BBC Television is renowned for its outstanding nature documentary programming, and these boxed collections gather some of their landmark productions from the past three decades, offering a brilliant look at the history of life on earth in locations all over the world. Each set presents four different series in various formats on 6 DVDs—over 17 hours of material—with bonus features.

The new world seems almost magical in Land of the Eagle, Spirits of the Jaguar, and Wild South America, which take us from Mayan creation myths through the conquests of the Aztecs, the Spanish conquistadors, and the European invasion of North America. The rugged beauty of Patagonia leads us south to Antarctica, superbly profiled in Life in the Freezer.