Memos detailing the shows David Attenborough commissioned, including Monty Python

David Attenborough's career, from managing television programming to natural historian

Throughout his career, Attenborough's storytelling style framed nature as the stage where plants and animals were characters that audiences could connect with and become emotionally attached to. Before the breakout success of "Life on Earth" and working full-time on making programs about the natural world, Attenborough spent a decade in executive roles responsible for overseeing content on BBC channels.

Watch David Attenborough catching a python on 'Zoo Quest'

The first series, hosted by the famed natural historian, was meant to be presented by Jack Lester, a curator at the London Zoo, who would be documented while they captured wildlife to bring to the institution. Because Lester became ill, Attenborough became the presenter and often participated in the capture of animals, such as snakes.

How David Attenborough's work in color television gave tennis balls their color

As controller of BBC Two, Attenborough wanted the BBC to achieve the first full-color broadcast in Europe and saw Wimbledon as the perfect event to make it happen. Noticing that the white tennis balls used then would stain green and become less visible on color broadcasts as matches progressed, he suggested fluorescent balls, which were eventually adopted.

How Monty Python shaped modern comedy

This video essay analyzes the way Monthy Python embodies postmodernism and Comedy of the Absurd through its off-the-wall humor, skewering social conventions and powerful institutions through its satirical sketches and movies. The video also traces the impact the comedy troupe Monthy Python had (and continues to have) on modern comedy, illustrating how popular shows like "South Park" and "Family Guy" and movies like "Deadpool" are indebted to the famous troupe.

See ceremonial photographs from David Attenborough's second knighthood

After being granted the title of Knight Bachelor by Queen Elizabeth II in 1985, he was appointed the upgraded rank of Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Saint Michael and Saint George in 2022 by then-Prince Charles on behalf of the Queen.

View some of the species named after David Attenborough

Acisoma attenboroughi is a dragonfly from Madagascar named in honor of Attenborough's 90th birthday. Stating they liked watching Attenborough's documentaries with their family, the discoverer of a flightless weevil from Indonesia named it Trigonopterus attenboroughi in 2014. A Peruvian frog was named Prisimantis attenboroughi in 2014 to honor Attenborough for raising awareness of wildlife conservation.

Take a virtual tour of the Royal Research Ship named after David Attenborough

Operated by the British Antarctic Survey, the RRS Sir David Attenborough and its onboard tools and laboratories have investigated the biogeochemical cycles of the Southern Ocean, the stability of Greenland's ice shelves, and the impact of climate change on marine ecosystems. One of the ship's autonomous underwater vehicles was named Boaty McBoatface based on the results of a naming poll from the Natural Environment Research Council.

British royal history from a literal bird's-eye view

Learn the history of British monarchs going back centuries with this unusual, 50-minute documentary filmed entirely from the air, revealing key landmarks in beautiful footage alongside engaging commentary.

Hitchcock's TV show emphasized the director's playful yet suspenseful tone

"Alfred Hitchcock Presents" was a television series that aired from 1955 to 1965, offering viewers weekly bites of the director's unnerving storytelling. Hitchcock acted as host, framing the short films with his haunting voice and gothic language.

The story of Marion Stokes, a woman who taped 30 years of TV

Marion Stokes was an activist archivist frustrated at the lack of a record or access to what was broadcast on TV. So in 1975, Stokes began taping the broadcasts, day and night, 24 hours a day, and continued to do so for 30 years, racking up over 70,000 tapes that span the Iran Contra crisis to the evolution of cable news. Read about her fascinating story here.

Bob Hope's radio shows brought stand-up to the masses

Bob Hope’s 1930s variety shows featured comedic monologues. Unlike the tightly scripted and evergreen sets of vaudeville, Hope’s monologues leaned into topical and political humor, sometimes to the disapproval of his network.

Revelations about quiz show ‘Dotto’ led to a larger scandal across the industry

The show, which aired on both CBS and NBC in slightly different iterations in 1958, followed a fairly standard question-and-answer format, with correct answers slowly revealing an image that contestants needed to solve. Despite its popularity, the show was canceled after it was revealed that one contestant had been provided with answers to the questions. That revelation led to similar scandals with four more shows over the next few months.

The history of 'Black Mirror,' according to its stars

"Black Mirror" began as a modest anthology show on Britain's Channel 4, offering bleak satire about contemporary technology. It quickly became a hit and attracted stars like Daniel Kaluuya, Jon Hamm, Rashida Jones, and Jesse Armstrong (who'd go on to show run HBO's "Succession"). This oral history of the show details its evolution to an international Netflix hit, providing insights into creator Charlie Brooker's approach to storytelling.

Before it was a popular book, 'A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy' began as a radio series

The science-fiction comedy began as a radio play on BBC Radio 4, broadcast between 1978 and 1980. The first novel appeared in 1979; two years later, it was adapted for television.

In the '60s, Bob Dylan often trolled the media, mocking its focus on celebrity

This 1965 press conference, just before the release of the landmark "Bringing It All Back Home," illustrates how fed up he'd become, laughing at inane questions and offering snide responses. When asked if he thinks of himself more as a singer or as a poet, he responds, "I think of myself more as a song and dance man."

A smooth, scrollable timeline of every 'SNL' cast member

Starting from season 1 in 1975, scroll through the years of the show's comic actors in this well-designed visual record and get a sense of their relative endurance on the show. Stop to click and read more on that season's highlights or the specific career arc of the actor.

