Between the years of 1966-1976, millions of viewers were held spellbound as audiences around the world would regularly tune in to see what new aquatic wonders had been captured on film by Jacques Cousteau and the crew of his ship, Calypso, on their decade-long adventure around the world. It was a truly pioneering programme that brought the hidden wonders of the world's oceans into their living rooms for the first time.

A pioneer of marine biology as well as the technology involved in underwater exploration, Jacques Cousteau's work is a colourful, revealing window onto a world that few of us will ever see first-hand. This comprehensive 36-episode series follows the crew as they study life in every corner of the globe: from sharks in the Red Sea to penguins in Antarctica, from coral reefs to hippos, octopus to sea otters. Taking time to study the intimate behavior of a wide spectrum of animals in their natural environment, each new variety of marine life they encounter is approached with the same passion, deep interest and respect. A tough mission it may be, but whether they are swimming with whales or diving for sunken treasure, life on board Calypso is never dull.

The creators of the first underwater nature documentaries ever filmed, Cousteau and his crew wrote the rules as they went along. If they saw a creature struggling or suffering in the wild, they would be just as likely to intervene and lend a hand as to document the harsh realities of the natural world. Profoundly respectful of nature but never sentimental, the crew of Calypso and their amazing adventures reveal almost as much about the depths of human compassion as they do the depths of our verdant oceans.