0:00:02 > 0:00:04My name's Steve Backshall.
0:00:04 > 0:00:06'People call me Steve.'
0:00:07 > 0:00:09Whoa!
0:00:09 > 0:00:12I'm on a mission to find the Deadly 60.
0:00:12 > 0:00:17That's 60 deadly creatures from around the world.
0:00:17 > 0:00:20'You're coming with me every step of the way.'
0:00:20 > 0:00:23Ow!
0:00:23 > 0:00:25Whoa!
0:00:29 > 0:00:33'My crew and I have travelled the world, filming wild wonders
0:00:33 > 0:00:36'for my Deadly 60 list.'
0:00:36 > 0:00:39Oh, look at that!
0:00:39 > 0:00:43'This is my chance to show you just how we managed to film
0:00:43 > 0:00:47'some of Deadly 60's most memorable scenes.
0:00:47 > 0:00:50'This is Deadly 60 - Behind The Scenes.
0:00:52 > 0:00:56'Filming Deadly 60 is very much a team effort.
0:00:57 > 0:01:01'Many wild and wonderful elements have to come together
0:01:01 > 0:01:04- 'to make a successful film.' - I think we've lost them.
0:01:04 > 0:01:08'It takes a lot of planning before the director can shout, "Action!"'
0:01:08 > 0:01:11There it goes!
0:01:11 > 0:01:16'And no amount of research can guarantee the animals even turn up.'
0:01:16 > 0:01:18I'm starting to get a bit disheartened.
0:01:22 > 0:01:25'You may remember my encounter with Jessica the hippo.
0:01:25 > 0:01:29'This is one of the most incredible animal encounters in the series,
0:01:29 > 0:01:33'but just how did we get that close to a truly deadly animal?'
0:01:33 > 0:01:37She's coming out of the water. Look at this!
0:01:37 > 0:01:39This is a totally wild river
0:01:39 > 0:01:42and wild hippos pass through here every day
0:01:42 > 0:01:45and socialise with Jessica here.
0:01:45 > 0:01:47Give us a nice, big smile, Jess.
0:01:47 > 0:01:51'We were able to get this close to Jessica
0:01:51 > 0:01:55'because of her extraordinary relationship with game warden Tonie
0:01:55 > 0:01:57'and his wife Shirley.
0:01:57 > 0:01:59'Jessica was orphaned as a baby
0:01:59 > 0:02:02'and has been part of the family ever since.
0:02:02 > 0:02:05'I now have to build up the trust of Jessica
0:02:05 > 0:02:09'cos the plan is for me eventually to get in the water with her.
0:02:09 > 0:02:13'So just how do you win the trust of a tonne-and-a-half hippo?
0:02:13 > 0:02:17'Well, you have afternoon tea with her.
0:02:17 > 0:02:19'Obviously(!)'
0:02:20 > 0:02:22The hippo's tea is getting cold.
0:02:22 > 0:02:25I never thought I'd say that.
0:02:25 > 0:02:28Come on, chaps. The hippo's tea is getting cold.
0:02:28 > 0:02:30What does that mean?
0:02:32 > 0:02:36'As bizarre as it may sound, Jess loves warm tea.
0:02:36 > 0:02:40'And she consumes about six litres of it a day.'
0:02:40 > 0:02:44- All the way in, there you are. - Tell me a bit about Jessica's story.
0:02:44 > 0:02:47She was a flood victim in 2000.
0:02:47 > 0:02:5211th of March. She was born the evening when the river was in flood.
0:02:52 > 0:02:56I picked her up the next morning on the water's edge up near the house.
0:02:56 > 0:02:59I took her in and raised her freely.
0:02:59 > 0:03:03She can go to the Kruger National Park if she wants to.
0:03:03 > 0:03:06In the evenings, the wild hippos visit her.
0:03:06 > 0:03:10She grazes with them. She eats the same food they eat.
0:03:10 > 0:03:15- Apart from the tea!- This is just supplementary, the spoiling bit, yes.
0:03:16 > 0:03:19'This is the only hippo in the world
0:03:19 > 0:03:22'you could get anything like this close to.
0:03:22 > 0:03:25'And we're coming back to Jess a little bit later on
0:03:25 > 0:03:29'when things get even stranger.