The best HBO shows of all time

In addition to establishing the blueprint for TV in the 21st century, HBO has also been responsible for excellent comedies ("Veep"), talk shows ("Last Week Tonight with John Oliver"), and historical dramas ("Chernobyl").

Explore 'The Presidents' collection

PBS's "The Presidents" collection profiles America's leaders through award-winning documentaries, interviews, and archival footage. The series captures how each president reflected the nation's values, crises, and culture while shaping the office's power and legacy.

How Lyndon Johnson created public radio

The Public Broadcasting Act of 1967, part of the president's Great Society plan, established the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which later led to the incorporation of National Public Radio. Originally, the bill was intended solely to establish public television; before Johnson signed the act, slips of paper reading "and radio" were literally Scotch-taped next to each mention of "television."

Gary Panter's punk art defined the '70s and '80s counterculture

The artist got his start providing fliers and logos for early Los Angeles punk bands, but later took his psychedelic, Pop Art-vision to designing on "Pee-Wee's Playhouse," for which he won three Emmy Awards.

Explore the history, structure, and species of Australia's Great Barrier Reef with this interactive journey narrated by Sir David Attenborough.

Watch every episode of 'Bill Nye the Science Guy'

Each features one scientific topic alongside demonstrations, fake commercials, a song parody with science-themed lyrics, and bloopers. Other segments include conversations with experts, exhibiting experiments that can be done at home, and trips to locations beyond "Nye Laboratories" to highlight real-world applications.

'Birds Aren't Real' parodies the way memes traffic conspiracy theories

Peter McIndoe claims the US government killed 12 billion birds only to replace them with drones. These statements have powered protests—and McIndoe's fictional campaign that highlights how conspiracies and their theorists are treated.

Bear-baiting was another form of entertainment during Shakespeare’s time

We tend to think of Shakespeare’s audiences as prim and proper, but the Bard’s shows were just another form of amusement, viewed by commoners as entertainment not unlike the animal blood sports that were similarly popular during the time period.

Scroll through a 75-year timeline of Ogilvy’s iconic ads

From the brilliant Rolls-Royce slogan that David Ogilvy wrote himself (“at 60 miles an hour the loudest noise in this new Rolls-Royce comes from the electric clock”) to Dove’s early 2000s campaign for Real Beauty, these 75 ads are among the best in advertising agency Ogilvy’s history.

Disney funded his first theme park by agreeing to host a weekly show on ABC

Walt Disney was determined to open a theme park, but had numerous issues with funding. A break came when ABC offered to cover a signifcant portion of the construction, though it came with a catch: Walt would host a weekly Disneyland TV show (and provide them part-ownership of the park).

See 33 images that became central to huge scandals, including a young Charles and Camilla, Michael Jackson's baby on a hotel balcony, and Hugh Grant's mugshot.

Search a massive database of over 4 decades of clues from the TV quiz show 'Jeopardy!'

Mid-century modern graphic designers, known for their bright colors and bold lines in advertising, also found success with children's books.

'Shogun,' a 1980s TV series, helped popularize sushi in the US by stimulating an American interest in Japanese culture.

American dance legend Martha Graham, sometimes called 'the Picasso of dance,' refused to perform at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin and conceived the piece 'Chronicle' in response to the experience.

Mark Twain spent decades feuding with the US Postal Service, convinced its costs and regulations were bureaucratic overreach.

Comedy legend Catherine O'Hara, star of 'Schitt's Creek' and 'Home Alone,' quit 'Saturday Night Live' after just one week to return to her old job.

'Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone,' a work by American painter Thomas Moran, inspired Congress to establish Yellowstone National Park.

Netflix profits when you're not watching, and its movies are designed that way—read a detail-rich critical essay exposing lesser-known Netflix takes

Hear 50 years of iconic hip-hop samples, the genre's foundational looped tracks

Double world record holder Hunter Ewen helped conquer his fear of balloons, called globophobia, by training to win Guinness World Record titles for balloon inflation.

Children are now three times more likely to say they want to be a YouTuber when they grow up than an astronaut, with some even attending 'YouTube camps' that teach kids how to create content for the platform.

Before humans, the Soviet Union and the United States sent animals—including apes, dogs, and cats—to space during the Space Race.

A researcher recently discovered an interview from 1967 between groundbreaking journalist Joan Didion and the Grateful Dead, years before the band became an institution.

Against his wishes, Albert Einstein's brain was removed before his cremation, and the pathologist responsible stored it for decades in mason jars within a beer cooler.

SpongeBob exemplifies Aristotle's philosophy for living well because he understands that happiness doesn't come from external factors like money, recognition, or power.

The first horror movie is believed to be George Méliès' 1986 short 'The Haunted Castle,' which pioneered the use of special effects

Memecoins are a type of cryptocurrency—a form of digital currency with a wide variety of uses—created around popular 'memes,' or viral internet jokes.

The US first hosted the World Cup in 1994, a tournament that lives in soccer infamy for its poor planning and the murder of Colombian player Andres Escobar, who'd accidentally scored on his own net.

The most expensive ad of all time was for Chanel No. 5 perfume and cost roughly $33M to produce in 2004—about $57M in today's dollars.

Three Ebola species are responsible for most large outbreaks of the disease, yet the only approved Ebola vaccine is known to work against just one of them.

Chaos theory—informally known as the butterfly effect—is the reason why weather forecasts are presented with probabilities rather than certainties.

NBA superstar Victor Wembanyama spent the 2025 summer training with monks in central China to enhance his body and mind.