WXXI TV

Celebrate the life of the world’s most beloved broadcaster.

 Nature: Attenborough’s Life Journey premieres Wednesday, March 5 at 8 p.m. on WXXI-TV and streaming live on the WXXI app.

This intimate portrait follows Sir David Attenborough’s years on the road, from the islands of the Galapagos to the mountains of Canada to the jungles of Borneo. 

Combining exclusive behind-the-scenes footage, candid interviews from Attenborough on location, and stunning footage from his pioneering documentaries, this film chronicles an Attenborough never seen before. 

Witness Attenborough’s love of fossils as a young boy in Leicester transformed into a passion for the natural world in his field of study at Cambridge. From his early days as a presenter on BBC’s Zoo Quest, Attenborough rose through the ranks to become the foremost natural history presenter in the world, a beloved figure known for his cheeky remarks and remarkably timed footage. An avid advocate for climate change, Attenborough never settled down and continues to work on groundbreaking productions.  

Binge this two-part series that explores the life and work of the 15^th-century polymath Leonardo da Vinci.

Leonardo da Vinci, Part One airs Saturday, December 21 at 3 p.m. on WXXI-TV. Part two airs Saturday, December 28 at 3 p.m.

Leonardo da Vinci  looks at how the artist influenced and inspired future generations, and it finds in his soaring imagination and profound intellect the foundation for a conversation we are still having today: what is our relationship with nature and what does it mean to be human.

The musician and composer Caroline Shaw recorded original music for the film performed by Attacca Quartet, Sō Percussion and Roomful of Teeth. The voice of Leonardo is read by the Italian actor Adriano Giannini. Keith David serves as the film’s narrator.

Set against the rich and dynamic backdrop of Renaissance Italy, at a time of skepticism and freethinking, regional war and religious upheaval, Leonardo da Vinci brings the artist’s towering achievements to life through his prolific personal notebooks, primary and secondary accounts of his life, and on-camera interviews with modern scholars, artists, engineers, inventors, and admirers.

The film weaves together an international group of experts, as well as others influenced by Leonardo who continue to find a connection between his artistic and scientific explorations and life today. As the filmmaker and Leonardo admirer Guillermo del Toro says at the beginning of the film, “the modernity of Leonardo is that he understands that knowledge and imagination are intimately related.” 

Tells the little-known story of a deadly race massacre and carefully orchestrated insurrection in North Carolina’s largest city in 1898.

American Experience – American Coup: Wilmington 1898 airs Tuesday, November 12 at 9 p.m. on WXXI-TV. 

Stoking fears of “Negro Rule,” self-described white supremacists used intimidation and violence to destroy Black political and economic power and overthrow Wilmington’s democratically-elected, multi-racial government.

Photo: A mob celebrates in front of the burned Love & Charity Hall which housed the black-owned and -edited newspaper/Credit: The Daily Record. Courtesy of New Hanover County Public Library.

Binge on this landmark three-part series that follows the biggest archaeological dig at Pompeii for a generation.

Pompeii: The New Dig airs Saturday, November 9 at 3 p.m. on WXXI-TV.

The series follows the biggest archaeological excavation in Pompeii for a generation. Exciting discoveries and fresco-inspired animations tell the story of life in Pompeii AD 79. It also imagines the horrors faced by resident as Vesuvius erupted.

Featuring an all-star cast at London’s Theatre Royal Drury Lane, including Michael Ball, Daniel Dae Kim, Maria Friedman, Audra McDonald, Julian Ovenden and more.

Great Performances: Rodgers & Hammerstein’s 80th Anniversary airs Saturday, January 25 at 3 p.m. WXXI-TV

Beginning with their first collaboration on “Oklahoma!” in 1943, Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II revolutionized Broadway by integrating music and dance with well-crafted storylines to create a cohesive new form of musical theater.  With a string of blockbusters including “Carousel,” “South Pacific,” “The King and I,” “Flower Drum Song” and “The Sound of Music,” the duo garnered 34 Tony Awards along with 15 Academy Awards for their film adaptations. Directed and choreographed by Christopher Gattelli, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s 80th Anniversary features an all-star cast at London’s Theatre Royal Drury Lane, including Michael Ball, Joanna Ampil, Lucy St. Louis, Daniel Dae Kim, Maria Friedman, Audra McDonald, Julian Ovenden, Aaron Tveit, Marisha Wallace and Patrick Wilson, with additional surprise appearances by Rita Moreno and Andrew Lloyd Webber.