0:03:31 > 0:03:35'Much of the really hard work on Deadly 60 is done
0:03:35 > 0:03:38'before the cameras even start rolling.'
0:03:39 > 0:03:41It's a bear!
0:03:47 > 0:03:51'Finding the animal is only half the battle.
0:03:51 > 0:03:54'We use all our knowledge of animal behaviour
0:03:54 > 0:03:58'to get close enough to get the shots we're after.
0:03:59 > 0:04:03'It takes time, stealth and care to get close to birds
0:04:03 > 0:04:05'like these bald eagles.
0:04:05 > 0:04:09'Rosie the director wanted to get what is known as a two-shot.
0:04:10 > 0:04:14'That means that I had to be in the same shot as an eagle.
0:04:14 > 0:04:19'Here's the final sequence as it appeared in the show.'
0:04:19 > 0:04:23The bald eagle is one of the most regal of birds.
0:04:23 > 0:04:26They fly at usually about 30 mph,
0:04:26 > 0:04:29but when they're dropping out of the sky to hit prey,
0:04:29 > 0:04:32they can travel well over 100 mph.
0:04:32 > 0:04:36'An eagle's sight is around eight times more powerful than a human's
0:04:36 > 0:04:39'and is particularly sensitive to movement.
0:04:39 > 0:04:43'That meant patience and stillness was our best chance
0:04:43 > 0:04:45'of getting the shots.
0:04:45 > 0:04:49'Johnny the cameraman only moves when the eagle is busy feeding.
0:04:53 > 0:04:58'In true Deadly 60 style, you come with us every step of the way,
0:04:58 > 0:05:01'even when the animal doesn't turn up.
0:05:02 > 0:05:05'Like the wild dogs in Africa.'
0:05:09 > 0:05:14We've covered an enormous area and no sign whatsoever of the dogs.
0:05:15 > 0:05:19'And the elusive mountain lion in Arizona.'
0:05:22 > 0:05:25- DOGS BARKING - Hello there, doggies.
0:05:25 > 0:05:28'We came within a cat's whisker
0:05:28 > 0:05:32'of seeing one of these incredible creatures,
0:05:32 > 0:05:34'but it just gave us the slip.
0:05:37 > 0:05:41'And another big cat promised even more of a challenge.
0:05:43 > 0:05:45'It was a big risk to go in search
0:05:45 > 0:05:49'of an animal that's sly, secretive and endangered,
0:05:49 > 0:05:53'but we couldn't make a programme about the 60 deadliest animals
0:05:53 > 0:05:55'without at least trying.'
0:05:57 > 0:06:02The animal we're looking for, there's only about 164 of them here.
0:06:02 > 0:06:04And they're so well-camouflaged,
0:06:04 > 0:06:08they could be hiding about 20 metres off to the side of this road
0:06:08 > 0:06:12and we wouldn't ever see them. Talk about needles in haystacks!
0:06:12 > 0:06:17'This legendary beast is one of the world's most spectacular predators -
0:06:17 > 0:06:20'the Bengal tiger.'
0:06:21 > 0:06:24- Happy?- Yeah.- Running, Steve...
0:06:24 > 0:06:28'As always, tracking and searching for our wild hero
0:06:28 > 0:06:30'is a part of the story.
0:06:30 > 0:06:34'We felt like wildlife crime scene investigators,
0:06:34 > 0:06:38'following clues and signs to track down our tiger.'
0:06:40 > 0:06:42Look at that one there!
0:06:42 > 0:06:45The print of a big cat!
0:06:46 > 0:06:50'Behind the scenes, we enlisted some of the locals
0:06:50 > 0:06:52'to help search them out.
0:06:52 > 0:06:57'Ellie power is an old-fashioned, low maintenance way of travelling.
0:06:57 > 0:07:00'And this is the elephant version of a car wash.'
0:07:07 > 0:07:10Oh, yes!
0:07:10 > 0:07:14You're loving that, aren't you, girl?
0:07:16 > 0:07:21"Oh, yeah, that's good. Just there. Yeah, that's it, that's it!"
0:07:21 > 0:07:24'Give them a scrub and they'll take you for miles.'
0:07:32 > 0:07:37'The army of elephants combined with our trackers and four-wheel drives
0:07:37 > 0:07:40'to give us the best chance of finding a tiger.'
