BBC America Debuts ‘Wild West’ Documentary Aug. 19

BBC America debuts the three-part natural history program Wild West on Saturday, Aug. 19. The documentary, BBC America says, “explores this fascinating area of the continent, revealing how three radically different worlds were formed, the forces that shape them today and how life has found brave and enterprising ways to survive. Discover the gritty, tough deserts, the cool grand mountains and the dynamic and changeable coasts.”

Produced by BBC Studios, Wild West also examines how people have survived in this swath of the country over the years. 

Michael Gunton (Planet Earth II) executive produces, with Patrick Morris (Galapagos) the series producer. 

Part one, airing Aug. 19, is dubbed Desert Heartlands. “Travel from the cold deserts of Nevada to the giant cactus-studded lands of Arizona and the scorching Mojave Desert in California,” says the network. 

Part two, a week later, examines the High Country, “the land of grizzly bears and giant trees, of frigid winters and scorching summers, of tough ranchers and gold-rush fever.”

Part three is known as Restless Shores and premieres Sept. 2. Says BBC America, “Tectonic forces shape all life here, creating stunning landscapes like the San Andreas Fault, reaching all the way north to the Pacific coast.”

Michael Malone

Michael Malone, senior content producer at B+C/Multichannel News, covers network programming, including entertainment, news and sports on broadcast, cable and streaming; and local broadcast television. He hosts the podcasts Busted Pilot, about what’s new in television, and Series Business, a chat with the creator of a new program, and writes the column “The Watchman.” He joined B+C in 2005. His journalism has also appeared in The New York Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Playboy and New York magazine.