1 00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:07,000 Downloaded from YTS.MX 2 00:00:02,902 --> 00:00:05,872 [instrumental music playing] 3 00:00:08,000 --> 00:00:13,000 Official YIFY movies site: YTS.MX 4 00:00:17,550 --> 00:00:21,087 Magical creatures have fascinated us, 5 00:00:21,187 --> 00:00:24,324 ever since we first walked the Earth. 6 00:00:24,391 --> 00:00:27,660 Whether created entirely from the imagination 7 00:00:27,727 --> 00:00:30,597 or inspired by the animals around us, 8 00:00:30,697 --> 00:00:33,900 mythical beasts have captured our attention 9 00:00:34,000 --> 00:00:36,269 for thousands of years. 10 00:00:36,369 --> 00:00:41,341 But why in this modern age of science and technology, 11 00:00:41,408 --> 00:00:46,546 are we still so captivated by these fantastic beasts? 12 00:00:47,414 --> 00:00:48,782 And what are the truths 13 00:00:48,882 --> 00:00:52,185 that lie behind the myths, the magic, 14 00:00:52,886 --> 00:00:54,220 and the legends? 15 00:00:59,893 --> 00:01:01,394 [sniffing] 16 00:01:05,065 --> 00:01:06,099 [chitters] 17 00:01:08,735 --> 00:01:12,906 Join me on a journey of exhilarating exploration 18 00:01:12,972 --> 00:01:14,741 and daring discovery, 19 00:01:14,808 --> 00:01:16,409 as we uncover the secrets 20 00:01:16,476 --> 00:01:20,914 behind some of our best-loved mythical creatures... 21 00:01:23,083 --> 00:01:25,085 Oh, my heavens. 22 00:01:25,151 --> 00:01:26,986 Wow. 23 00:01:27,087 --> 00:01:29,756 ...revealing the real-life beasts 24 00:01:29,823 --> 00:01:34,160 behind some of the greatest legends in history. 25 00:01:34,260 --> 00:01:37,297 You look at some of nature's extraordinary creations 26 00:01:37,397 --> 00:01:40,800 and you think, "Well, CGI will never match this." 27 00:01:40,900 --> 00:01:45,238 [Fry] And finding out why the world of magical animals 28 00:01:45,305 --> 00:01:48,508 is more popular today than ever before. 29 00:01:48,608 --> 00:01:49,809 [roaring] 30 00:01:49,909 --> 00:01:52,946 These are the extraordinary stories 31 00:01:53,012 --> 00:01:56,616 of the world's most fantastic beasts. 32 00:02:12,031 --> 00:02:15,702 This is one of the greatest treasure troves 33 00:02:15,802 --> 00:02:17,470 of the natural world. 34 00:02:17,537 --> 00:02:21,708 London's Natural History Museum is a cornucopia 35 00:02:21,808 --> 00:02:24,644 of unique and fascinating collections 36 00:02:24,711 --> 00:02:27,213 from across the globe. 37 00:02:27,313 --> 00:02:31,451 It's also a place where the worlds of science and fiction 38 00:02:31,518 --> 00:02:33,953 have been known to overlap. 39 00:02:35,522 --> 00:02:37,957 I'll be exploring the museum's 40 00:02:38,024 --> 00:02:40,727 labyrinth of corridors and cabinets, 41 00:02:40,827 --> 00:02:44,397 and uncovering the stories that continue to fascinate 42 00:02:44,497 --> 00:02:46,499 millions of people today. 43 00:02:46,566 --> 00:02:49,202 From the legendary creatures of ancient mythology, 44 00:02:49,302 --> 00:02:53,006 to the magical animals of Harry Potter 45 00:02:53,072 --> 00:02:55,408 and the Wizarding World. 46 00:02:55,508 --> 00:02:58,044 Stories like these. 47 00:02:58,144 --> 00:03:01,314 The fantastic beasts and mythological creatures 48 00:03:01,381 --> 00:03:05,185 within these pages, appear to be pure fantasy, 49 00:03:05,251 --> 00:03:08,988 but things aren't always quite that simple. 50 00:03:11,257 --> 00:03:14,894 We begin our story with arguably the best-known 51 00:03:14,994 --> 00:03:17,564 mythological animal on the planet... 52 00:03:18,431 --> 00:03:19,832 the dragon. 53 00:03:35,081 --> 00:03:37,784 [sniffing] 54 00:03:52,232 --> 00:03:53,866 One of the most ancient 55 00:03:53,933 --> 00:03:57,870 and universal of our mythological creatures, 56 00:03:57,937 --> 00:04:00,807 the dragon has enthralled the human race 57 00:04:00,907 --> 00:04:02,375 for thousands of years. 58 00:04:03,142 --> 00:04:04,544 [roaring] 59 00:04:04,611 --> 00:04:08,047 But where did the idea for this creature 60 00:04:08,114 --> 00:04:10,483 first take flight? 61 00:04:10,583 --> 00:04:15,555 Was there a spark of truth behind the dragon myth? 62 00:04:15,622 --> 00:04:18,124 [Chinese traditional music playing] 63 00:04:22,428 --> 00:04:24,230 Chinese New Year 64 00:04:24,297 --> 00:04:26,566 is often celebrated around the world 65 00:04:26,633 --> 00:04:29,636 with a traditional dragon dance. 66 00:04:29,736 --> 00:04:32,071 [music continues] 67 00:04:34,774 --> 00:04:36,175 In the dance, 68 00:04:36,276 --> 00:04:39,512 the dragon represents wisdom, power, and wealth. 69 00:04:39,612 --> 00:04:42,348 And it's believed that performing the dance 70 00:04:42,448 --> 00:04:46,319 scares off evil spirits and brings good luck. 71 00:04:47,253 --> 00:04:49,822 But why the dragon? 72 00:04:49,922 --> 00:04:51,524 What is it about this creature 73 00:04:51,624 --> 00:04:54,961 that so excites and mesmerizes us? 74 00:05:00,466 --> 00:05:03,836 Many cultures around the world have a dragon myth, 75 00:05:03,936 --> 00:05:06,439 although they often vary in appearance. 76 00:05:07,807 --> 00:05:11,611 European dragons are usually seen as terrifying, 77 00:05:11,678 --> 00:05:16,983 fire-breathing beasts with wings and horns. 78 00:05:17,050 --> 00:05:20,153 Whereas Asian dragons are depicted as 79 00:05:20,219 --> 00:05:21,988 wise, benevolent creatures, 80 00:05:22,055 --> 00:05:25,558 with a more serpent-like appearance. 81 00:05:25,658 --> 00:05:28,561 But if you take a closer look at the dragon, 82 00:05:28,661 --> 00:05:30,963 you can see that many of its features 83 00:05:31,030 --> 00:05:34,067 are borrowed from real animals, 84 00:05:34,167 --> 00:05:37,403 animals that have a fearsome reputation. 85 00:05:39,672 --> 00:05:42,208 A dragon's large, powerful talons 86 00:05:42,308 --> 00:05:45,211 are like those of an eagle. 87 00:05:45,311 --> 00:05:46,713 [eagles screeching] 88 00:05:48,481 --> 00:05:50,750 Its sharp teeth and strong limbs 89 00:05:50,850 --> 00:05:52,318 are like a lion's. 90 00:05:54,854 --> 00:05:57,323 And its scales and hissing tongue 91 00:05:57,390 --> 00:06:00,493 are similar to a snake's. 92 00:06:00,560 --> 00:06:04,764 One recent scientific theory suggests that the dragon is, 93 00:06:04,864 --> 00:06:08,067 is simply a combination of those three animals. 94 00:06:08,167 --> 00:06:12,872 The animals that our early ancestors were most afraid of. 95 00:06:12,939 --> 00:06:14,774 An interesting idea indeed, 96 00:06:14,874 --> 00:06:17,944 but what lies behind this theory? 97 00:06:20,713 --> 00:06:21,848 [dragon roars] 98 00:06:23,216 --> 00:06:26,719 I visited San Diego Zoo in California, 99 00:06:26,786 --> 00:06:30,723 to meet a little creature that could help to explain. 100 00:06:30,790 --> 00:06:32,392 [Fry] Oh, now. 101 00:06:32,458 --> 00:06:33,793 Who have we here? 102 00:06:33,893 --> 00:06:36,028 [Peterson] So this is our vervet family. 103 00:06:36,095 --> 00:06:38,030 This chap here with the blue bottom, 104 00:06:38,097 --> 00:06:40,032 he's looking rather alarmed. 105 00:06:40,099 --> 00:06:42,435 [Peterson] So that is our dominant male in the family. 106 00:06:42,535 --> 00:06:44,570 There's some new enrichment in their enclosure 107 00:06:44,637 --> 00:06:46,205 that they haven't seen before, 108 00:06:46,272 --> 00:06:48,307 so he's letting everyone know there's something new. 109 00:06:48,408 --> 00:06:50,977 [Fry] When you say enrichment, do you mean that earthen pot? 110 00:06:51,077 --> 00:06:52,478 [Peterson] Correct. 111 00:06:52,578 --> 00:06:53,813 -They've never seen it before? -Never seen it before. 112 00:06:53,913 --> 00:06:55,648 {\an8}It has mealworms in there, 113 00:06:55,748 --> 00:06:58,317 {\an8}-it has peanuts, so they have to reach their hand in. -Right. 114 00:06:58,418 --> 00:07:00,953 But because it's something new in their environment, 115 00:07:01,053 --> 00:07:02,889 he's started making that alert call 116 00:07:02,955 --> 00:07:04,390 and I don't know if you noticed, 117 00:07:04,457 --> 00:07:05,591 they all started to jump into the trees. 118 00:07:05,658 --> 00:07:07,059 [Fry] They did, didn't they? 119 00:07:07,126 --> 00:07:08,461 And they were all responding to his, 120 00:07:08,561 --> 00:07:09,996 "Hey there's something new here". 121 00:07:10,096 --> 00:07:11,664 There is something new, we don't know what it is, 122 00:07:11,764 --> 00:07:12,965 everyone go to your post. 123 00:07:14,400 --> 00:07:15,668 [Fry] Vervet monkeys 124 00:07:15,768 --> 00:07:18,004 can be found across most of Africa, 125 00:07:18,104 --> 00:07:20,339 and usually live in large groups, 126 00:07:20,440 --> 00:07:22,842 known as troops. 127 00:07:22,942 --> 00:07:25,278 Studies have revealed that they communicate 128 00:07:25,344 --> 00:07:27,680 in a highly sophisticated way, 129 00:07:27,780 --> 00:07:31,984 using different alarm calls for specific predators, 130 00:07:32,084 --> 00:07:35,621 to warn their troop of approaching danger. 131 00:07:36,289 --> 00:07:37,323 [chattering] 132 00:07:39,292 --> 00:07:40,860 [Fry] Is it a very particular kind of warning 133 00:07:40,960 --> 00:07:42,528 that they know means something on the ground 134 00:07:42,628 --> 00:07:44,096 rather than something on a tree? 135 00:07:44,163 --> 00:07:46,132 They do. They have three different calls. 136 00:07:46,199 --> 00:07:49,035 So they have one for something that's on the ground, like a snake. 137 00:07:49,135 --> 00:07:50,536 Oh, right. 