Sir David Attenborough and rapper Dave are set to collaborate on a new BBC wildlife special, which combines the transformative powers of nature and music.

The nature-music special, Planet Earth: A Celebration, takes viewers on a journey to the wildest places on earth, using eight sequences from the Bafta award-winning Planet Earth II and Blue Planet II.

David Attenborough has recorded new voiceover narration for the special, while composer Hans Zimmer – who is known for his work on films including The Lion King and The Dark Knight – has reworked the original score and added a series of new compositions.

Planet Earth: A Celebration will include UK rapper Dave perform on a grand piano while the BBC Concert Orchestra takes on the string section of the score.

The special natural history programme, which will be aired on BBC One, has been described as “a visual and musical feast designed to lift viewers’ spirits during a time of international uncertainty”.

Dave says: “I’ve always been fan of powerful natural history documentaries. This is a programme where nature and music come together, so it was only right that I lent my talent, my time, and my attention to this project. It was a pleasure to work alongside Sir David Attenborough and Hans Zimmer.”

The sequences that will be featured from Planet Earth II include Lions vs giraffe, which sees a pride of desert lions in Namibia that are so hungry they risk a nail-biting hunt of a giraffe several times their size; Andean flamingo of Salar de Atacama, Chile; the mother snow leopard protecting her cub from two males in the Himalayas; and racer snakes vs iguana in Fernandina, Galapagos.

From Blue Planet II, Planet Earth: A Celebration will feature the surfing bottlenose dolphins on the East Cape of South Africa, catching the waves, playing and surfing near the shoreline; common octopus vs pyjama shark in the kelp forests off the coast of southern Africa; bird-eating fish in the Indian Ocean; and massive gatherings of orca and humpback whales feeding together on herring in the fjords of northern Norway.

Planet Earth: A Celebration is set to air on BBC One at the end of August.

All images: BBC

Rosa Medea is Life & Soul Magazine’s Chief. She writes about lifestyle including sustainable and green living.