It’s time to deck the halls because Ben Fogle and Kate Humble are heading back to Longleat Safari Park for a magical week of programmes. \n\nIt wouldn’t be Christmas without mistletoe and a hint of romance, and that’s exactly what the keepers are hoping for at the cheetah enclosure. Rachael is the stunning female looking for a mate, and she has two boys to choose from, brothers Mo and Bolt. A litter of cheetah cubs would make everyone’s Christmases come at once because they are classed as vulnerable in the wild. However, Rachael doesn’t appear to be particularly interested in either of the boys, so cameraman Hamza Yassin trains his lens on them to find out why.\n\nDeciding what to eat on the big day is always a big decision, and the estate has records of what’s been on the winter menu as far back as 1603, with prunes, raisins and peppercorns all on the list. Ben discovers that by the 19th century, things were getting a bit more extensive, with a turkey dinner for lunch and then a seven-course meal in the evening!\n\nRather than serving Christmas dinner on a plate, for the hyenas Megan McCubbin has a different approach entirely. She and the keepers are adding lumps of meat to a Christmas tree in order to create a brilliant enrichment puzzle for them. The moment the keepers release Akuma and Nkuru, they begin to hunt as a team, finding the treats buried in the tree. But as their senses are heightened, how long with it be before these great African scavengers destroy the festive display?
Source: BBC 2
Summer 2023: Episode 5
In this episode, the keepers use a piece of kit with the animals that they have never used before. \n\nThe keepers and Hamza are putting to the test some new research that claim ...
30-01-2025
BBC 2
Summer 2023: Episode 4
In this episode, we discover if any of the park’s residents could use a rudimentary tool. \n\nLongleat is home to a group of critically endangered western lowland gorillas ...
29-01-2025
BBC 2
Summer 2023: Episode 3
We say goodbye to a Longleat legend, celebrating her life and the impact she has had on keepers and visitors. Hippos arrived in the park from Uganda nearly half a century ago, a ...
28-01-2025
BBC 2
Summer 2023: Episode 2
We follow Longleat’s keepers on a trip to Australia, with some astonishing news with global implications. \n\nLongleat is home to the only public southern koala breeding ...
23-01-2025
BBC 2
Summer 2023: Episode 1
Kate Humble and Ben Fogle return to Longleat Safari Park for a glorious summer series following the remarkable lives of the exotic animals and the keepers committed to helping t ...
22-01-2025
BBC 2
Summer 2024: Episode 10
Every year, visitors to Longleat Safari Park get to see thousands of exotic creatures from around the world, but three years ago a native species made an entrance like no other! ...
21-01-2025
BBC 2
Summer 2024: Episode 9
Along with feeding all the animals at Longleat Safari Park, the keepers need to keep an eye on their mood, behaviour, love life and, of course, their health. And that’s be ...
20-01-2025
BBC 2
Summer 2024: Episode 8
The keepers at Longleat Safari Park are getting to know three very special new arrivals – cheetah brothers Adjani, Temba and Lunis. They have a vital mission: to make a lo ...
16-01-2025
BBC 2
Summer 2024: Episode 7
It’s a truly momentous occasion for the keepers. They have incubated and successfully hatched one of the world’s most threatened bird species – the critically ...
15-01-2025
BBC 2
Summer 2024: Episode 6
One of Longleat Safari Park’s biggest achievements to date has been the work put into the crucial breeding programme of the endangered southern koalas. Previously on the p ...
14-01-2025
BBC 2
Summer 2022: Episode 9
Kate Humble and Ben Fogle are back for another sunny summer series following the remarkable lives of the exotic animals at Longleat Safari Park, and the keepers who care for the ...
22-02-2024
BBC 2
Summer 2022: Episode 13
Kate Humble and Ben Fogle return to Longleat Safari Park for another spectacular summer series following the fascinating stories of the exotic animals and the keepers who look a ...
28-02-2024
BBC 2
Summer 2021: Episode 7
There’s a mystery arrival at the park who is changing the landscape in Wiltshire. There are tell-tale signs by the lake: felled trees, gnawed branches and changed waterway ...
26-03-2024
BBC 2
Summer 2020: Episode 15
The keepers in Koala Creek are on tenterhooks as they await news of the park’s southern koala breeding programme, the only one of its kind in Europe. After experienced dad ...
28-07-2023
BBC 2
Summer 2020: Episode 7
In today’s programme, Kate meets Blue, an ostrich with an identity problem. He seems to think he’s a zebra, and while he’s hanging out with his stripy friends, ...
13-09-2022
BBC 2
Compilation Specials: 15. Animal Park Heroes
Kate Humble and Ben Fogle are catching up on the love stories at Longleat Safari Park. Today, there is huge excitement amongst the carnivore team as it seems the European wolves ...
07-01-2024
BBC 2
Summer 2021: Episode 8
The lives of the park’s rock hyrax babies hang in the balance as their mum is taken to the vets for an urgent medical investigation. The keepers have spotted worrying lump ...
27-03-2024
BBC 2
Christmas Special: Episode 3
Winter is drawing in, and for the first time Kate Humble and Ben Fogle are spending the most wonderful time of the year at Longleat Safari Park. There are visitors from afar, s ...
15-12-2021
BBC 2
Summer 2022: Episode 4
Ben Fogle and Kate Humble are back for another sun-filled summer series, following the extraordinary lives of the exotic animals at Longleat Safari Park and the keepers who look ...
21-03-2024
BBC 2
Summer 2020 (shortened Versions): Episode 5
Silverback Kesho is having his authority tested by a younger gorilla who seems to want to be leader of the pack. Kate finds out how this bolshie behaviour is threatening the coh ...
24-07-2024
BBC 2