138 00:07:50,636 --> 00:07:52,305 They have a different call for something's in the air, 139 00:07:52,371 --> 00:07:53,806 -like a bird of prey. -Yeah. 140 00:07:53,873 --> 00:07:56,876 And then they have another call for big cats. 141 00:07:56,976 --> 00:07:59,879 [Fry] Those are the three things that are most likely to threaten them? 142 00:07:59,979 --> 00:08:01,147 [Peterson] Correct. 143 00:08:01,214 --> 00:08:02,482 [Fry] So that was a snake call, was it? 144 00:08:02,548 --> 00:08:04,050 'Cause they were all looking down. 145 00:08:04,150 --> 00:08:05,451 [Peterson] It was. They were all up on their tiptoes, 146 00:08:05,518 --> 00:08:07,119 they were all looking down at it. 147 00:08:07,186 --> 00:08:08,521 -Of course. -It's exactly what they do for a snake 148 00:08:08,621 --> 00:08:10,022 and, you know, I was cleaning, um, 149 00:08:10,122 --> 00:08:11,390 their bedrooms one time, 150 00:08:11,491 --> 00:08:14,460 and they started to do the same call 151 00:08:14,527 --> 00:08:15,561 for the water hose. 152 00:08:15,661 --> 00:08:16,863 -[Fry] Really? -[Peterson] Yeah. 153 00:08:16,963 --> 00:08:19,065 Of course, a hose is a green snake. 154 00:08:19,165 --> 00:08:20,366 They're, like, what is that? 155 00:08:22,068 --> 00:08:24,237 [Fry] So what does this all mean? 156 00:08:24,337 --> 00:08:27,406 Well, it's thought that vervet alarm calls 157 00:08:27,507 --> 00:08:32,411 indicate a very deep-rooted fear of these three predators. 158 00:08:32,511 --> 00:08:33,880 And we humans, 159 00:08:33,980 --> 00:08:36,048 as the primate cousins of the vervet monkey, 160 00:08:36,148 --> 00:08:39,986 share the same instinctive fears of big cats, 161 00:08:40,052 --> 00:08:42,655 birds of prey, and snakes. 162 00:08:45,858 --> 00:08:47,660 And perhaps that primal fear 163 00:08:47,727 --> 00:08:49,595 is what led people around the world, 164 00:08:49,695 --> 00:08:52,765 to combine these three deadly animals 165 00:08:52,865 --> 00:08:57,370 into their own unique version of the almighty dragon. 166 00:09:01,040 --> 00:09:05,011 But there is another theory behind the legend of the dragon 167 00:09:05,077 --> 00:09:08,214 and it's based on a group of formidable reptiles 168 00:09:08,281 --> 00:09:11,617 that walked the Earth millions of years ago. 169 00:09:13,219 --> 00:09:14,887 [dramatic music playing] 170 00:09:26,399 --> 00:09:29,569 If you've ever wanted to dig up a dinosaur, 171 00:09:29,635 --> 00:09:32,638 then this is the place to come. 172 00:09:32,738 --> 00:09:38,578 I am surrounded by thousands of dinosaur fossils here. 173 00:09:38,644 --> 00:09:40,646 I'm in the Valley Of Bones. 174 00:09:42,081 --> 00:09:46,252 Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry in Utah, America, 175 00:09:46,319 --> 00:09:50,990 has the densest concentration of Jurassic dinosaur fossils 176 00:09:51,090 --> 00:09:53,225 ever found on the planet. 177 00:09:56,596 --> 00:10:00,333 So, have they dug up anything here that can help us 178 00:10:00,433 --> 00:10:03,970 decipher the dragon myth? 179 00:10:04,070 --> 00:10:07,273 I'm meeting with two of the quarry's top experts, 180 00:10:07,340 --> 00:10:11,344 Mike Leschin and Casey Dooms, to find out. 181 00:10:14,947 --> 00:10:17,083 So in terms of recent human history, 182 00:10:17,149 --> 00:10:19,018 when was this place discovered? 183 00:10:19,118 --> 00:10:21,687 [Dooms] We know that people knew about the area since, 184 00:10:21,787 --> 00:10:23,789 probably at least late 1800s. 185 00:10:23,856 --> 00:10:25,191 First Europeans 186 00:10:25,291 --> 00:10:27,360 {\an8}undoubtedly stumbled across a lot of different 187 00:10:27,460 --> 00:10:30,262 {\an8}finds of dinosaur fossils and all kinds of things. 188 00:10:30,329 --> 00:10:32,198 [Fry] Because they were visible? 189 00:10:32,298 --> 00:10:34,333 [Dooms] Eroding out of the hills, eroding out of these formations... 190 00:10:34,433 --> 00:10:36,869 -[Fry] So, sort of, bones poking up through the soil. -[Dooms] Mm-hmm. 191 00:10:36,969 --> 00:10:39,538 [Fry] And, Mike, the Europeans, the ranchers in the 18th century, 192 00:10:39,639 --> 00:10:41,507 they had no reason to suppose 193 00:10:41,607 --> 00:10:44,510 that the creatures that were exhibited there 194 00:10:44,610 --> 00:10:45,678 were extinct. 195 00:10:45,778 --> 00:10:47,446 And some people still kind of get 196 00:10:47,513 --> 00:10:49,615 confused in their head, don't they, 197 00:10:49,682 --> 00:10:51,050 about the fact that obviously 198 00:10:51,150 --> 00:10:53,319 we never co-existed with these creatures. 199 00:10:53,386 --> 00:10:55,454 Oh, yeah, I've had people come out here and say, 200 00:10:55,521 --> 00:10:58,491 {\an8}"I'm here 'cause I don't believe in dinosaurs." 201 00:10:58,557 --> 00:10:59,992 {\an8}-Really? -And, yeah, 202 00:11:00,059 --> 00:11:02,395 {\an8}so I was like, well, go look down there 203 00:11:02,495 --> 00:11:03,396 and then we'll talk. 204 00:11:03,496 --> 00:11:05,064 [Fry laughs] 205 00:11:05,164 --> 00:11:08,334 What about the non-Europeans, the native Americans, the Ute? 206 00:11:08,401 --> 00:11:10,970 The Ute tribe was the local tribe. 207 00:11:11,037 --> 00:11:15,408 -They knew they were the remains of a living creature. -[Fry] Yeah. 208 00:11:15,508 --> 00:11:19,345 And their attitude was to respect that 209 00:11:19,412 --> 00:11:22,081 -and leave it alone. -Yeah. 210 00:11:22,181 --> 00:11:24,183 [Fry] Dinosaur fossils have been found 211 00:11:24,250 --> 00:11:26,552 on every continent on Earth. 212 00:11:28,187 --> 00:11:31,323 Could they be behind the dragon story? 213 00:11:34,160 --> 00:11:36,762 If you take a look at the T-Rex, 214 00:11:36,862 --> 00:11:38,764 with its terrifying teeth, 215 00:11:39,532 --> 00:11:41,667 sharp claws, 216 00:11:41,734 --> 00:11:43,602 and enormous size, 217 00:11:43,703 --> 00:11:47,206 you can see how the idea could arise. 218 00:11:50,743 --> 00:11:52,745 Goodness me, what is this place? 219 00:11:52,845 --> 00:11:56,015 So this is the actual Cleveland-Lloyd dinosaur quarry. 220 00:11:56,082 --> 00:11:59,852 Ah. And you've enclosed it to show off these amazing... 221 00:11:59,919 --> 00:12:01,754 -Yes. -...specimens. 222 00:12:01,854 --> 00:12:04,557 So over here, we have some back vertebrae from a camarasaurus. 223 00:12:04,623 --> 00:12:06,125 [Fry] From what animal? 224 00:12:06,225 --> 00:12:07,860 {\an8}[Dooms] Camarasaurus, so it's a herbivorous dinosaur. 225 00:12:07,927 --> 00:12:09,628 {\an8}One of the big long-necks. 226 00:12:09,729 --> 00:12:10,863 {\an8}Right next to it, 227 00:12:10,930 --> 00:12:13,232 we have a tail vertebrae of an Allosaurus. 228 00:12:13,299 --> 00:12:14,700 -Oh, yeah. -The big predator, 229 00:12:14,767 --> 00:12:16,635 the major predator of the day. 230 00:12:16,736 --> 00:12:18,871 {\an8}[Fry] You can really see here, Casey, can't you, 231 00:12:18,938 --> 00:12:20,973 {\an8}how the dragon myth can arise. 232 00:12:21,073 --> 00:12:22,475 [Dooms] Yeah, absolutely. 233 00:12:22,575 --> 00:12:24,410 Especially if you're finding stuff like this. 234 00:12:24,477 --> 00:12:27,947 -[Fry gasps] -That is a single tooth of an Allosaurus. 235 00:12:28,047 --> 00:12:30,316 Oh, my goodness. I can feel its serrations... 236 00:12:30,416 --> 00:12:32,384 -Serrations, yeah. -...saw like, um... 237 00:12:32,451 --> 00:12:35,321 -like a steak knife for cutting through flesh. -Yeah. 238 00:12:35,421 --> 00:12:36,889 It's still, after 147 million years, 239 00:12:36,956 --> 00:12:38,991 you can still see them and you can still feel them. 240 00:12:39,091 --> 00:12:41,293 I mean, that's a dragon's tooth, 241 00:12:41,393 --> 00:12:44,163 -there's no question about it, it's just... -Yes. 242 00:12:44,263 --> 00:12:46,398 Wow. I'll give it back to you, it's very valuable. 243 00:12:46,465 --> 00:12:47,600 Look at that. 244 00:12:48,134 --> 00:12:49,835 Wow. 245 00:12:49,935 --> 00:12:53,272 Indigenous American mythology features 246 00:12:53,339 --> 00:12:54,774 dragon-like creatures 247 00:12:54,840 --> 00:12:58,410 such as the Piasa Bird, with feathery wings, 248 00:12:58,477 --> 00:13:01,914 elk's horns, and a long spiked tail. 249 00:13:03,149 --> 00:13:05,918 And the Gaasyendietha dragon, 250 00:13:05,985 --> 00:13:09,855 a lake-dwelling, fire-breathing beast. 251 00:13:09,955 --> 00:13:13,092 Perhaps these creations were inspired by fossils 252 00:13:13,159 --> 00:13:16,195 like those discovered here in Utah. 253 00:13:18,831 --> 00:13:22,768 If I was here some thousand years ago or so, 254 00:13:22,835 --> 00:13:25,871 it's easy to see how, if someone dug up 255 00:13:25,971 --> 00:13:27,273 something like this, 256 00:13:27,339 --> 00:13:30,442 it could conjure up the image of a dragon, 257 00:13:30,509 --> 00:13:32,711 and terrifying it would be, 258 00:13:32,812 --> 00:13:34,814 because how could I know that 259 00:13:34,880 --> 00:13:38,050 this was from a species that had gone extinct 260 00:13:38,150 --> 00:13:40,186 millions of years ago. 261 00:13:40,286 --> 00:13:41,854 As far as I was concerned, 262 00:13:41,954 --> 00:13:47,193 this was one of the species that was still very much alive 263 00:13:47,293 --> 00:13:50,896 and might swoop down on me at any moment. 264 00:13:59,972 --> 00:14:02,975 In the world of fantastic beasts, 265 00:14:03,042 --> 00:14:04,643 there is another creature 266 00:14:04,710 --> 00:14:08,080 that's as universally recognized as the dragon. 