0:07:40 > 0:07:46People in India have used elephants to go out looking for tigers
0:07:46 > 0:07:48for hundreds of years.
0:07:48 > 0:07:52I mean, we are almost totally silent as we're moving.
0:07:52 > 0:07:57If there's any way we're going to find one, I think this is it.
0:08:01 > 0:08:05'In the programme, our search sequence lasted minutes,
0:08:05 > 0:08:08'but in reality, we searched for four days
0:08:08 > 0:08:13'without seeing any more than a claw mark or a bit of tiger poo.'
0:08:13 > 0:08:16Finally, we've got a bit of good news.
0:08:17 > 0:08:21This...is tiger dung.
0:08:22 > 0:08:26'The signs told us that tigers were lurking in the shadows.
0:08:26 > 0:08:29'With patience and a bit of detective work,
0:08:29 > 0:08:32'we were confident we'd get there eventually.'
0:08:34 > 0:08:37Tiger, tiger.
0:08:43 > 0:08:45Oh, yes, I see it.
0:08:46 > 0:08:48Oh, wow!
0:08:49 > 0:08:54I had been hoping to see our first tiger in the middle of the wild.
0:08:54 > 0:08:57But actually this is even more special
0:08:57 > 0:09:01to have shared this with the people of India who...
0:09:03 > 0:09:05Look.
0:09:05 > 0:09:08It's come out across the road in front of us.
0:09:08 > 0:09:11CONVERSATION IN LOCAL LANGUAGE
0:09:16 > 0:09:18Look at that!
0:09:21 > 0:09:25Just sauntering across the road in front of us.
0:09:27 > 0:09:32'There are very few wild encounters that can match the regal majesty
0:09:32 > 0:09:34'of a tiger in the wild.
0:09:34 > 0:09:38'Johnny wanted to get another shot as it disappeared into the forest,
0:09:38 > 0:09:42'but the dense undergrowth and his camouflage
0:09:42 > 0:09:44'meant he just seemed to vanish.'
0:09:49 > 0:09:53Are you happy with the kind of footage you got?
0:09:53 > 0:09:55It can always be better.
0:09:55 > 0:09:58It was very shaky and all the sounds on top.
0:10:01 > 0:10:03That an animal that size
0:10:03 > 0:10:07can just disappear into the undergrowth in the blink of an eye,
0:10:07 > 0:10:09I think for that reason alone,
0:10:09 > 0:10:12the Bengal tiger has to make it on to the Deadly 60.
0:10:12 > 0:10:15- We got one!- Yeah!
0:10:15 > 0:10:17Fantastic. Yes!
0:10:18 > 0:10:22'It was a difficult start, but worth it.
0:10:22 > 0:10:26'During the next few days, our tiger count went through the roof.'
0:10:32 > 0:10:37From five days searching everywhere and finding nothing,
0:10:37 > 0:10:40it seems like tigers are everywhere.
0:10:42 > 0:10:46There's one just lying in a puddle up ahead of us,
0:10:46 > 0:10:48breathing heavily in the shade.
0:10:50 > 0:10:55This would have to be the best wildlife encounter in India.
0:10:55 > 0:10:57Just right there in front of us.
0:10:58 > 0:11:02'While they're sat in the open, they're easy to see,
0:11:02 > 0:11:07'but the dense bushes alongside the trail could hide an elephant,
0:11:07 > 0:11:10'let alone a grouchy tiger.'
0:11:10 > 0:11:13GROWLING
0:11:16 > 0:11:21'It takes constant, careful movement to keep the tiger in view,
0:11:21 > 0:11:25'always taking care not to crowd or frighten these magnificent beasts.
0:11:27 > 0:11:32'But however hard you try, sometimes the king of the forest
0:11:32 > 0:11:35'just needs to let you know who is really boss.'
0:11:36 > 0:11:38GROWLS
0:11:39 > 0:11:42Move, move, move! Back up, back up!
0:11:45 > 0:11:49That shows how fast things can change with wild animals.
0:11:49 > 0:11:53We were congratulating ourselves about the sighting of a tiger
0:11:53 > 0:11:57and drove too close on the left-hand side and it turned.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01GROWLS
0:12:01 > 0:12:03Move, move, move!
0:12:05 > 0:12:09'I think the tiger was just putting us in our place.
0:12:09 > 0:12:12'If he wanted to attack, we'd not have stood a chance.
0:12:14 > 0:12:17'Now, as promised, back to Jessica.
0:12:17 > 0:12:21'She is the only wild hippo in the world you could get this close to.
0:12:21 > 0:12:25'We met Jessica earlier over afternoon tea
0:12:25 > 0:12:28'to try and gain her trust.
0:12:28 > 0:12:32'Next, James the director wanted to do an interview with Shirley
0:12:32 > 0:12:34'and Jess in the background.
0:12:34 > 0:12:37'We weren't quite expecting what happened next.'
0:12:40 > 0:12:43SPEAKS IN AFRIKAANS
0:12:43 > 0:12:47'A hippo in a house is one of the weirdest things I've ever seen.
0:12:47 > 0:12:52'This may look like a giggle, but we've got to keep our wits about us
0:12:52 > 0:12:57'as this is a tonne and a half of famously unpredictable hippo
0:12:57 > 0:12:59'and anything could happen.'
0:12:59 > 0:13:02OK, don't come too close.
0:13:03 > 0:13:05Don't worry, don't worry.
0:13:05 > 0:13:09'I've never shared a living room with a hippo before,
0:13:09 > 0:13:12'but Tonie and Shirley don't seem too bothered.'
0:13:13 > 0:13:16SPEAKS IN AFRIKAANS
0:13:24 > 0:13:26Just come with me, yeah?
0:13:26 > 0:13:29Just walk around behind me.
0:13:29 > 0:13:32OK, just come and sit down next to me first.
0:13:35 > 0:13:38She's so heavy, my darling.
0:13:38 > 0:13:43I have to say, Shirley, in a whole lifetime working with animals,
0:13:43 > 0:13:46this is the weirdest thing I've ever seen.
0:13:47 > 0:13:51You are sitting with a hippo on your lap in your front room.
0:13:51 > 0:13:55How on earth are you going to get up out of that?
0:13:55 > 0:13:57Don't worry. You get up.
0:13:57 > 0:14:02'The interview goes well, but Jessica's got good and comfy.
0:14:02 > 0:14:06'What do you do when the hippo that's resting its giant head on you
0:14:06 > 0:14:08'doesn't want to get up?'
0:14:08 > 0:14:11CONVERSATION IN AFRIKAANS
0:14:15 > 0:14:17She loves you!
0:14:17 > 0:14:20She doesn't want Shirley to leave.
0:14:20 > 0:14:22CONVERSATION IN AFRIKAANS
0:14:25 > 0:14:28'While Jess is enjoying her pampering,
0:14:28 > 0:14:32'Rich the sound man takes the opportunity to get a recording
0:14:32 > 0:14:36'of the hippo's heavy breathing, which sounds like this.'
0:14:36 > 0:14:38Everyone quiet, please.
0:14:39 > 0:14:42BREATHING SOUNDS
0:14:44 > 0:14:48'We're going to come back to Jess for one more visit later
0:14:48 > 0:14:52'when, wild as it seems, I'm going swimming with her.
0:14:54 > 0:14:59'Dealing with any wild animal, and particularly deadly ones,
0:14:59 > 0:15:03'safety is the most important thing to consider.
0:15:03 > 0:15:07'It's the first thing on our mind when getting close to any animal,
0:15:07 > 0:15:09'whether we're diving, canoeing
0:15:09 > 0:15:14'or pretty much any of our action sequences for Deadly 60.
0:15:15 > 0:15:20'And safety was vital when we ventured into Borneo's rainforests
0:15:20 > 0:15:23'to climb inside Gomantong Caves,
0:15:23 > 0:15:26'a series of huge caverns
0:15:26 > 0:15:29'where we hoped to film millions of bats and swifts
0:15:29 > 0:15:31'that make their home there.
0:15:35 > 0:15:39'I abseiled down to see the nesting swifts.
0:15:39 > 0:15:43'Scary stuff as they live 150 metres above the cave floor.
0:15:45 > 0:15:49'Not something to go for if you're scared of heights.'
0:15:49 > 0:15:53Good to go, Steve. We're good to go. Over.
0:15:54 > 0:15:56Wow!
