This Week On TV One
13.01.10
WEEK 4: Saturday 23 January - Friday 29 January 2010
Local - The Zoo, Sunday 24 January, 7pm: The local multi-award-wining series The Zoo returns to TV ONE tonight at 7pm, taking viewers behind-the-scenes at Auckland Zoo and bringing to life stories about the animals and their keepers.
Over the last decade, The Zoo has become an international hit, making New Zealand's favourite animals world-famous. The crew is based full-time at Auckland Zoo, giving the team the opportunity to bring viewers stories from the very beginning, with exclusive behind-the-scenes access. As well as all the local goings-on, this series also sees the team travel to the USA, Australia and the remote jungles of Sumatra in Western Indonesia. For primates team leader Amy Dixon, having the crew come out to Sumatra to Bukit Tiga Puluh, where they were helping to rehabilitate and release ex-captive orangutans back to the wild, was a real highlight she says. "It's such a privilege to be able to spread not only what Auckland Zoo are doing for conservation but the real plight of these animals, seeing it first hand, and introducing the public to some of the faces of the palm oil issue." Dixon says this series has a strong focus on primates: "It tends to come in ebbs and flows depending on what's happening during the year, but this year we've had some good filming opportunities, like the orangutans going to the USA, which was our biggest project, as well as Sumatra and some other smaller primate stories." Dixon is one of the key keepers at the Auckland Zoo and has dedicated her life to the animals and their development. "I wanted to be a zookeeper or a vet my whole life, but am very glad I chose keeping over vets as most of the animals are terrified of the vet. "I'm a big cat and great ape girl, I love cheetah, tigers and servals," she says, but her real passion lies with the primates: "I'm lucky enough to work with orangutans who have so much intelligence and insight, and it's such a challenge to keep their lives enriched and exciting." Episode one sees the triplet tiger cubs as they turn one-year-old and celebrate with a big birthday bash; fearless lion keeper, Nat, comes face-to-face with the one animal she's afraid of at the Zoo; and baby orangutan Madju gets a bouncing surprise, as keepers Amy and Carly prepare to head to Sumatra to help orphaned orangutans. Missed an episode of The Zoo - full episodes are available online. Go to tvnz.co.nz and click the 'ondemand' button.
Source: Voxy