Arctic with Bruce Parry

20th January 2011

BBC2 has recently seen the return of intrepid wanderer Bruce Parry on Sunday evenings in the new series Arctic with Bruce Parry.

This five part series sees Bruce venture to the spectacular wilderness of the Arctic, where he investigates the many changes that its indigenous peoples, wildlife and landscapes are undergoing.

Parry’s adventure so far has seen him try his hand at reindeer herding on the plains of Siberia, hunting with the last of Greenland’s Inuit hunters and meet some of Russia’s few remaining shaman.

Never one to shy away from the rituals and customs of the many tribes he has met, Parry puts aside his ethical preconceptions whilst eating whale meat, squeezing the juice from a seal’s eyeball and examining the carcass of a freshly killed polar bear in Greenland.

Observing both the geological and cultural changes taking place due to increasing temperatures and melting sea ice, Parry comments: “The world’s superpowers are eyeing up the region’s riches… there is new global interest in the extensive energy, shipping, fishing and tourism prospects.”

And he’s not wrong. Since filming the documentary last summer, Russia has signed an agreement to allowing drilling in the Russian Arctic – surely a devastating blow to the reindeer herders that Bruce grew attached to during his time Siberia.

Over the next three episodes, Parry visits the First Nation people in Canada, meets salmon fishermen and whalers in Alaska, and spends time in the hills of northern Norway.

If Bruce has inspired you to explore the sparkling Arctic wilderness for yourself, take a look at our collection of Polar Expedition voyages, as well as trips to Norway, Alaska, Canada and Greenland. 

The next installment of Arctic with Bruce Parry is on BBC2 on Sunday 23 February at 9pm. If you have missed any episodes so far, you can catch up with Bruce’s Arctic adventure on BBC i-player.