Humanity has made a “tragic, desperate mess” of the planet, Sir David Attenborough has said.

The veteran broadcaster urged people to “look after the natural world” and waste nothing, as he prepared for his latest series to air this week.

Seven Worlds, One Planet, breaks with the tradition of previous BBC Natural History Unit programmes by putting a conservation message “at its heart”, instead of being tagged on at the end of each episode.

The series, which has been four years in the making, features wildlife firsts and has already been bought by broadcasters around the world.

Producers took drones over “volcanoes, waterfalls, icebergs and underground into caves” to shoot heart-wrenching “animal dramas” in all seven continents, the BBC said.

David Attenborough: Life in pictures

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Dramatic scenes…