The Zoo

The Zoo is a popular factual series filmed behind the scenes at the Auckland Zoo. It tells the stories of the zoo's 900+ animals, and their vets and keepers. Events such as opening the new hippo enclosure, introducing new rhinos to each other and seeing a tiger give birth, are naturally [sic] fascinating and Colin Hogg's lively script-editing crafts them into compelling reality television.

The Zoo is a programme that educates subtly whilst entertaining. Viewers learn how to weigh a tiger, and why keepers speak to elephants in a combination of German and Sri Lankan. Viewers can relate to the menagerie's melodramas and sympathise with Nisha the Sumatran Tiger's monthly mood swings, and the cheeky Cotton Top Tamarins who don't want to go home after a big day out. 

The show's gently educational style is spotted with touches of humour. A new electric fence gives the writer carte blanche to go wild, "there's a shocking problem with the electric fence... but some bright spark has fixed it". Such flourishes combine with beautiful shooting and a wealth of information to make an eminently watchable programme.

The series' liveliness (and perhaps its achievement) means The Zoo is able to highlight the strong bonds between humans and other animals, while also delivering subtle conservation messages. The changing role of the zoo (conservation and education rather than just exhibition) is highlighted. For example, whio (blue duck) reared at the zoo are shown being released back into the wild; the stunning river cinematography is contrasted with scenes of a dead rat and stoat killed in traps designed to protect them.

Such assured family-friendly fare has made The Zoo a long-running and successful series for TVNZ (it was originally commissioned by Geoff Steven). It enjoys consistently high ratings and has sold to over 90 countries worldwide. Its awards include TV Guide's People's Choice Award for Best Documentary Series for seven years in a row. This makes The Zoo the most awarded programme in the history of the TV Guide awards.  

The appropriately named Andrea Lamb was key to shaping the series in its early days. Along with Kathryn Moore, she produced and directed five series of the show before going on to become Head of Production for Greenstone Pictures. Another key creative was script editor Hogg, who wrote most of the early series (he also wrote a children's book, The Zoo Book, published in 2001).

The popularity of the series has inspired several spin-off programmes, including Raising Baby Iwani, Zoo Babies and The Zoo: This is Your Life. A 10th series of The Zoo was commissioned in 2008.