ITV commiions Life At the Extreme. Presented by Davina McCall

ITV commissions Life At The Extreme' from Plimsoll Productions

Presenter Davina McCall to visit Earth s most hostile environments

How do some of the most extraordinary animals on the planet survive in its most hostile environments? To find out, TV presenter Davina McCall travels to the hottest, coldest, deepest and wettest places on Earth to experience, first hand, life at the extreme.

ITV has commissioned Life at the Extreme, a 4x60 new Factual series from Grant Mansfield's Plimsoll Productions.

Humans think of themselves as the planet's top species, but they can only comfortably survive in a thin temperate zone that covers less than a quarter of the earth's surface. The real masters of the extremes are animals with the extraordinary adaptations to survive. They call the most punishing places on earth, home. And now, McCall will experience life alongside them. She will get up close to the iconic animals that survive these remote and hostile conditions to understand their adaptations and uncover their survival secrets.

Accompanied by an incredibly experienced wildlife production crew, the series will take Davina across different continents, from the hottest desert to the coldest snowdrift, from the wettest rainforest to deep below the sea. Amongst her many adventures, she will run in the scorching sun where cheetahs hunt, sample how polar bears cope in minus 30 C with 100 miles per hour winds and free dive alongside the whale that is able to sustain one breath of air for 90 minutes by lowering its heart rate to only three beats per minute. By living alongside local people, scientists, tribes and the animals themselves, she will test the limits of her own endurance and provide viewers a better understanding of how extreme, extreme can be. Life at the Extreme is commissioned for ITV by Andrew O'Connell, Factual Commissioning Editor, and Richard Klein, Director of Factual. Executive producers for Plimsoll Productions are Martha Holmes, Gavin Henderson and Grant Mansfield.

Andrew said: I'm delighted that Davina is taking on these extreme locations. She'll bring a breath of fresh air to natural history.

Announcing the new show today [27 April] Davina said: I've just come back from the Arctic - and honestly, I do not like the cold at all! And I keep going to these places and thinking, Honestly, they've got me wrong' somebody, somewhere down the line they've got me wrong and I'm being sent off to all these places!

She added: And I was running with cheetahs! Literally next to cheetahs and clearly I'm not running with it for very long they were as tame as a cheetah can be and I was terribly respectful of them and very careful.

Martha Holmes, executive producer of the series and Head of Wildlife for Plimsoll, said: We're very excited to be working with Davina McCall on a series where fascinating wildlife meets adventure, an area of programming we're keen to continue exploring. Both elements are key to Life at the Extreme, which allows Davina to bring her unique enthusiasm and curiosity to each challenge and the encounters she has with a stunning array of animals in each location.

About Plimsoll Productions

With offices in Bristol, London and Los Angeles, Plimsoll Productions is led by Grant Mansfield and focuses on Reality, Wildlife and Adventure programming for United Kingdom and American broadcasters. Less than two years after launching, the company has already sold eight series and specials to UK and international channels such as ITV, Channel 5 and Discovery International. Recently announced commissions include Holiday Airport (Channel 5), My Million Pound Council House (Channel 5), Big Family Mansion(ITV) and Prom Crazy: Frocks and Ferraris (ITV).

LINK:	http://www.itv.com/presscentre/press-releases/itv-commissions-life-ext...
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