Circle Circle Films

London Zoo An Extraordinary Year is a fly-on-the-wall series filmed at the iconic London Zoo and its sister site Whipsnade Zoo in Bedfordshire during the nationwide lockdown. ZSL, the international conservation charity behind the two world-famous Zoos, granted exclusive access to award-winning production company October Films within days of lockdown being enforced, with the team on site filming right through to the Zoos emotional reopening days on 15 June.

The cameras followed the Zoos teams as they dealt with the highs and lows of zoo life, while facing a global pandemic and capturing how social distancing measures created new challenges for zookeepers. From remote training sessions on how to scan a pregnant okapi, to weighing kune kune pigs from afar, many usual processes had to be adapted, but lockdown also provided some positive opportunities.