Jimmy Doherty (he of Jimmy's Food Factory fame) returns to the place where he worked (briefly) as a young man, taking with him engineer Kate Bellingham, environmental scientist Liz "Bang!" Bonnin, zoologist Mark Carwardine and doctor of tropical medicine Chris Van Tulleken. This retinue of experts assists Jimmy in explaining the research work which goes on in the part of the musem which the public never sees - some 70% of the museum's specimens are not on display - and inside the maze of offices and corridors they meet some colourful characters, all of whom, it is clear, are totally absorbed by their work. These are people with a passion, even if it seems, at times, as if the programme's producers were deliberately seeking out scientists who had not seen daylight in a very long time.
This minor quibble aside, the series is hugely enjoyable, entertaining and informative, even if Jimmy occasionally seems a little out of his depth. But he is a pleasing and enthusiastic enough presenter, and the experts are always there to shed more light on the science.
As well as portraying science inside the museum, there are also film sequences shot abroad where the experts get to go to Maritius to help re-introduce giant tortoises, go hunting for dinosaur fossils in America and examine a new program to help eradicate malaria. Although these sequences are interesting, one feels as if their inclusion means that the BBC considered the museum-based material too samey or boring for the general public, whereas, of course, the reverse is true - watching passionate scientists in the museum do their work, and listening to them talk about it, was a lot more interesting, for me, than the more superficial film clips. But each to their own of course.
The real stars of this DVD are the specimens themselves, of course - the fossils, the mammals, the invertebrates and all the plethora of life, collected over a hundred years. What a shame the Natural History Museum cannot display all of them. Many were brought back from far-off lands by Victorian explorers and naturalists, for whom the world must have seemed boundless in its size and wonders. They were almost exclusively men, of course - the only exception who springs to mind is Mary Anning. We will not see that era again, nor those fine gentlemen: in many ways, this BBC series is a tribute to them. They and the museum are inextricably entwined.
Speaking as somebody for whom the Natural History Museum in London is one of the finest places in the world, I must declare a bias in thoroughly recommending this series. However, if you missed it on TV, I suggest you buy this DVD - you will not be disappointed. And at £9.39 it's a bargain you should snap up!
