In Inside Chernobyl with Ben Fogle, British adventurer and broadcaster Ben Fogle will journey to what he described to The Mirror as "one of the most eerie and arguably wretched places" in the world.
The documentary follows the 47-year-old presenter right to the heart of the infamous nuclear disaster: Chernobyl, near the abandoned city of Pripyat in Ukraine.
Here’s everything you need to know about Inside Chernobyl with Ben Fogle.
Inside Chernobyl with Ben Fogle release date
Inside Chernobyl with Ben Fogle aired on Channel 5 at 9pm on Wednesday, March 3 in the UK.
You can now watch the 90-minute documentary live on Channel 5's dedicated streaming site, My5.
There’s currently no word on whether the show will be distributed in the US right now.
Is there a trailer for Inside Chernobyl with Ben Fogle?
Yes! Ben tweeted the trailer, below, just last week. Ben says in the clip: “35 years ago nuclear disaster rocked Chernobyl and the world. Now, I have unprecedented access to the most radioactive place on Earth. Join me, Ben Fogle, for the most extraordinary journey of my life.”
Join me for the most extraordinary journey 'Inside Chernobyl with Ben Fogle' Wednesday 3rd March at 9pm on @channel5_tv pic.twitter.com/ygEEUsMzmZFebruary 25, 2021
Where will he go?
As part of his documentary, Ben Fogle spent a full week inside the Chernobyl exclusion zone, 35 years after the power plant initially exploded.
He will explore the Chernobyl exclusion zone, discovering some of the wildlife that's returned to the toxic environment since the initial disaster. Along the way, he also meets some of the city's former residents and learns more about what life after the disaster has been like.
Interestingly, Ben and his crew were granted special access by Ukrainian authorities to the control room of reactor number four, where the accident took place.
“We had to be tested with machines for radiation levels before, after, and multiple times during,” Ben told The Mirror. “You're advised to burn your clothes afterwards.”
Speaking on GMB, Ben explained that the Chernobyl exclusion zone is "an area the size of Luxembourg".
Ben also commented that he thinks there's a positive message in the film. "I think people will take quite a lot of hope away from the programme," he said.
How long is it?
Inside Chernobyl with Ben Fogle is a feature-length, one off documentary that will run for 90 minutes.
Why is Ben going to Chernobyl?
In a post on Instagram on February 1, Ben explained that his latest documentary was his "lockdown secret project". In Inside Chernobyl with Ben Fogle, Ben wants to see what positive signs we might be able to take from the exclusion zone.
He wrote: "With unprecedented access, I explore the hope after the meltdown. Meeting the people who returned both legally and illegally to live off grid in the vast exclusion zone. And following the wildlife that has returned to this once toxic landscape.
"As the world recoils from the Pandemic and Climate Change, what lessons of hope can we learn from the aftermath of the 1986 disaster that threatened the world?"
He also went to explain that his journey sought to “explore the legacy of Chernobyl as Ukraine seek UNESCO world heritage status for its unique historical relevance”.
