Animal Park S19E01 - Episode 1

Kate Humble and Ben Fogle return to Longleat Safari Park for a spectacular, sun-drenched summer series, following the remarkable lives of the exotic animals and the keepers committed to help them.

In this episode, a cowardly lion is in danger of being attacked by her fellow lioness. Beryl's solitary behaviour is putting her in peril, as an unconfident member of the pride can be rejected. To ensure her standing in the group, the keepers have come up with a plan to elevate Beryl's status amongst the lionesses and build up her confidence.

It's been three years since Europe's only southern koala breeding programme started, and Animal Park has followed every step of the phenomenal journey. There has been some incredible news, and it's all been caught on camera. Violet started putting on weight last year, and after a few months there were signs that there was life inside her pouch. The keepers nervously wait for signs that their hopes of a precious joey could come true.

Elsewhere, Ben helps geriatric pygmy goat Jake have his first bath. Kate meets the park's eastern black and white colobus monkeys and finds out why they appear to have a ‘cape,' and how they move around their own island.

Wildlife photographer Hamza Yassin is back for another series, using his specialised kit to help the keepers solve some of the trickier problems across the park. Today, there's a mystery to solve: can he sex the three baby Pere David deer?

This summer we have a new member of the team, zoologist Megan McCubbin. She's finding out how the keepers in the park keep their animals entertained and in great condition - and as a former animal keeper herself, Megan needs no encouragement to get stuck in. Today, she's helping the keepers encourage the Amur tigers to swim in their pond. They are surprisingly powerful swimmers with partially webbed paws.