In the mid 1970s, David Attenborough resigned from his job at the BBC, where he had recently been shortlisted to become the next Director-General, and returned to his true passion: nature broadcasting. In 1976, exactly 50 years ago, he made Life on Earth, an expansive BBC nature series that spanned 40 countries and 600 species, took three years to film, and cemented Attenborough as the face of the “wildlife blockbuster.” In a new documentary timed with Attenborough’s 100th birthday, the British broadcaster and the crew of the original series go inside the making of Life on Earth. Juicy anecdotes include the story of the crew’s mashup with a coup in Comoros, and what Attenborough was thinking when cuddling Rwandan gorillas. —Paulina Prosnitz