267 00:14:15,654 --> 00:14:17,990 You know, there's one mythical creature 268 00:14:18,057 --> 00:14:21,594 whose popularity seems to be even greater today 269 00:14:21,694 --> 00:14:23,529 than it's ever been. 270 00:14:23,596 --> 00:14:26,532 And it's one of the few magical animals 271 00:14:26,599 --> 00:14:28,767 that isn't a terrifying monster. 272 00:14:28,868 --> 00:14:32,438 Indeed it's famous for its peaceful, 273 00:14:32,538 --> 00:14:34,707 benevolent nature. 274 00:14:34,773 --> 00:14:38,410 I'm talking, of course, about the unicorn. 275 00:14:40,379 --> 00:14:41,580 One more! 276 00:14:45,050 --> 00:14:48,754 I'm on my way to a country which was once so convinced 277 00:14:48,854 --> 00:14:52,258 that this mystical creature was real, 278 00:14:52,358 --> 00:14:55,427 that they named it their national animal. 279 00:14:59,231 --> 00:15:00,766 [horn tooting] 280 00:15:02,868 --> 00:15:06,105 Often depicted as a beautiful, horse-like creature 281 00:15:06,205 --> 00:15:10,476 with flowing mane, and long, spiraled horn, 282 00:15:10,576 --> 00:15:14,780 the unicorn is a symbol of purity and innocence. 283 00:15:14,880 --> 00:15:16,982 Believed to have magical powers, 284 00:15:17,082 --> 00:15:20,452 the unicorn's horn was said to heal sickness 285 00:15:20,552 --> 00:15:22,888 and protect against poison. 286 00:15:25,457 --> 00:15:26,959 In recent years, 287 00:15:27,059 --> 00:15:30,763 unicorns have seen a huge surge in popularity. 288 00:15:32,498 --> 00:15:36,568 But this adoration is nothing new in Scotland, 289 00:15:36,635 --> 00:15:40,072 where the unicorn has been revered for centuries. 290 00:15:42,608 --> 00:15:46,779 So what is this obsession all about? 291 00:15:46,845 --> 00:15:48,681 I've come to Stirling Castle, 292 00:15:48,781 --> 00:15:53,452 to meet historian Professor Donna Heddle, to find out. 293 00:15:53,519 --> 00:15:55,821 -Professor Heddle. -[Heddle] Oh, call me Donna. 294 00:15:55,921 --> 00:15:56,789 Donna. 295 00:15:56,855 --> 00:15:57,990 What a place. 296 00:16:01,927 --> 00:16:03,662 Oh, my goodness. 297 00:16:04,663 --> 00:16:07,766 Unicorns absolutely everywhere. 298 00:16:07,833 --> 00:16:09,301 [Heddle] I know. It's splendid, isn't it? 299 00:16:09,368 --> 00:16:11,470 And there are more all round the room. 300 00:16:11,537 --> 00:16:13,839 This tells us the story of the hunt of the unicorn. 301 00:16:13,939 --> 00:16:15,507 It's an allegorical piece. 302 00:16:15,607 --> 00:16:16,976 Based on tapestries, 303 00:16:17,042 --> 00:16:18,978 we know that we're in the collection of James V. 304 00:16:19,044 --> 00:16:21,647 I think they're called "The History of the Unicorn." 305 00:16:21,714 --> 00:16:24,950 America has a Bald Eagle, and France has a Cockrel, 306 00:16:25,017 --> 00:16:27,886 and we have a Lion in England... 307 00:16:27,987 --> 00:16:31,223 you, in Scotland, don't have a real animal, 308 00:16:31,323 --> 00:16:32,725 you have a mythical animal. 309 00:16:32,825 --> 00:16:34,660 Why is that, do you think? 310 00:16:34,727 --> 00:16:36,562 {\an8}Well, I think at the time when it was chosen, 311 00:16:36,662 --> 00:16:39,665 {\an8}people did think it was real, they did believe in it, 312 00:16:39,732 --> 00:16:41,500 but it's a kind of a thing in the 15th century, 313 00:16:41,567 --> 00:16:43,469 lots of kings were adopting animals 314 00:16:43,535 --> 00:16:44,903 as their personal symbols 315 00:16:45,004 --> 00:16:47,072 and the unicorn became the symbol of Scotland 316 00:16:47,172 --> 00:16:50,476 because it is untamable, it is undefeatable. 317 00:16:50,542 --> 00:16:53,312 Oh, so that's a symbol of Scotland's sense of itself. 318 00:16:53,379 --> 00:16:54,246 Absolutely. 319 00:16:54,346 --> 00:16:56,148 It's brave, it's courageous, 320 00:16:56,215 --> 00:16:57,649 what's not to like? 321 00:16:57,716 --> 00:16:59,718 -How cool is that for a national symbol? -Yes. 322 00:17:02,187 --> 00:17:03,689 [Fry] In the Middle Ages, 323 00:17:03,756 --> 00:17:07,159 the evidence used to prove that unicorns existed, 324 00:17:07,226 --> 00:17:11,096 came from another mysterious creature entirely. 325 00:17:13,232 --> 00:17:16,935 A genuine unicorn horn. 326 00:17:17,036 --> 00:17:21,273 Or is it in fact a narwhal tusk? 327 00:17:21,373 --> 00:17:22,775 I think it's a narwhal tusk. 328 00:17:22,875 --> 00:17:24,877 In fact, it's a replica of a narwhal tusk, 329 00:17:24,943 --> 00:17:26,378 'cause we wouldn't have such a thing... 330 00:17:26,445 --> 00:17:29,348 obviously, they belong on the narwhal's head. 331 00:17:29,415 --> 00:17:31,083 Um, they, sort of, grow up like that. 332 00:17:31,183 --> 00:17:35,621 I mean, extraordinary things on the narwhal. 333 00:17:35,721 --> 00:17:39,358 And you can see why somebody enterprising, 334 00:17:39,425 --> 00:17:41,360 who unfortunately caught one of those whales 335 00:17:41,427 --> 00:17:44,963 and sawed off his tusk would have thought, 336 00:17:45,064 --> 00:17:48,100 "I can sell this as a unicorn horn." 337 00:17:48,200 --> 00:17:49,868 Because that's just what it looks like. 338 00:17:49,935 --> 00:17:51,603 [Heddle] And it's quite beautiful. 339 00:17:54,606 --> 00:17:58,410 [Fry] The narwhal is an elusive toothed whale 340 00:17:58,477 --> 00:18:00,813 found in Arctic waters. 341 00:18:00,913 --> 00:18:02,381 The spectacular tusk, 342 00:18:02,448 --> 00:18:05,117 usually only found on male narwhals, 343 00:18:05,217 --> 00:18:09,054 is actually an overgrown spiralized tooth. 344 00:18:10,589 --> 00:18:12,157 Scientists are still unsure 345 00:18:12,257 --> 00:18:14,326 as to what exactly the tusk is for, 346 00:18:14,426 --> 00:18:18,664 but it's thought that it may be used to break through ice, 347 00:18:18,764 --> 00:18:20,165 help catch fish, 348 00:18:20,265 --> 00:18:25,337 or possibly to impress female narwhals. 349 00:18:25,437 --> 00:18:28,407 I believe I'm right in saying that these did change hands 350 00:18:28,474 --> 00:18:30,943 for quite astonishing sums of money. 351 00:18:31,009 --> 00:18:32,511 Vast sums of money. 352 00:18:32,611 --> 00:18:34,947 We know that Queen Elizabeth I, paid 10 thousand pounds 353 00:18:35,013 --> 00:18:37,182 and that, that's kept in the Tower of London, for example, 354 00:18:37,282 --> 00:18:39,918 so it's a very high status object. 355 00:18:39,985 --> 00:18:41,854 [Fry] Who created this market? 356 00:18:41,954 --> 00:18:43,355 [Heddle] Well, they were mainly people 357 00:18:43,455 --> 00:18:44,957 who were fishing in the North of Norway 358 00:18:45,023 --> 00:18:47,759 or Greenland in the Arctic, Scandinavia. 359 00:18:47,826 --> 00:18:50,662 They would come across the narwhals, and it was a huge trade. 360 00:18:50,762 --> 00:18:52,197 And the idea was that 361 00:18:52,297 --> 00:18:54,533 it obviously was a symbol of your own power and wealth, 362 00:18:54,633 --> 00:18:56,301 but also that it would protect you in some way? 363 00:18:56,368 --> 00:18:58,770 That's right, the purity of the unicorn. 364 00:18:58,837 --> 00:19:01,273 This was believed to be able to purify water, 365 00:19:01,340 --> 00:19:02,674 and to guard against poisons. 366 00:19:02,774 --> 00:19:04,877 Also, in a rather more mundane fashion 367 00:19:04,977 --> 00:19:06,211 to cure boils and plague. 368 00:19:06,311 --> 00:19:08,280 And it was used by apothecaries 369 00:19:08,347 --> 00:19:09,548 up until the 18th century. 370 00:19:09,648 --> 00:19:11,183 It was called alicorn powder. 371 00:19:11,283 --> 00:19:12,718 A mere pinch of this 372 00:19:12,818 --> 00:19:15,020 would have been beyond the dreams of ordinary men. 373 00:19:15,120 --> 00:19:16,321 [Fry] Right. 374 00:19:17,856 --> 00:19:21,393 It's thought the first written reference to unicorns 375 00:19:21,493 --> 00:19:24,897 dates back to over 2,000 years ago. 376 00:19:26,298 --> 00:19:27,566 Over that time, 377 00:19:27,666 --> 00:19:29,801 many real animals have been linked 378 00:19:29,868 --> 00:19:32,004 with this mythical creature. 379 00:19:34,506 --> 00:19:35,841 The Arabian oryx, 380 00:19:35,908 --> 00:19:38,644 also known as the Arabian unicorn, 381 00:19:38,710 --> 00:19:41,380 has two long slender horns, 382 00:19:41,480 --> 00:19:43,482 and when viewed in profile, 383 00:19:43,549 --> 00:19:45,584 their horns can appear as one, 384 00:19:45,684 --> 00:19:48,754 making them closely resemble a unicorn. 385 00:19:52,691 --> 00:19:55,694 But there's another, rather different animal 386 00:19:55,761 --> 00:19:58,864 that is part of the unicorn story, 387 00:19:58,931 --> 00:20:00,566 one that may have 388 00:20:00,666 --> 00:20:03,035 the strongest connection of all. 389 00:20:07,372 --> 00:20:11,043 There they are, the little armored tanks. 390 00:20:17,883 --> 00:20:19,518 The rhinoceros, the rhino, 391 00:20:19,585 --> 00:20:23,188 surely one of nature's most iconic creatures, 392 00:20:23,255 --> 00:20:27,426 with its unmistakable thick, gray hide 393 00:20:27,526 --> 00:20:30,963 and its signature horn. 394 00:20:31,063 --> 00:20:34,366 I call it one of nature's masterpieces. 395 00:20:34,433 --> 00:20:36,735 An extraordinary, unique beauty, aren't you? 396 00:20:36,802 --> 00:20:38,303 -[rhino breathes heavily] -Yes. 397 00:20:43,275 --> 00:20:47,312 These magnificent creatures are Indian rhinoceros, 398 00:20:47,412 --> 00:20:50,482 and their scientific species name is, 399 00:20:50,582 --> 00:20:54,720 splendidly, "Rhinoceros Unicornis." 400 00:20:55,754 --> 00:20:57,723 And they are, in fact, 401 00:20:57,789 --> 00:21:00,726 distantly related to a real unicorn. 402 00:21:01,627 --> 00:21:02,995 Oh, come now, Stephen. 403 00:21:03,095 --> 00:21:05,664 Well, millions of years ago, 404 00:21:05,764 --> 00:21:09,835 a creature called Elasmotherium Sibiricum, 405 00:21:09,935 --> 00:21:12,738 the Siberian Unicorn, 406 00:21:12,804 --> 00:21:16,675 roamed between Asia and Europe and around 407 00:21:16,775 --> 00:21:19,144 for many, many millions of years. 408 00:21:19,244 --> 00:21:20,412 [growls] 409 00:21:21,780 --> 00:21:23,348 These prehistoric rhinos 410 00:21:23,448 --> 00:21:25,851 wouldn't have looked terribly different 411 00:21:25,951 --> 00:21:27,986 to the ones we know today. 412 00:21:28,086 --> 00:21:29,955 But they were enormous. 413 00:21:30,022 --> 00:21:32,357 Twice the size of modern rhinos, 414 00:21:32,457 --> 00:21:34,793 at around three meters tall, 415 00:21:34,860 --> 00:21:37,029 covered in thick, shaggy hair, 416 00:21:37,129 --> 00:21:41,166 and thought to have a single, large horn. 417 00:21:41,266 --> 00:21:44,369 The Siberian Unicorn is believed to have grazed 418 00:21:44,469 --> 00:21:46,638 almost entirely on grass, 419 00:21:46,705 --> 00:21:48,640 and despite its large size, 420 00:21:48,707 --> 00:21:53,612 was built to run at speed across the plains. 421 00:21:53,679 --> 00:21:58,517 They survived all the way up to about 39,000 years ago, 422 00:21:58,617 --> 00:21:59,951 when they became extinct. 423 00:22:00,018 --> 00:22:02,321 But at that time, we were there, 424 00:22:02,387 --> 00:22:04,056 we, homo-sapiens. 425 00:22:04,156 --> 00:22:05,390 We'd developed language, 426 00:22:05,490 --> 00:22:07,626 and so, we were able to tell each other 427 00:22:07,693 --> 00:22:10,028 about meeting these incredible creatures, 428 00:22:10,128 --> 00:22:12,197 what would we have thought of them? 429 00:22:12,297 --> 00:22:17,135 Perhaps that's another reason why the idea of the unicorn 430 00:22:17,202 --> 00:22:19,471 entered the human imagination. 431 00:22:31,850 --> 00:22:33,752 [chittering] 432 00:22:34,353 --> 00:22:35,687 [sniffing] 433 00:22:44,529 --> 00:22:45,764 [chitters] 434 00:22:45,864 --> 00:22:47,532 [sniffing] 435 00:22:57,209 --> 00:23:00,011 [eerie music playing] 436 00:23:15,527 --> 00:23:19,197 Of all the eerie legends of the ocean depths, 437 00:23:19,264 --> 00:23:22,067 there is one that has enthralled us 438 00:23:22,134 --> 00:23:24,236 more than any other... 439 00:23:25,036 --> 00:23:26,371 The Kraken. 440 00:23:27,606 --> 00:23:29,474 -[growling] -[people screaming] 441 00:23:29,574 --> 00:23:31,710 Over 500 years ago, 442 00:23:31,777 --> 00:23:35,714 sailors first told of an enormous sea monster, 443 00:23:35,781 --> 00:23:39,317 said to live in the waters off Norway and Iceland, 444 00:23:39,418 --> 00:23:41,787 which had long, snake-like arms 445 00:23:41,887 --> 00:23:45,457 covered in suckers for grabbing prey. 446 00:23:45,557 --> 00:23:47,659 Some stories reported the monster 447 00:23:47,759 --> 00:23:50,228 as being two kilometers in length, 448 00:23:50,295 --> 00:23:55,333 with tentacles as thick and long as ship's masts. 449 00:23:55,434 --> 00:23:58,970 By the 18th century, scientists truly believed 450 00:23:59,070 --> 00:24:01,573 that the Kraken was a living, breathing animal, 451 00:24:01,640 --> 00:24:03,008 and so it was included 452 00:24:03,108 --> 00:24:05,510 in all the highly-respected scientific journals 453 00:24:05,610 --> 00:24:08,680 of the time, including the Systema Naturae, 454 00:24:08,780 --> 00:24:11,516 developed by the famous Swedish naturalist, 455 00:24:11,616 --> 00:24:13,185 Carl Linnaeus. 456 00:24:13,285 --> 00:24:17,823 Was there really a huge monster living in the ocean depths, 457 00:24:17,923 --> 00:24:21,593 that overturned ships and devoured sailors? 458 00:24:25,096 --> 00:24:29,701 This is the Natural History Museum's Tank Room, 459 00:24:29,801 --> 00:24:35,207 home to thousands of the most incredible scientific specimens. 460 00:24:35,307 --> 00:24:37,375 And there's one in particular 461 00:24:37,476 --> 00:24:39,978 that may explain our Kraken myth, 462 00:24:40,045 --> 00:24:43,548 along with a little help from museum curator, 463 00:24:43,648 --> 00:24:45,183 Jon Ablett. 464 00:24:47,185 --> 00:24:49,554 -[Fry] Hello there. Jon. -[Ablett] Hello. 465 00:24:49,654 --> 00:24:50,989 Good to meet you, 466 00:24:51,056 --> 00:24:53,391 thanks for showing me around your incredible... 467 00:24:53,492 --> 00:24:54,860 [gasps] 468 00:24:54,960 --> 00:24:57,662 What the heck is that? 469 00:24:57,729 --> 00:25:00,565 Well, this is Archie, our beautiful giant squid specimen. 470 00:25:00,665 --> 00:25:01,833 [Fry] This is a giant squid. 471 00:25:01,900 --> 00:25:03,668 I mean, one hears about giant squids 472 00:25:03,735 --> 00:25:05,904 and one imagines that they are, 473 00:25:06,004 --> 00:25:08,573 maybe, what people mean by sea monsters. 474 00:25:08,673 --> 00:25:10,842 Is this what they are? Are these the monsters? 475 00:25:10,909 --> 00:25:13,645 Well, I mean, we don't really know what people were seeing, 476 00:25:13,712 --> 00:25:16,515 {\an8}when we think of these kind of old-fashioned sea monsters, 477 00:25:16,581 --> 00:25:18,583 {\an8}but these are definitely a great candidate. 478 00:25:18,683 --> 00:25:20,752 {\an8}I mean, they get up to about 13 meters. 479 00:25:20,852 --> 00:25:24,523 So Archie here, is about 8.6 meters, so not fully grown. 480 00:25:24,589 --> 00:25:26,358 -Is this a junior? -This is a junior. 481 00:25:26,424 --> 00:25:28,326 So the females, we think, get to about 13, 482 00:25:28,393 --> 00:25:30,495 the males about 10, 11. 483 00:25:30,562 --> 00:25:32,597 Oh, I can't imagine what it must be like, 484 00:25:32,697 --> 00:25:35,267 seeing one of those actually in the water. 485 00:25:36,935 --> 00:25:40,739 One of the most elusive creatures on the planet, 486 00:25:40,839 --> 00:25:45,377 giant squid are believed to weigh up to 500 kilos 487 00:25:45,443 --> 00:25:49,781 and inhabit the deepest oceans around the world. 488 00:25:49,881 --> 00:25:54,252 This incredibly rare footage was captured by scientists 489 00:25:54,352 --> 00:25:59,090 in the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico in 2019. 490 00:25:59,190 --> 00:26:00,926 Thought to be a juvenile, 491 00:26:01,026 --> 00:26:03,762 and measuring over three and a half meters, 492 00:26:03,862 --> 00:26:05,797 the squid is attempting to feed 493 00:26:05,897 --> 00:26:09,601 on a decoy bioluminescent jellyfish. 494 00:26:09,701 --> 00:26:12,737 This is only the second time in history 495 00:26:12,804 --> 00:26:17,042 that a giant squid has been filmed in the wild. 496 00:26:17,108 --> 00:26:20,211 So that, sort of, um, child's adventure book 497 00:26:20,278 --> 00:26:22,981 with a huge tentacle coming in to the deck, 498 00:26:23,081 --> 00:26:26,117 and wrapping itself around an unfortunate sailor 499 00:26:26,217 --> 00:26:28,653 -is not very likely? -Pretty unlikely. 500 00:26:28,753 --> 00:26:30,422 I mean, these live at really great depths, 501 00:26:30,488 --> 00:26:32,724 we're thinking, possibly down to 2,000 meters, 502 00:26:32,791 --> 00:26:35,393 and it's actually very likely they can't actually breathe at the surface. 503 00:26:35,460 --> 00:26:36,795 Really? 504 00:26:36,895 --> 00:26:38,930 Oh, look, there's more, you've got suckers and... 505 00:26:38,997 --> 00:26:40,332 There's a wonderful... 506 00:26:40,432 --> 00:26:42,500 Well, this isn't actually part of a giant squid, 507 00:26:42,601 --> 00:26:45,136 there is something that possibly gets even bigger. 508 00:26:45,236 --> 00:26:46,905 This is actually from a colossal squid. 509 00:26:46,972 --> 00:26:48,940 We think they get bigger than the giant squid, 510 00:26:49,007 --> 00:26:50,842 possibly up to 18 meters. 511 00:26:50,942 --> 00:26:52,644 Eighteen meters! 512 00:26:53,478 --> 00:26:55,347 Wow. 513 00:26:55,447 --> 00:26:58,416 So if you have a look inside, a closer look. 514 00:27:00,852 --> 00:27:01,820 [Fry gasps] 515 00:27:03,021 --> 00:27:06,124 Wow. I can see the suckers so clearly. 516 00:27:06,191 --> 00:27:09,461 [Ablett] So here you can see just the very tip 517 00:27:09,527 --> 00:27:12,497 of a tentacle of a colossal squid. 518 00:27:12,597 --> 00:27:14,132 And you can see, they have these 519 00:27:14,199 --> 00:27:16,968 traditional circular suckers with the saw-toothed edge, 520 00:27:17,035 --> 00:27:19,471 -just like you see in lots of squid. -Yeah. Yeah. 521 00:27:19,537 --> 00:27:22,374 But also these very sharp talon like... 522 00:27:22,474 --> 00:27:24,342 Oh, yes, I can see that. 523 00:27:24,442 --> 00:27:25,443 Ooh! 524 00:27:25,510 --> 00:27:27,178 Goodness they are, aren't they? 525 00:27:27,278 --> 00:27:28,680 Two or three in each sucker, 526 00:27:28,780 --> 00:27:32,350 that are these claws, these thorns. 527 00:27:32,450 --> 00:27:34,886 Even the ones that don't have thorns have a certain 528 00:27:34,986 --> 00:27:36,888 sort of raspy burr to them, don't they? 529 00:27:36,988 --> 00:27:39,824 Yeah, they, sort of, have a serrated saw-tooth edge as well, so, yeah. 530 00:27:39,891 --> 00:27:43,294 I mean, absolutely terrifying, you don't want to be caught by one of these. 531 00:27:43,361 --> 00:27:46,364 [Fry] Even bigger than its giant cousin, 532 00:27:46,464 --> 00:27:51,069 the colossal squid is the largest invertebrate on Earth. 533 00:27:51,169 --> 00:27:56,074 Potentially almost as long as an early sailing ship. 534 00:27:56,174 --> 00:27:58,410 These mysterious creatures 535 00:27:58,510 --> 00:28:01,980 live in the icy depths of Antarctic waters, 536 00:28:02,047 --> 00:28:03,548 and most of what we know 537 00:28:03,648 --> 00:28:06,317 is based on a small number of carcasses 538 00:28:06,384 --> 00:28:09,254 found by deep-sea fishing vessels. 