The successor to the award-winning Blue Planet from BBC Studios Natural History Unit follows the huge success of last year's Planet Earth II, also presented by Attenborough.

The seven-part documentary series has been four years in the making, with a team of wildlife filmmakers exploring the hidden depths of the earth's oceans for the return of the unique visual experience.

Sir David Attenborough said he was "truly thrilled to be joining this new exploration of the underwater worlds which cover most of our planet, yet are still its least known.”

Blue Planet II will take viewers on a journey of discovery through one of the most unexplored parts of our planet, including icy polar seas, coral atolls, methane volcanoes and the 'boiling sea' phenomenon in the Pacific ocean.

The second series has developed new filming technologies, such as UHD suction cameras that allow the viewer to travel on the back of large underwater creatures, and has used two manned submersibles for the first time to explore the 1000m deep Antarctic ocean.

Charlotte Moore, Controller of TV Content and iPlayer, said: "The BBC's world renowned Natural History Unit are set to captivate audiences once again with unmissable stories of ocean life presented by the one and only David Attenborough - it really doesn't get much better than that!"

James Honeyborne, Executive Producer, added: “The oceans are the most exciting place to be right now, because new scientific discoveries have given us a new perspective of life beneath the waves."

He continued: "Blue Planet II is taking its cue from these breakthroughs, unveiling unbelievable new places, extraordinary new behaviours and remarkable new creatures.”