TV
'Walking with Dinosaurs' takes a look at how the prehistoric creatures lived more accurately than ever before
Emily Bamforth recalls falling in love with dinosaurs when she was
4 years old.
That love has only intensified.
鈥淚 saw my first dinosaur at four and honestly have not wanted to do anything else,鈥� Bamforth, a paleontologist at the Philip J. Currie Dinosaur Museum in Wembley, Alberta, Canada, says. 鈥淭o be able to work outside in all these amazing places and to dig to find fossils. There鈥檚 nothing else I want to do.鈥�
Bamforth is one of the many paleontologists and teams featured in the upcoming BBC and PBS series 鈥淲alking with Dinosaurs.鈥�
The six-part series takes a look at how the prehistoric creatures lived more accurately than ever before 鈥� due in large part to cutting-edge technology used for the series.
According to PBS, the series will bring prehistoric stories to life with state-of-the-art visual effects 鈥� making each episode a gripping dinosaur drama based on the very latest evidence.
Some of the dinosaurs featured are a Spinosaurus 鈥� the largest carnivorous dinosaur to ever walk the earth 鈥� roaming the rivers of ancient Morocco; a Triceratops battling a ravenous T. rex in North America; and a lonely giant Lusotitan in Portugal.
The series premieres with two episodes on Monday, June 16, on New Mexico PBS, channel 5.1. The first episode, 鈥淭he Orphan,鈥� begins at 7 p.m. and the second episode, 鈥淭he River Dragon,鈥� airs at 8 p.m.
Episode three 鈥淏and of Brothers鈥� airs at 7 p.m. and episode four 鈥淭he Pack鈥� airs at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, June 17. Episode five 鈥淭he Journey North鈥� airs at 7 p.m. and episode six 鈥淚sland of Giants鈥� airs 8 p.m. on Wednesday, June 18. All episodes will be available to stream on the PBS app.
The Philip J. Currie Dinosaur Museum, where Bamforth works, is located near the Pipestone Creek bonebed, part of the Wapiti Formation, which contains fossils from the late Cretaceous to early Paleocene epoch.
The bonebed was discovered by teacher Al Lakusta in 1974. He found bones belonging to a type of horned dinosaur that was later named Pachyrhinosaurus lakustai after him.
Bamforth says the Pipestone Creek bonebed has thousands of fossils and is considered one of the densest fossil sites in the world, earning it the name 鈥淭he River of Death.鈥�
鈥淲e have a really unique place in history,鈥� Bamforth says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 such an incredible story and we were so thrilled to tell this story in a place that people don鈥檛 often think fossils exist. Our dig site is in the middle of the forest.鈥�
Bamforth says the museum was approached about three years ago by the production company because they had an interest in the Pipestone Creek.
Filming took place in the fall of 2023 on site.
Bamforth is also a fan of the original series 鈥淲alking with Dinosaurs,鈥� which was released in 1999.
鈥淚 did watch the original and that helped build my love for dinosaurs,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t showed dinosaurs interacting with other organisms. It really just portrayed it well.鈥�
Bamforth also mentioned that during the 1990s, films such as 鈥淛urassic Park鈥� were being released and showing a different side of dinosaurs.
鈥淭he original was seminal because it did get released after 鈥楯urassic Park鈥� and as a child I had an issue with the film,鈥� she says. 鈥溾�榃alking with Dinosaurs鈥� was kind of a palate cleanser because it was an honest portrayal of the lives of dinosaurs. Yes, there were fights, but it鈥檚 just like animals today. The original really fueled my interest, and being part of the new series is an honor because I hope it will inspire a new generation to go into science and understand how science works.鈥�
PBS jumped on the project with the BBC as the original series was successful.
鈥淭wenty-five years ago, 鈥榃alking with Dinosaurs鈥� changed the way we viewed the prehistoric world. With this exciting reimagining, we鈥檙e proud to partner with the BBC and invite viewers to witness the awe-inspiring lives of these incredible creatures once again,鈥� said Sylvia Bugg, PBS chief programming executive and general manager, general audience programming, in a statement. 鈥淲ith groundbreaking science and state-of-the-art visual effects, the dramatic life stories of these ancient giants will be seen like never before.鈥�
Bamforth urges those interested in paleontology to find others with those interests.
鈥淭here鈥檚 more public interest than there has ever been in dinosaurs,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 would say to someone interested in dinosaurs, 鈥楰eep that passion and just pursue it.鈥欌��
'Walking with Dinosaurs' takes a look at how the prehistoric creatures lived more accurately than ever before
