cat", "Bird", "Dinosaur Hunter", and "Earth Quest". One of these, "Shark", although seen on the elevator console, was never made.

Episodes

Series 1 (1994)

  1. Amphibian – 5 September 1994
  2. Bird – 12 September 1994
  3. Cat – 19 September 1994
  4. Dinosaur – 26 September 1994
  5. Dog – 3 October 1994
  6. Elephant – 10 October 1994
  7. Fish – 17 October 1994
  8. Horse – 24 October 1994
  9. Insect – 31 October 1994
  10. Jungle – 7 November 1994
  11. Reptile – 14 November 1994
  12. Shark – 21 November 1994
  13. Skeleton – 28 November 1994

    Series 2 (1996)

  14. Ape – 2 September 1996
  15. Arctic and Antarctic – 9 September 1996
  16. Butterfly and Moth – 16 September 1996
  17. Desert – 23 September 1996
  18. Mammal – 30 September 1996
  19. Pond and River – 7 October 1996
  20. Prehistoric Life – 14 October 1996
  21. Rock and Mineral – 21 October 1996
  22. Seashore – 28 October 1996
  23. Shell – 4 November 1996
  24. Tree – 11 November 1996
  25. Volcano – 18 November 1996
  26. Weather – 25 November 1996

    Series 3 (1997)

  27. Bear – 25 August 1997
  28. Flight – 1 September 1997
  29. Human Machine – 8 September 1997
  30. Island – 15 September 1997
  31. Life – 22 September 1997
  32. Monster – 29 September 1997
  33. Mountain – 6 October 1997
  34. Natural Disasters – 13 October 1997
  35. Ocean – 20 October 1997
  36. Planets – 3 November 1997
  37. Plant – 10 November 1997
  38. Sight – 17 November 1997
  39. – 24 November 1997

    Specials

  40. The Making of Eyewitness
  41. The Making of Eyewitness Living Earth
  42. The Making of Eyewitness Worlds

    Reception

It has won several awards: