Series synopsis
Big Al is a British documentary television series that premiered on BBC One on December 25, 2000. It ended on December 27, 2000. It was created by Tim Haines. It stars Kenneth Branagh.
145 million years ago an adolescent Allosaurus lay down to die in a dried up river bed. In 1991 scientists discovered his perfectly preserved body and nicknamed him Big Al. This is the story of this predatory dinosaur's life - how he grew from a tiny hatchling to the terror of the Jurassic plains, why his body was covered in so many wounds and how he ended up in the river bed. The second part tells the story of the extraordinary forensics, spectacular paleontological finds and intricate studies ...
Premise
145 million years ago an adolescent Allosaurus lay down to die in a dried up river bed. In 1991 scientists discovered his perfectly preserved body and nicknamed him Big Al. This is the story of this predatory dinosaur's life - how he grew from a tiny hatchling to the terror of the Jurassic plains, why his body was covered in so many wounds and how he ended up in the river bed. The second part tells the story of the extraordinary forensics, spectacular paleontological finds and intricate studies of Al's closest living relatives to unravel his intriguing life for the film.
Premise: A WALKING WITH DINOSAURS SPECIAL.
Cast and characters
Leading cast
- Kenneth Branagh as Narrator
Episodes
This series spans 1 season with 2 episodes.
| Season | Episodes | First aired | Last aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | 2 | December 25, 2000 | December 27, 2000 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
The Ballad of Big Al 145 million years ago an adolescent Allosaurus lay down to die in a dried up river bed. In 1991 scientists discovered his perfectly preserved body and nicknamed him Big Al. This is the story of this predatory dinosaur's life - how he grew from a tiny hatchling to the terror of the Jurassic plains, why his body was covered in so many wounds and how he ended up in the river bed. |
December 25, 2000 |
| 2 |
Big Al Uncovered The life of a dinosaur was recreated in amazing detail in the Ballad of Big Al, but how was so much known about an animal that died millions of years ago? This programme tells the story of the extraordinary scientific detective work that got Big Al, the Allosaurus back on his feet. Scientists used forensics, spectacular paleontological finds and studies of his closest living relatives to unravel his intriguing life. Find out the real reason why Big Al earned the reputation as the dinosaur who lived fast and died young. |
December 27, 2000 |
Production
Release
| Original network/platform | BBC One |
|---|---|
| First aired | December 25, 2000 |
| Last aired | December 27, 2000 |
| Runtime | 30 minutes |
| Status | Ended |