539 00:28:10,155 --> 00:28:11,823 Images like these 540 00:28:11,890 --> 00:28:15,894 are almost the only evidence we have of their existence. 541 00:28:16,895 --> 00:28:19,397 Did these enormous squid, 542 00:28:19,497 --> 00:28:23,268 found washed ashore or caught in nets long ago, 543 00:28:23,368 --> 00:28:27,439 launch the legend of the Kraken? 544 00:28:27,539 --> 00:28:29,441 [Ablett] I mean, they really are so other-worldly, aren't they? 545 00:28:29,541 --> 00:28:31,342 Yeah. And it's hard not to be scared 546 00:28:31,409 --> 00:28:34,345 at the thought of one of those tendrils 547 00:28:34,412 --> 00:28:36,414 coming out and grabbing you. 548 00:28:36,514 --> 00:28:38,883 It is a pretty primal nightmare. 549 00:28:38,950 --> 00:28:39,951 It certainly is. 550 00:28:43,888 --> 00:28:46,891 [Fry] Sailors could spin wonderful yarns 551 00:28:46,958 --> 00:28:50,695 about the strange sights they saw at sea. 552 00:28:50,762 --> 00:28:55,200 But not all the tales they told were of the terrifying type, 553 00:28:55,266 --> 00:28:58,269 some took a more appealing form. 554 00:29:00,371 --> 00:29:02,807 Mermaids have featured in legends 555 00:29:02,907 --> 00:29:06,211 from around the world for thousands of years. 556 00:29:08,079 --> 00:29:11,716 In 1493, the explorer Christopher Columbus, 557 00:29:11,783 --> 00:29:13,284 sailing to the Americas, 558 00:29:13,384 --> 00:29:17,255 saw what he believed to be three mermaids, 559 00:29:17,322 --> 00:29:18,723 describing them as 560 00:29:18,790 --> 00:29:21,326 "not so beautiful as they are said to be, 561 00:29:21,426 --> 00:29:24,662 for their faces had some masculine traits." 562 00:29:26,631 --> 00:29:30,602 But some scientists now think that what he actually saw 563 00:29:30,668 --> 00:29:32,737 was a creature that is still found 564 00:29:32,804 --> 00:29:35,940 along the coasts of North America today. 565 00:29:38,777 --> 00:29:40,945 [birds chirping] 566 00:29:41,012 --> 00:29:43,181 Crystal River in Florida, 567 00:29:43,281 --> 00:29:46,851 is home to these enigmatic animals. 568 00:29:47,986 --> 00:29:49,420 [gasps] 569 00:29:49,487 --> 00:29:52,090 There's one. Its little nose popped up to say hello. 570 00:29:57,629 --> 00:30:01,332 These incredible creatures are manatees, or sea cows, 571 00:30:01,432 --> 00:30:04,135 and they're the ocean's largest herbivore 572 00:30:04,202 --> 00:30:07,605 or grazer, in their case on sea grass. 573 00:30:07,672 --> 00:30:09,808 And despite their massive bulk, 574 00:30:09,874 --> 00:30:13,178 unlike me, they are incredibly graceful swimmers. 575 00:30:16,014 --> 00:30:19,384 Local manatee expert Monica Scroggin 576 00:30:19,484 --> 00:30:22,187 has studied the population on this river 577 00:30:22,287 --> 00:30:23,988 for a number of years. 578 00:30:25,290 --> 00:30:27,358 What brings the manatees to this place? 579 00:30:27,458 --> 00:30:29,694 {\an8}Do they find it as beautiful as everyone else does? 580 00:30:29,794 --> 00:30:31,796 {\an8}So actually, it's the water temperature, 581 00:30:31,863 --> 00:30:35,333 {\an8}but that's because they have a very small metabolism, 582 00:30:35,400 --> 00:30:39,370 so they have to eat about ten percent of their body fat 583 00:30:39,470 --> 00:30:41,239 every single day. 584 00:30:41,339 --> 00:30:43,341 So for a thousand pound manatee, 585 00:30:43,408 --> 00:30:45,543 that's about a hundred pounds of food. 586 00:30:45,643 --> 00:30:46,911 -My goodness. -Yes. 587 00:30:47,011 --> 00:30:49,981 It is a lot of green vegetables. 588 00:30:51,182 --> 00:30:53,084 [Fry] Manatees can be found 589 00:30:53,184 --> 00:30:56,487 along the coasts and rivers of North America, 590 00:30:56,554 --> 00:31:01,326 the Amazon in South America, and Western Africa. 591 00:31:02,927 --> 00:31:06,431 Though populations are on the rise in Florida, 592 00:31:06,531 --> 00:31:09,434 manatee numbers are declining worldwide, 593 00:31:09,534 --> 00:31:13,071 and they are considered vulnerable to extinction. 594 00:31:15,039 --> 00:31:17,508 Measuring over three meters in length, 595 00:31:17,575 --> 00:31:21,779 these gentle giants often travel long distances 596 00:31:21,880 --> 00:31:24,182 in search of seagrass. 597 00:31:26,184 --> 00:31:31,623 Manatee tails certainly look very mermaid-like. 598 00:31:31,723 --> 00:31:35,126 Perhaps it's the graceful way they move in the water 599 00:31:35,226 --> 00:31:37,762 that has inspired these legends. 600 00:31:39,564 --> 00:31:42,300 Or had the sailors who glimpsed them 601 00:31:42,400 --> 00:31:45,436 simply been at sea for too long? 602 00:31:47,906 --> 00:31:49,240 And when you look at manatees, 603 00:31:49,307 --> 00:31:51,643 do you see merpeople, mermen and mermaids? 604 00:31:51,743 --> 00:31:55,079 I do. I think they have the similar shape. 605 00:31:55,146 --> 00:31:58,383 They have the similar tail, their flippers. 606 00:31:58,449 --> 00:32:00,285 Yeah. Do they use them almost like hands? 607 00:32:00,385 --> 00:32:02,587 I mean, obviously, they're not opposable thumbs or anything. 608 00:32:02,654 --> 00:32:04,656 Right, but they almost are. 609 00:32:04,756 --> 00:32:07,492 You could think of their flipper, like our hands, 610 00:32:07,592 --> 00:32:09,160 but only with skin covering it. 611 00:32:09,260 --> 00:32:11,229 Their bones look just like ours. 612 00:32:12,297 --> 00:32:14,165 [Fry] The manatee skeleton 613 00:32:14,265 --> 00:32:18,303 could also hold a clue to the mermaid myth. 614 00:32:18,403 --> 00:32:21,306 Take a look at their arms and hands, 615 00:32:21,406 --> 00:32:23,975 and you can see they are similar to ours. 616 00:32:24,075 --> 00:32:29,280 Yet their tail bones are unmistakably fish-like. 617 00:32:29,347 --> 00:32:32,016 It's easy to see how these skeletons 618 00:32:32,116 --> 00:32:34,319 washing up on shores long ago, 619 00:32:34,419 --> 00:32:39,424 could have inspired the idea of a mysterious half-human, 620 00:32:39,490 --> 00:32:41,659 half-sea creature. 621 00:32:43,628 --> 00:32:47,365 Well, I'm not entirely sure about these theories, 622 00:32:47,465 --> 00:32:50,601 so perhaps I'd better take a closer look. 623 00:32:51,302 --> 00:32:52,370 Here goes. 624 00:33:14,292 --> 00:33:16,894 Wow, they are amazing. 625 00:33:16,995 --> 00:33:19,063 So much bigger underwater 626 00:33:19,163 --> 00:33:22,066 and yet still so graceful. 627 00:33:22,166 --> 00:33:24,235 But they don't seem to mind my presence there, 628 00:33:24,335 --> 00:33:28,906 they just gently nibble away at that sea grass. 629 00:33:30,241 --> 00:33:31,309 Incredible. 630 00:33:38,349 --> 00:33:40,585 It's not hard to imagine, is it, how a sailor, 631 00:33:40,685 --> 00:33:43,321 far from home after a long voyage 632 00:33:43,388 --> 00:33:46,324 and maybe after a little tot of rum, 633 00:33:46,391 --> 00:33:48,659 looks out and sees a manatee 634 00:33:48,726 --> 00:33:52,196 and in his mind's eye, there's a mermaid. 635 00:33:52,263 --> 00:33:53,765 A beautiful mermaid. 636 00:33:53,865 --> 00:33:56,701 All right, perhaps a large tot of rum. 637 00:33:58,536 --> 00:34:02,273 Meanwhile, the mermaid myth lives on. 638 00:34:07,211 --> 00:34:08,780 Fantastic beasts 639 00:34:08,880 --> 00:34:13,785 don't just lurk on land or slither through seas. 640 00:34:15,386 --> 00:34:18,089 From Pegasus... 641 00:34:18,189 --> 00:34:19,957 to the hippogriff... 642 00:34:21,893 --> 00:34:23,561 Thestrals... 643 00:34:24,562 --> 00:34:27,799 to Thunderbirds... 644 00:34:27,899 --> 00:34:32,470 many magical creatures can be found on the wing, 645 00:34:32,570 --> 00:34:35,306 soaring across the skies. 646 00:34:45,416 --> 00:34:47,819 {\an8}Oh, good Lord. Chris, hello. 647 00:34:47,919 --> 00:34:49,654 -Hi. -[gasps] 648 00:34:49,754 --> 00:34:52,557 {\an8}What's the name of this extraordinary creature? 649 00:34:52,623 --> 00:34:56,961 {\an8}This is Nikita, and she's a Steller's sea eagle. 650 00:34:57,061 --> 00:34:58,930 [Fry] A sea eagle. 651 00:34:58,996 --> 00:35:01,766 So beautiful. 652 00:35:01,833 --> 00:35:05,736 And that beak, is it a specialist beak for fish? 653 00:35:05,803 --> 00:35:07,004 That's a serious beak. 654 00:35:07,105 --> 00:35:08,940 It's designed for cutting flesh, 655 00:35:09,006 --> 00:35:12,243 but a fish pulled out of the water at minus 40 656 00:35:12,310 --> 00:35:14,679 is gonna be a block of ice within a couple of moments, 657 00:35:14,779 --> 00:35:17,248 -so that's what that tin opener is for. -Oh. 658 00:35:17,315 --> 00:35:19,417 And those trousers, I love those, 659 00:35:19,484 --> 00:35:21,586 shaggy, shaggy feet. 660 00:35:21,652 --> 00:35:24,689 On the soles of her feet, she's got almost like Velcro, 661 00:35:24,789 --> 00:35:26,757 to enable her to grab hold of slippery fish 662 00:35:26,824 --> 00:35:29,927 -and pull them off the surface of the water. Yeah. -Of course. 663 00:35:31,796 --> 00:35:36,701 As you can see, Nikita is no myth, she's all reality. 664 00:35:36,801 --> 00:35:38,369 Steller's sea eagles, 665 00:35:38,469 --> 00:35:41,105 they're amongst the largest eagles in the world, 666 00:35:41,172 --> 00:35:43,541 and they're formidable predators. 