0:15:56 > 0:15:58What a place!
0:16:01 > 0:16:03Stop there, please, Steve.
0:16:05 > 0:16:07Look at that!
0:16:09 > 0:16:14This has to be one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen.
0:16:14 > 0:16:17'This is the only way to get a true sense
0:16:17 > 0:16:20'of the bats and swifts in their own environment.'
0:16:20 > 0:16:24They're just dropping into their nests right in front of me.
0:16:24 > 0:16:27Look at that one there.
0:16:32 > 0:16:36'But to ensure my safety up here takes an awful lot of planning.
0:16:38 > 0:16:42'And it all starts down at ground level
0:16:42 > 0:16:46'where James the director has a confession to make.'
0:16:47 > 0:16:49We're going to go to a big cave
0:16:49 > 0:16:54and Steve is going to abseil from the top.
0:16:54 > 0:16:57The rest of us will be at the bottom filming it.
0:16:57 > 0:17:01We've got to carry all our kit. How far is it? About 30, 40 minutes.
0:17:01 > 0:17:05The reason that James is going to the bottom and not the top with me
0:17:05 > 0:17:08is he's absolutely terrified of heights.
0:17:11 > 0:17:15Big, strong man! Very frightened of heights!
0:17:15 > 0:17:17Right, let's go.
0:17:17 > 0:17:20'So with my team of climbing and safety experts,
0:17:20 > 0:17:24'I set out on the steep hike up to the hole in the roof of the cave
0:17:24 > 0:17:27'from where I intend to start my abseil.
0:17:28 > 0:17:32'The other team are taking the easy route into the cave,
0:17:32 > 0:17:36'led by James and assistant director Rosie.'
0:17:36 > 0:17:38Where are we going, Rosie?
0:17:38 > 0:17:40We've packed up all the kit
0:17:40 > 0:17:44and we're just heading into the bottom of the cave.
0:17:44 > 0:17:46Steve's gone up to the top.
0:17:46 > 0:17:51Then he's going to do this big, 120-metre abseil down.
0:17:51 > 0:17:55So we've got two cameras down here. He's got a head-cam on.
0:17:55 > 0:17:58And we hope it's going to be quite spectacular.
0:18:01 > 0:18:05'The Gomantong Caves are home to millions of swifts
0:18:05 > 0:18:08'and wrinkle-lipped bats.
0:18:08 > 0:18:12'Wrinkle-lipped bats are nocturnal, that is night-time hunters,
0:18:12 > 0:18:16'and every evening, millions of them leave the cave system together
0:18:16 > 0:18:20'to gorge themselves on the insects in the surrounding rainforest.
0:18:29 > 0:18:33'After an hour of exhausting hiking in very hot and humid conditions,
0:18:33 > 0:18:37'we reach the top entrance to the cave.
0:18:43 > 0:18:47'A fall from this height would obviously be fatal,
0:18:47 > 0:18:52'so every inch of rope and piece of kit is checked and checked again.
0:18:57 > 0:18:59'150 metres below me,
0:18:59 > 0:19:03'the camera crew are welcomed to the low-level cave entrance
0:19:03 > 0:19:05'by some of its residents.'
0:19:05 > 0:19:09- See the bats up there? - Up there!
0:19:11 > 0:19:16Osman, our guide, said that was going to be a really easy walk.
0:19:16 > 0:19:19We're all absolutely sweating now.
0:19:20 > 0:19:22And this is the cave.
0:19:24 > 0:19:27- So where is Steve going to come down, guys?- What?
0:19:27 > 0:19:30- Where is Steve coming down?- There.
0:19:32 > 0:19:36'And dangling like threads of spider silk
0:19:36 > 0:19:39'are the ropes that I'll be climbing down.
0:19:39 > 0:19:43'The crew set up the cameras on the cave floor as I wave from above.'
0:19:43 > 0:19:45Somebody's waving. That's Steve.
0:19:47 > 0:19:51'I set up a helmet camera, so you can see what I see
0:19:51 > 0:19:53'and we're all set.'
0:19:53 > 0:19:59Right, if you guys down there can hear me, give me a flash of a light.
0:19:59 > 0:20:02Good to go, Steve. We're good to go. Over.
