David Attenborough takes an extraordinary journey across the magical ice worlds of the Arctic and Antarctic – the greatest and least-known wildernesses inhabited by the most bizarre and hardy creatures on Earth.

The journey begins for David at the North Pole – one of the few places he has never visited. After six months of darkness ends with the return of the sun, a pair of courting polar bears reveal a surprisingly tender side. At Greenland’s great ice cap waterfalls plunge into the heart of the ice, and a colossal iceberg calves into the sea. Humpback whales join the largest gathering of seabirds on Earth to feast in rich Alaskan waters. In the Taiga Forest a pack of the world’s largest wolves take on formidable bison prey.

In the Antarctic surfing penguins struggle to escape a hungry sealion. And a filming first reveals incredible behaviour as orcas work together creating giant waves to wash seals from ice floes.

Below the ice, the cameras discover prehistoric giants – terrifying sea spiders and massive woodlice. Above ground, crystal caverns ring the summit of Mount Erebus, the most southerly volcano.

Retracing the routes of early explorers across the Antarctic ice-cap, Frozen Planet rejoins David at the South Pole, a century after Amundsen, then Scott, were the first humans to stand there.

Freeze Frame – Secrets Of The Volcano goes behind the scenes to reveal the siege tactics used to film Mt Erebus. Multiple crews and cameras were used to film from the air, inside the caves and under the surrounding waters.

Wednesday 26 October
9.00-10.00pm BBC ONE and BBC ONE HD