667 00:35:43,641 --> 00:35:46,677 There have been stories over the years, of course, 668 00:35:46,777 --> 00:35:49,547 of eagles attacking humans, 669 00:35:49,647 --> 00:35:52,383 which is why, perhaps, it isn't surprising 670 00:35:52,483 --> 00:35:55,219 that stories through the ages have been passed down 671 00:35:55,319 --> 00:35:58,055 of mythical winged beasts 672 00:35:58,156 --> 00:36:00,992 with enormous claws and beaks. 673 00:36:02,026 --> 00:36:03,794 And with that in mind, 674 00:36:03,861 --> 00:36:06,497 it's time for me to get a bit closer, 675 00:36:06,564 --> 00:36:07,698 so wish me luck. 676 00:36:13,471 --> 00:36:14,739 [Chris] Right, Stephen, so, 677 00:36:14,839 --> 00:36:17,074 essentially it needs to be upright. 678 00:36:17,175 --> 00:36:18,676 -Oh, like that. Right. -Yeah. 679 00:36:18,743 --> 00:36:20,645 And now, I'm gonna place the bird on your arm on the top 680 00:36:20,711 --> 00:36:22,980 and then you've just gotta keep your arm nice and level 681 00:36:23,047 --> 00:36:25,149 and just slightly away from your body. 682 00:36:25,216 --> 00:36:27,185 It's gonna be heavy. 683 00:36:27,251 --> 00:36:29,253 -So I'm now gonna give you the weight. -[eagle squawks] 684 00:36:29,353 --> 00:36:30,988 Oh, my heavens. 685 00:36:32,156 --> 00:36:33,191 Wow. 686 00:36:34,525 --> 00:36:36,928 Enormous as you are, 687 00:36:37,028 --> 00:36:39,830 you'd be small compared to some of your ancestors, 688 00:36:39,897 --> 00:36:43,501 both real and mythical. 689 00:36:43,568 --> 00:36:47,572 One flying beast that appears in ancient tales 690 00:36:47,672 --> 00:36:51,242 from the Middle East is known as the Roc. 691 00:36:51,342 --> 00:36:53,578 Described as an enormous eagle, 692 00:36:53,678 --> 00:36:57,248 it was said to be strong enough to carry off an elephant. 693 00:36:58,216 --> 00:36:59,850 Inspiration for the Roc 694 00:36:59,917 --> 00:37:03,621 is believed to have come from the eggs of a real bird, 695 00:37:03,721 --> 00:37:05,122 Aepyornis... 696 00:37:05,223 --> 00:37:09,393 which lived in Madagascar over 40,000 years ago. 697 00:37:09,460 --> 00:37:12,063 One of the largest flightless birds 698 00:37:12,129 --> 00:37:13,631 ever to have existed, 699 00:37:13,731 --> 00:37:18,936 at over three meters tall and weighing 500 kilos. 700 00:37:19,036 --> 00:37:21,606 Also known as the Elephant Bird, 701 00:37:21,706 --> 00:37:24,709 it went extinct around a thousand years ago. 702 00:37:24,775 --> 00:37:30,448 But its eggs were so huge, as large as 150 chicken eggs, 703 00:37:30,548 --> 00:37:35,253 that people thought they must belong to the legendary Roc. 704 00:37:35,319 --> 00:37:37,989 Aren't you amazing? Well, I think it's time you had her back. 705 00:37:38,089 --> 00:37:41,158 -[chuckles] -So I'll hand her over to you. 706 00:37:44,161 --> 00:37:46,664 Perhaps, it's the very mysteriousness 707 00:37:46,764 --> 00:37:48,132 of flight itself, 708 00:37:48,232 --> 00:37:50,501 that has inspired these stories 709 00:37:50,601 --> 00:37:54,272 of legendary flying creatures, over the centuries. 710 00:37:54,338 --> 00:37:58,175 That, and a fear of the very powerful 711 00:37:58,276 --> 00:38:01,579 and very real birds themselves. 712 00:38:04,649 --> 00:38:06,017 [squawks] 713 00:38:06,117 --> 00:38:07,618 Goodness. 714 00:38:07,685 --> 00:38:10,087 Fortunately, nobody's told Nikita 715 00:38:10,154 --> 00:38:13,758 how delicious I am, so I think I'm safe. 716 00:38:28,639 --> 00:38:31,776 [Fry] Stories of fantastical beasts 717 00:38:31,842 --> 00:38:34,011 aren't just a thing of the past. 718 00:38:40,484 --> 00:38:43,654 And there's one world-famous legend 719 00:38:43,721 --> 00:38:46,991 that is alive and well here in Scotland... 720 00:38:48,826 --> 00:38:50,528 The Loch Ness Monster. 721 00:38:52,563 --> 00:38:56,734 The origin story of this iconic monster 722 00:38:56,834 --> 00:39:00,671 can be traced back to around 1500 years ago 723 00:39:00,738 --> 00:39:03,974 when Irish missionaries and Columba 724 00:39:04,041 --> 00:39:07,478 was said to have encountered a beast 725 00:39:07,545 --> 00:39:09,413 in the River Ness. 726 00:39:09,513 --> 00:39:10,981 Over the years, 727 00:39:11,048 --> 00:39:13,984 thousands of people have claimed to see Nessie 728 00:39:14,051 --> 00:39:15,653 and there have been numerous attempts 729 00:39:15,720 --> 00:39:19,090 to find conclusive proof of its existence. 730 00:39:19,190 --> 00:39:22,093 But none have been as promising, 731 00:39:22,193 --> 00:39:25,696 or as high-tech, as recent efforts. 732 00:39:29,400 --> 00:39:32,937 I've traveled to the banks of this legendary Loch... 733 00:39:33,037 --> 00:39:34,772 -Stephen, come aboard. -[Fry] Hello. 734 00:39:34,872 --> 00:39:36,540 ...to meet Adrian Shine, 735 00:39:36,607 --> 00:39:40,411 a naturalist involved in this exciting new development. 736 00:39:49,587 --> 00:39:53,290 Why do you think that there's a special quality to Loch Ness? 737 00:39:53,391 --> 00:39:57,561 I mean, why has it retained such mystique over the decades? 738 00:39:57,628 --> 00:40:00,598 {\an8}Well, it's fascinating. It is probably, arguably, 739 00:40:00,698 --> 00:40:02,733 {\an8}the most famous lake in the world, 740 00:40:02,800 --> 00:40:04,869 -and it's quite large. -Yeah. 741 00:40:04,935 --> 00:40:07,605 You could put the whole human population of the world into it 742 00:40:07,705 --> 00:40:09,607 -at least three times over. -Seriously? 743 00:40:09,707 --> 00:40:12,476 -It is quite deep. -Good gracious. Wow. 744 00:40:12,576 --> 00:40:14,145 [Shine] And it's hostile. 745 00:40:14,245 --> 00:40:17,715 So in that respect, it qualifies as a lost world, 746 00:40:17,782 --> 00:40:19,784 and we need lost worlds 747 00:40:19,884 --> 00:40:22,987 to make our mythical creatures at least credible. 748 00:40:23,087 --> 00:40:25,723 -Or more credible. -Yeah, so it's big enough 749 00:40:25,790 --> 00:40:27,291 for the, if there were a monster, 750 00:40:27,391 --> 00:40:31,562 it could have credibly hidden for all this time. 751 00:40:31,629 --> 00:40:35,833 The story of Nessie evolved over centuries, 752 00:40:35,933 --> 00:40:41,005 but it was in the 1930s that things really took off. 753 00:40:41,105 --> 00:40:43,808 [Shine] That was when the Loch Ness monster, 754 00:40:43,908 --> 00:40:47,178 that we know and love today, was born. 755 00:40:47,278 --> 00:40:51,682 There's the multi-humped sea serpent 756 00:40:51,782 --> 00:40:53,784 and the plesiosaur. 757 00:40:53,851 --> 00:40:56,187 - The idea of a prehistoric monster... -[Fry] With the long neck. 758 00:40:56,287 --> 00:40:58,823 ...long necked, four flippers, stumpy body. 759 00:41:05,629 --> 00:41:07,932 We used to spend a lot of time 760 00:41:07,998 --> 00:41:09,934 in trying to work out what was in Loch Ness 761 00:41:10,000 --> 00:41:13,270 with our fish nets, towing things like that around. 762 00:41:13,337 --> 00:41:15,506 Then we'd spend hours and hours and hours 763 00:41:15,606 --> 00:41:16,874 looking through microscopes, 764 00:41:16,974 --> 00:41:19,710 identifying things, counting things. 765 00:41:19,810 --> 00:41:23,280 But now there is a much more elegant way. 766 00:41:26,617 --> 00:41:28,552 Listen to this delicious... 767 00:41:28,652 --> 00:41:30,488 [both laugh] 768 00:41:30,554 --> 00:41:32,323 -[Shine] Just a minute. -What a lovely noise. 769 00:41:32,389 --> 00:41:34,058 [Shine] There we are. 770 00:41:34,158 --> 00:41:37,695 [Fry] Using a process called Environmental DNA Sampling 771 00:41:37,795 --> 00:41:39,363 or E-DNA, 772 00:41:39,463 --> 00:41:43,567 scientists examined the different types of animal DNA 773 00:41:43,667 --> 00:41:46,170 found in Loch Ness water. 774 00:41:46,237 --> 00:41:48,372 -[Shine] And there we go. -[Fry] That's it. 775 00:41:48,472 --> 00:41:50,841 My very own bucket of Loch Ness water. 776 00:41:50,908 --> 00:41:52,042 [Shine] That's right. 777 00:41:53,911 --> 00:41:55,579 [Fry] There are many different theories 778 00:41:55,679 --> 00:41:59,416 as to the Loch Ness Monster's true identity. 779 00:41:59,517 --> 00:42:01,185 One that Adrian supports 780 00:42:01,252 --> 00:42:04,588 is that it could be an enormous eel. 781 00:42:06,423 --> 00:42:08,592 Eels are an elusive species. 782 00:42:08,692 --> 00:42:10,027 Much of their behavior 783 00:42:10,094 --> 00:42:12,496 and exactly how large they can grow 784 00:42:12,563 --> 00:42:15,165 is still a mystery to scientists. 785 00:42:16,567 --> 00:42:19,069 One of the biggest species in the world 786 00:42:19,169 --> 00:42:21,505 is the European conger eel, 787 00:42:21,572 --> 00:42:24,942 which is thought to grow to over three meters long. 788 00:42:28,078 --> 00:42:30,881 But some believe eels are capable 789 00:42:30,948 --> 00:42:33,717 of growing to a much larger size. 790 00:42:35,286 --> 00:42:37,221 Known as eunuch eels, 791 00:42:37,288 --> 00:42:40,958 their existence is somewhat controversial. 792 00:42:41,058 --> 00:42:45,896 Usually, adult eels swim into the Atlantic Ocean to breed, 793 00:42:45,963 --> 00:42:47,765 after which they die. 794 00:42:47,865 --> 00:42:51,735 But eunuch eels are said to be infertile, 795 00:42:51,802 --> 00:42:54,605 leading them to remain in freshwater, 796 00:42:54,705 --> 00:42:57,708 and continuing to grow for many years, 797 00:42:57,775 --> 00:43:00,411 potentially to a huge length. 798 00:43:02,980 --> 00:43:08,218 So will the DNA results confirm Adrian's suspicions? 799 00:43:08,285 --> 00:43:11,789 Now presumably, it will take a few days to get this analyzed, 800 00:43:11,889 --> 00:43:13,824 but you've had previous samples. 