0:20:02 > 0:20:05'With one final nervous check of the rope,
0:20:05 > 0:20:08'it's time to plunge into the abyss.'
0:20:15 > 0:20:17It's just incredible stuff.
0:20:19 > 0:20:22'But no amount of planning can guarantee
0:20:22 > 0:20:25'that things will go smoothly when you hit the deck.'
0:20:25 > 0:20:30Up in the roof of the cave with the bats and birds circling around you,
0:20:30 > 0:20:32it's kind of like paradise.
0:20:32 > 0:20:38But all those birds and two million bats create an awful lot of poo.
0:20:38 > 0:20:41But there are some deadly creatures...
0:20:41 > 0:20:43LAUGHTER
0:20:43 > 0:20:46'Once I'm back on my feet,
0:20:46 > 0:20:50'James the director is keen to show you the result of all of that poo.'
0:20:50 > 0:20:53It smells incredibly strong.
0:20:53 > 0:20:56In fact, anyone that works in this cave for too long
0:20:56 > 0:20:58has to wear protective clothing
0:20:58 > 0:21:04which explains why my crew are all dressed like weird oompa-loompas.
0:21:04 > 0:21:08'The weird oompa-loompas have been working down here longer than I have
0:21:08 > 0:21:11'which is why they're wearing them and I'm not.'
0:21:11 > 0:21:16This big hill that I'm walking up here isn't actually a hill at all.
0:21:16 > 0:21:20You see, all those creatures up there
0:21:20 > 0:21:23obviously have to go to the toilet sometime
0:21:23 > 0:21:26and over hundreds of years it's built up
0:21:26 > 0:21:30into this gigantic pile of what's called guano.
0:21:31 > 0:21:35'And a lot of poo attracts poo eaters.
0:21:35 > 0:21:37'These are all cockroaches.'
0:21:37 > 0:21:42I have never seen anything so disgusting in my entire life.
0:21:47 > 0:21:52Every single square inch of ground is covered in these creatures.
0:21:53 > 0:21:58'I really do mean every single inch. They're everywhere.'
0:22:01 > 0:22:04I've got cockroaches running in and out of my shoes,
0:22:04 > 0:22:06up my trousers and everything,
0:22:06 > 0:22:09and Johnny the cameraman is sat
0:22:09 > 0:22:13in the biggest pile of poo in the world, filming cockroaches.
0:22:15 > 0:22:19This is the most disgusting place I've ever been to, that's for sure.
0:22:19 > 0:22:23It reminds me of Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom.
0:22:23 > 0:22:27I've never seen so many bugs in the one spot.
0:22:27 > 0:22:29But you know, anything for Steve!
0:22:29 > 0:22:32LAUGHTER
0:22:32 > 0:22:36'The shots we got made our mission to Gomantong Cave worth it.
0:22:36 > 0:22:41'But we were very pleased to get back out into the fresh air.
0:22:42 > 0:22:45'When filming Deadly 60,
0:22:45 > 0:22:49'each location has its own set of challenges.
0:22:49 > 0:22:53'Potentially the biggest of those is the weather.'
0:22:53 > 0:22:57It's absolutely...fr-freezing.
0:22:59 > 0:23:02'From extreme cold to exhausting heat.
0:23:04 > 0:23:06'When filming polar bears in Alaska,
0:23:06 > 0:23:09'the wind chill meant the temperature fell below minus 30.
0:23:09 > 0:23:13'Behind the scenes, the team had to work hard
0:23:13 > 0:23:17'to keep the cameras and themselves warm.
0:23:18 > 0:23:20'While filming tigers in India,
0:23:20 > 0:23:24'the humidity and sudden downpours made driving interesting.
0:23:28 > 0:23:31'Filming gannets off the Welsh coast is hard enough
0:23:31 > 0:23:34'without heavy rain and rough seas.
0:23:34 > 0:23:37'Try and hold your camera steady in this!
0:23:39 > 0:23:41'In the deserts of Arizona,
0:23:41 > 0:23:45'the heat gave us a different set of problems.'
0:23:45 > 0:23:47We'll experiment again.
0:23:47 > 0:23:51'The great horned owl is one of the fiercest predators around here.
0:23:51 > 0:23:53'It's a supreme aerial hunter.'