801 00:43:13,924 --> 00:43:17,428 Well, we certainly think we know what's in Loch Ness, 802 00:43:17,494 --> 00:43:20,931 and there weren't any great surprises from the DNA. 803 00:43:20,998 --> 00:43:22,333 What have you found? 804 00:43:22,433 --> 00:43:25,402 [Shine] Bacteria, plankton, lots of fish. 805 00:43:25,469 --> 00:43:26,904 No reptiles. 806 00:43:26,971 --> 00:43:28,238 No reptiles. 807 00:43:28,305 --> 00:43:29,807 -Sad that, wasn't it? -Slightly disappointing. 808 00:43:29,907 --> 00:43:32,810 Didn't really expect them, to be quite honest, 809 00:43:32,910 --> 00:43:34,345 but there we are. 810 00:43:34,445 --> 00:43:38,115 But we got lots and lots of eel DNA. 811 00:43:38,182 --> 00:43:42,186 But, of course, it would be the same DNA 812 00:43:42,286 --> 00:43:47,358 for a ordinary eel as for a huge eunuch eel. 813 00:43:47,458 --> 00:43:51,128 An ordinary eel, which comes into Loch Ness, 814 00:43:51,195 --> 00:43:52,696 but likes it so much 815 00:43:52,796 --> 00:43:55,766 that it doesn't go back to the Sargasso Sea to spawn. 816 00:43:55,833 --> 00:43:59,036 -It just grows huge. -Oh, so it avoids the famous life cycle. 817 00:44:01,038 --> 00:44:02,806 One of the things that's so intriguing 818 00:44:02,873 --> 00:44:06,510 is this latest DNA work that you've been doing, 819 00:44:06,610 --> 00:44:09,880 still leaves avenues open to believing, doesn't it? 820 00:44:09,980 --> 00:44:11,515 And that's the fun of it. 821 00:44:11,615 --> 00:44:15,219 -Yeah. That is... -Nature surprises us all the time. 822 00:44:15,319 --> 00:44:17,955 Exactly right. Exactly right. 823 00:44:18,822 --> 00:44:20,224 And so the mystery 824 00:44:20,324 --> 00:44:23,327 of the Loch Ness Monster continues. 825 00:44:38,375 --> 00:44:40,711 Our passion for all things magical, 826 00:44:40,811 --> 00:44:43,580 has never been stronger than it is today. 827 00:44:45,149 --> 00:44:48,919 Many of the most popular books and movies of our time 828 00:44:49,019 --> 00:44:52,990 are based on myths, legends and fantasy worlds, 829 00:44:53,057 --> 00:44:56,427 filled with some of the most extraordinary creatures 830 00:44:56,527 --> 00:44:57,928 you'll ever see. 831 00:45:00,397 --> 00:45:03,367 And now with cutting-edge computer technology, 832 00:45:03,434 --> 00:45:07,371 we can bring them to life, like never before. 833 00:45:11,275 --> 00:45:14,044 Now, behind these doors 834 00:45:14,111 --> 00:45:18,115 is something just a little bit special. 835 00:45:23,220 --> 00:45:24,922 [gasps] 836 00:45:25,022 --> 00:45:27,791 I've come to The Making of Harry Potter 837 00:45:27,891 --> 00:45:31,128 at the Warner Bros. Studio Tour near London, 838 00:45:31,228 --> 00:45:35,032 to see how the Fantastic Beasts of the Wizarding World 839 00:45:35,099 --> 00:45:37,034 are brought to life, 840 00:45:37,101 --> 00:45:39,770 and to discover how the natural world 841 00:45:39,870 --> 00:45:44,308 has often inspired these extraordinary creations. 842 00:45:44,408 --> 00:45:47,111 This is quite an honor for me. 843 00:45:47,211 --> 00:45:49,613 They don't usually let Muggles in here. 844 00:45:52,216 --> 00:45:54,384 [squeaking] 845 00:45:56,587 --> 00:45:57,654 [croaks] 846 00:45:59,823 --> 00:46:01,258 [growls] 847 00:46:03,627 --> 00:46:05,429 But where do you start 848 00:46:05,496 --> 00:46:08,665 when trying to create a fantastic beast 849 00:46:08,766 --> 00:46:10,334 for the big screen? 850 00:46:10,434 --> 00:46:14,338 Surely, a description in a book can only tell you so much. 851 00:46:14,438 --> 00:46:15,839 Well, I've come here 852 00:46:15,939 --> 00:46:17,441 to find out some of the tricks of the trade, 853 00:46:17,508 --> 00:46:21,178 from visual effects supervisor, Christian Manz. 854 00:46:25,115 --> 00:46:27,684 Oh, now, hang on. 855 00:46:27,785 --> 00:46:31,688 I think I recognize where we are. 856 00:46:31,789 --> 00:46:33,624 This is Dumbledore's office. 857 00:46:33,690 --> 00:46:35,359 -[Manz] Yeah. -[both chuckle] 858 00:46:36,193 --> 00:46:38,796 Now, Christian, 859 00:46:38,862 --> 00:46:41,965 I'm sure a lot of people have heard of CGI as it's called, 860 00:46:42,032 --> 00:46:44,101 do you spend your whole time just looking at a computer screen 861 00:46:44,168 --> 00:46:46,870 doing mathematical things to create images? 862 00:46:46,970 --> 00:46:48,839 [Manz] The brilliant thing about visual effects 863 00:46:48,939 --> 00:46:52,042 {\an8}is it's a real marriage of the creative and the technical, 864 00:46:52,142 --> 00:46:55,445 {\an8}and our inspiration, particularly with animation, 865 00:46:55,512 --> 00:46:59,283 is looking at creatures from all over the world, 866 00:46:59,349 --> 00:47:00,684 and make the audience believe 867 00:47:00,784 --> 00:47:02,719 that what they're seeing is real. 868 00:47:02,820 --> 00:47:04,121 Have you got some examples? 869 00:47:04,188 --> 00:47:06,623 [Manz] In the second film, we had the Zouwu, 870 00:47:06,690 --> 00:47:10,661 a elephant-sized, really colorful big cat. 871 00:47:10,727 --> 00:47:12,162 In the script, it said that 872 00:47:12,229 --> 00:47:14,665 the Zouwu could travel a thousand miles a day, 873 00:47:14,731 --> 00:47:17,634 and that led us to that idea of speed. 874 00:47:17,701 --> 00:47:20,838 So here, this was a design that bedded in for a while actually... 875 00:47:20,904 --> 00:47:22,639 - The cobra-like head... -[Fry] Yes. 876 00:47:22,706 --> 00:47:24,174 [Manz] ...with a reptilian body. 877 00:47:24,241 --> 00:47:25,909 We got to the point of, you know, modelling it 878 00:47:26,009 --> 00:47:29,546 and animating it, but we were never quite sure about it, 879 00:47:29,646 --> 00:47:31,582 it didn't quite feel of our world, 880 00:47:31,682 --> 00:47:34,918 and then somebody came up with this design, this concept. 881 00:47:35,018 --> 00:47:37,087 -[Fry] Goodness. -And we were like, 882 00:47:37,187 --> 00:47:39,089 -"Wow that feels bonkers." -Yes. 883 00:47:39,189 --> 00:47:44,595 And also felt very akin to some of the Chinese dragon dancers. 884 00:47:44,695 --> 00:47:46,263 The sort of ribbon, like... 885 00:47:46,363 --> 00:47:47,931 [Fry] I've taken a look at those too, 886 00:47:48,031 --> 00:47:50,868 and I know what you mean, and that exactly suggests it, 887 00:47:50,934 --> 00:47:53,737 -that long sinuous, flowing tail. -Yes. 888 00:47:53,837 --> 00:47:55,706 [Manz] And then, kind of, the cat-like face, 889 00:47:55,772 --> 00:47:57,608 and then the body which in the end, 890 00:47:57,708 --> 00:48:00,844 lizards, was a lot of our inspiration. 891 00:48:00,911 --> 00:48:03,413 So from that, we'd look at wildlife. 892 00:48:03,513 --> 00:48:05,949 [Fry] So you've got coral, and is that a variegated tulip? 893 00:48:06,049 --> 00:48:07,618 [Manz] Yeah, and a fighting fish, 894 00:48:07,718 --> 00:48:11,188 and also we tried it with the sea anemone. 895 00:48:11,255 --> 00:48:13,023 [Fry] Yes, that's so surprising, 896 00:48:13,090 --> 00:48:15,559 'cause I can believe that you might look at lizards 897 00:48:15,626 --> 00:48:17,094 and you might look at large cats 898 00:48:17,194 --> 00:48:20,097 and things, but coral and flowers... 899 00:48:20,197 --> 00:48:23,300 And yet once you point it out, you can see that. 900 00:48:23,400 --> 00:48:26,637 What's so interesting, is that the most ancient stories 901 00:48:26,737 --> 00:48:28,405 of mythical creatures 902 00:48:28,472 --> 00:48:31,141 drew their inspiration from nature. 903 00:48:31,241 --> 00:48:34,311 And the most modern technological mythical creatures 904 00:48:34,411 --> 00:48:37,114 that you create, also draw from nature. 905 00:48:37,214 --> 00:48:40,150 And I suppose, as long as the lead times 906 00:48:40,250 --> 00:48:43,120 and the process of doing computer graphics is, 907 00:48:43,220 --> 00:48:45,489 it's nothing compared to the millions of years... 908 00:48:45,589 --> 00:48:48,258 -No. -...that nature has to try out new ideas. 909 00:48:48,325 --> 00:48:51,161 Yeah, I think that's one of our biggest learning experiences, really, 910 00:48:51,261 --> 00:48:53,664 that Mother Nature's definitely better at it than we are... 911 00:48:53,764 --> 00:48:55,832 -[laughing] -But she's had practice. 912 00:48:55,933 --> 00:48:58,101 -She's had so much practice. -[laughs] 913 00:49:09,613 --> 00:49:10,747 [sniffing] 914 00:49:20,757 --> 00:49:23,860 [Fry] But where on Earth did all of this start? 915 00:49:25,429 --> 00:49:27,464 When did we very first create 916 00:49:27,531 --> 00:49:30,367 or imagine these mythical creatures? 917 00:49:32,469 --> 00:49:35,439 When early humans began to draw, 918 00:49:35,505 --> 00:49:38,141 we depicted the world we saw around us... 919 00:49:38,208 --> 00:49:41,211 the landscape, people, and animals, 920 00:49:41,311 --> 00:49:44,815 like this magnificent mastodon. 921 00:49:44,881 --> 00:49:46,883 But we also began to create 922 00:49:46,984 --> 00:49:49,853 entirely imaginary creatures too. 923 00:49:51,355 --> 00:49:54,691 There are examples of these mysterious creatures 924 00:49:54,791 --> 00:49:56,193 painted in caves, 925 00:49:56,293 --> 00:49:58,628 and on rocks, found around the world. 926 00:49:58,695 --> 00:50:03,800 Some dating back as far as 44,000 years ago. 927 00:50:03,867 --> 00:50:06,470 No one really knows why these images were created, 928 00:50:06,536 --> 00:50:09,706 but perhaps the most reasonable explanation 929 00:50:09,806 --> 00:50:14,511 is that they were one of the earliest forms of storytelling. 930 00:50:14,578 --> 00:50:17,748 I wanted to know more about this instinct 931 00:50:17,848 --> 00:50:20,250 to create mythical creatures, 932 00:50:20,350 --> 00:50:22,919 so I asked someone who knows a thing or two 933 00:50:23,020 --> 00:50:25,989 about telling stories... 934 00:50:26,056 --> 00:50:28,025 author of the Harry Potter books, 935 00:50:28,091 --> 00:50:31,328 and creator of Fantastic Beasts, 936 00:50:31,395 --> 00:50:33,363 J.K. Rowling. 937 00:50:38,201 --> 00:50:40,037 Why is it that we humans 938 00:50:40,103 --> 00:50:43,507 have to tell everything through stories and examples, 939 00:50:43,573 --> 00:50:46,743 it's our great creative power, isn't it? 940 00:50:46,843 --> 00:50:48,178 I think about this a lot, 941 00:50:48,245 --> 00:50:50,414 the fact that we're storytelling creatures, 942 00:50:50,514 --> 00:50:52,015 because to our knowledge, 943 00:50:52,082 --> 00:50:53,917 -we are the only animal that does this. -Yeah. 944 00:50:54,017 --> 00:50:56,753 {\an8}And obviously it was an attempt I think to... 945 00:50:56,853 --> 00:50:58,688 {\an8}certainly in terms of myth and folklore, 946 00:50:58,755 --> 00:51:01,191 {\an8}it's an attempt to explain the natural world, 947 00:51:01,258 --> 00:51:02,793 things people didn't understand. 948 00:51:02,893 --> 00:51:06,430 I am very interested in story, inevitably. 949 00:51:06,530 --> 00:51:09,466 I'm not just interested in writing stories. 950 00:51:09,566 --> 00:51:12,869 I am interested in why we write stories. 951 00:51:12,936 --> 00:51:13,970 Yes. 952 00:51:14,071 --> 00:51:16,440 I'm even more fascinated by the fact 953 00:51:16,540 --> 00:51:20,210 that discrete cultures who'd never met, 954 00:51:20,277 --> 00:51:25,148 -create such similar archetypes and such similar creatures. -Yeah. 955 00:51:25,248 --> 00:51:28,151 So we see the fire bird, 956 00:51:28,251 --> 00:51:29,753 the phoenix as I called it, 957 00:51:29,820 --> 00:51:32,155 but you see the creation of a fire bird 958 00:51:32,255 --> 00:51:34,257 throughout different cultures. 959 00:51:34,324 --> 00:51:35,158 Yes. 960 00:51:35,258 --> 00:51:37,127 And what is that telling us 961 00:51:37,227 --> 00:51:38,995 about what it is to be human 962 00:51:39,096 --> 00:51:40,931 and what lives at the back of our minds, 963 00:51:40,997 --> 00:51:42,232 in our subconscious? 964 00:51:42,299 --> 00:51:44,668 You often see this in magical beasts, 965 00:51:44,768 --> 00:51:48,071 that very similar beasts have been imagined 966 00:51:48,138 --> 00:51:53,110 -by, after all, peoples who are living among different... -Yes. 967 00:51:53,176 --> 00:51:54,578 ...real animals. 968 00:51:54,644 --> 00:51:57,013 We're talking cultures across different continents. 969 00:51:57,114 --> 00:51:58,515 And that fascinates me, 970 00:51:58,615 --> 00:52:01,251 because that's clearly telling us about ourselves. 971 00:52:01,318 --> 00:52:03,420 And a perfect example is the dragon. 972 00:52:03,487 --> 00:52:05,122 -There you are. -All over the world. 973 00:52:05,188 --> 00:52:07,023 -In China, famously, of course. -All over... 974 00:52:07,124 --> 00:52:08,959 And what else are there? Mermaids. 975 00:52:09,025 --> 00:52:11,428 Mermaids, it's very interesting, isn't it? 976 00:52:11,495 --> 00:52:13,763 Because where did that myth come from? 977 00:52:13,830 --> 00:52:17,701 Even in Africa, these inland countries... 978 00:52:17,801 --> 00:52:19,769 -[Fry] Yeah. -...of course, have great rivers... 979 00:52:19,836 --> 00:52:23,106 -Yeah. -...there is a form of mermaid, the Jengu. 980 00:52:23,173 --> 00:52:24,307 Ah. 981 00:52:24,374 --> 00:52:27,811 So again, this is something that has... 982 00:52:27,878 --> 00:52:31,548 has been created across these different cultures. 983 00:52:31,648 --> 00:52:36,386 Why were British sailors imagining fishtailed women 984 00:52:36,486 --> 00:52:40,657 when people in Africa were imagining fishtailed women, 985 00:52:40,724 --> 00:52:42,859 it's just extraordinary. 986 00:52:42,959 --> 00:52:45,228 Do you think it's possible to invent a creature 987 00:52:45,328 --> 00:52:46,963 that has no basis in nature? 988 00:52:47,030 --> 00:52:49,666 -I think it would be exceptionally difficult. -Wouldn't it? 989 00:52:49,733 --> 00:52:52,402 I created a creature, 990 00:52:52,502 --> 00:52:55,639 in Fantastic Beasts, the original book 991 00:52:55,705 --> 00:52:57,007 called a Lethifold. 992 00:52:57,073 --> 00:52:58,875 [Fry] Yes, a nasty piece of work. 993 00:52:58,975 --> 00:53:00,810 Now that is my worst nightmare. 994 00:53:00,877 --> 00:53:03,480 I really had, there, gone for something 995 00:53:03,547 --> 00:53:07,217 -that would scare the bejesus out of me. -Yes. 996 00:53:07,317 --> 00:53:10,687 {\an8}Although I was taking the idea from a cloak, 997 00:53:10,754 --> 00:53:13,323 when I stood back from what I'd invented, 998 00:53:13,390 --> 00:53:15,358 I thought, well, you've... That's just a manta ray. 999 00:53:15,425 --> 00:53:17,928 -And a manta means a cloak, doesn't it? Yes. -There you go. Exactly. 1000 00:53:18,028 --> 00:53:21,264 So basically, I've invented a manta ray that doesn't need water. 1001 00:53:21,364 --> 00:53:23,867 -And the niffler? -Well, I was going to say the niffler, exactly, 1002 00:53:23,934 --> 00:53:26,102 so the niffler is a bit of a favorite of mine. 1003 00:53:26,203 --> 00:53:28,538 It's a treasure seeker, it likes everything that glitters, 1004 00:53:28,605 --> 00:53:30,774 so it can locate treasure for you. 1005 00:53:31,775 --> 00:53:33,043 So for those who don't know, 1006 00:53:33,109 --> 00:53:34,945 a niffler is a curious creature, 1007 00:53:35,045 --> 00:53:38,281 -I suppose it's a cross between a magpie, in nature... -Yes. 1008 00:53:38,381 --> 00:53:40,884 ...and a duck-billed platypus in appearance. 1009 00:53:40,951 --> 00:53:43,353 -And a mole. -And a mole, exactly. 1010 00:53:43,420 --> 00:53:45,188 {\an8}But they used a platypus 1011 00:53:45,255 --> 00:53:48,425 {\an8}to get the snout-like appearance in the movie, 1012 00:53:48,525 --> 00:53:50,060 {\an8}which I adored. 1013 00:53:50,126 --> 00:53:52,295 I mean, they ran these things past me and I just loved it. 1014 00:53:52,395 --> 00:53:55,465 It gave it such an endearing appearance, I think. 1015 00:53:57,901 --> 00:54:00,737 -So it's exceptionally difficult... -Yeah. 1016 00:54:00,804 --> 00:54:02,038 ...to invent something. 1017 00:54:02,105 --> 00:54:05,308 And often nature got there far better, 1018 00:54:05,408 --> 00:54:08,712 because you look at some of nature's extraordinary creations, 1019 00:54:08,778 --> 00:54:11,615 and you think, well, CGI will never match this. 1020 00:54:17,921 --> 00:54:20,056 You created your own world 1021 00:54:20,123 --> 00:54:22,325 that has its famous 1022 00:54:22,425 --> 00:54:25,295 and knowable characters and creatures, 1023 00:54:25,395 --> 00:54:27,931 um, which must give you enormous satisfaction, 1024 00:54:27,998 --> 00:54:30,667 and you've done it by examining the real world 1025 00:54:30,767 --> 00:54:32,402 and the world of the imagination 1026 00:54:32,469 --> 00:54:33,670 that our ancestors had, 1027 00:54:33,770 --> 00:54:35,672 all the way back through earliest myths. 1028 00:54:35,772 --> 00:54:37,340 I was thinking about the creatures 1029 00:54:37,440 --> 00:54:39,676 because we were gonna sit down and talk about this, 1030 00:54:39,776 --> 00:54:41,478 and I realized 1031 00:54:41,578 --> 00:54:46,249 that half the books fold without those creatures, 1032 00:54:46,316 --> 00:54:48,418 you know, they're so important. 1033 00:54:50,120 --> 00:54:51,988 - Hedwig the owl. -[Fry] Yeah. 1034 00:54:52,088 --> 00:54:55,158 And then we move through the Thestrals and the dragons, 1035 00:54:55,258 --> 00:54:57,861 and they are key plot points 1036 00:54:57,961 --> 00:55:00,997 and obviously, thematically, they work in terms of life 1037 00:55:01,097 --> 00:55:04,100 and death and power. And struggle and treasure. 1038 00:55:04,167 --> 00:55:07,704 But I realized when I really focused on those creatures, 1039 00:55:07,804 --> 00:55:10,774 just how important they were, and that shows, 1040 00:55:10,840 --> 00:55:12,609 we have a deep need, I think, 1041 00:55:12,676 --> 00:55:14,544 to be connected to the animal world. 1042 00:55:36,466 --> 00:55:41,805 Fantastic beasts have been with us since the dawn of time, 1043 00:55:41,871 --> 00:55:44,407 from the first imaginary creatures 1044 00:55:44,507 --> 00:55:46,743 sketched on cave walls, 1045 00:55:46,843 --> 00:55:48,845 to the state-of-the-art animals 1046 00:55:48,912 --> 00:55:51,247 that we see on our big screens today, 1047 00:55:51,348 --> 00:55:56,419 they are a fundamental part of our own history. 1048 00:55:57,520 --> 00:55:59,022 [Fawkes squawking] 1049 00:56:02,158 --> 00:56:06,062 Our endless fascination with magical animals 1050 00:56:06,162 --> 00:56:09,999 and our instinctive curiosity about the world around us 1051 00:56:10,066 --> 00:56:13,103 could even lead to the discovery 1052 00:56:13,203 --> 00:56:15,772 of entirely new species... 1053 00:56:16,706 --> 00:56:18,942 If we keep our eyes 1054 00:56:19,042 --> 00:56:21,578 and our minds open, 1055 00:56:21,678 --> 00:56:25,215 who knows what might be out there? 1056 00:56:32,722 --> 00:56:35,859 The world is a magical place. 1057 00:56:35,925 --> 00:56:38,461 Fantastic Beasts show 1058 00:56:38,561 --> 00:56:42,599 there are still so many things to discover. 1059 00:56:50,740 --> 00:56:53,309 [chittering] 1060 00:57:05,255 --> 00:57:06,923 [jingling] 1061 00:57:10,059 --> 00:57:12,262 [instrumental music playing]