0:23:55 > 0:23:58WHISTLES
0:23:58 > 0:24:00'But could we get it to fly?
0:24:00 > 0:24:03'No way, Jose!'
0:24:03 > 0:24:06Anything else that I could do to...?
0:24:06 > 0:24:11'We even tried to lure him with meaty treats, but still no flying.'
0:24:12 > 0:24:14I'll tap the spot.
0:24:14 > 0:24:18'It was just too hot for our owl to be bothered -
0:24:18 > 0:24:22'one Deadly 60 experiment that bit the dust.'
0:24:24 > 0:24:26OWL SQUAWKS
0:24:29 > 0:24:33'Luckily, the weather wasn't an issue in South Africa.
0:24:33 > 0:24:36'You don't want any distractions
0:24:36 > 0:24:39'when going swimming with a potentially lethal hippo.
0:24:39 > 0:24:43'We'd spent the day gradually gaining her trust,
0:24:43 > 0:24:46'but would this pay off?
0:24:46 > 0:24:51'Well, it was time to try for the ultimate animal encounter.'
0:24:51 > 0:24:56So I'm going to try this very, very carefully and slowly.
0:24:57 > 0:25:00And if she starts moving, run.
0:25:00 > 0:25:04I think you're the one who'll have to run, Steve.
0:25:04 > 0:25:08'This is going against everything I've ever learnt about hippos.
0:25:08 > 0:25:12'But if Jessica has learnt to trust me, I'm going to have to trust her
0:25:12 > 0:25:16'if I'm going to have any chance of understanding her
0:25:16 > 0:25:18'in her world and on her terms.'
0:25:18 > 0:25:23Now, this is one of the most extraordinary animal encounters
0:25:23 > 0:25:25I've ever had in my life.
0:25:25 > 0:25:30This is the only place in the whole world that you could do this.
0:25:33 > 0:25:35What an extraordinary opportunity!
0:25:37 > 0:25:41What's surprising... Obviously, I've never touched a hippo before.
0:25:41 > 0:25:44But it's the sensation of the skin.
0:25:44 > 0:25:48It's really very soft, almost slimy.
0:25:48 > 0:25:51Hippos have a whole range of substances
0:25:51 > 0:25:54that they almost sweat out on to their skin
0:25:54 > 0:25:57which serve all kinds of purposes.
0:25:57 > 0:26:01Some of this stuff that they sweat out may act almost like sun block.
0:26:03 > 0:26:08'Well, not many people can say that they've had a bath with a hippo.
0:26:08 > 0:26:13'What an unbelievable privilege, if something of a nervous one!'
0:26:19 > 0:26:24I've spent all my life being told that hippos are terrifying creatures
0:26:24 > 0:26:28that will tear you in half the second you get anywhere near them.
0:26:28 > 0:26:33I've just been in the water with a hippo resting her head in my hands
0:26:33 > 0:26:39and feeling the sensation of her bellow-like lungs as she breathes.
0:26:39 > 0:26:43I've always been passionate about bugs and snakes and smaller things,
0:26:43 > 0:26:47but the powerful nature, the drama,
0:26:47 > 0:26:53that overpowering sense of being close to an animal that size,
0:26:53 > 0:26:55you can't beat it.
0:26:57 > 0:27:00'So that was a look behind the scenes
0:27:00 > 0:27:03'at just how we make Deadly 60,
0:27:03 > 0:27:06'dealing with the weather, the location...
0:27:07 > 0:27:10'..and the animals themselves.
0:27:10 > 0:27:13'All are key to the success of our programme.
0:27:15 > 0:27:18'With a bit of luck, when all these things come together,
0:27:18 > 0:27:21'it leads to some unforgettable experiences.'
0:27:21 > 0:27:24This is absolutely dazzling!
0:27:24 > 0:27:29'Which is hopefully what Deadly 60 is all about.'
0:27:29 > 0:27:33Look at the size of it! Great white shark!
0:27:33 > 0:27:36This is the biggest spider I've ever seen.
0:27:42 > 0:27:45'Join us next time for more out-of-this-world
0:27:45 > 0:27:48'animal encounters on Deadly 60.'
0:27:58 > 0:28:02Subtitles by Subtext for Red Bee Media Ltd 2009
0:28:02 > 0:28:05Email subtitling@bbc.co.uk