"This gripping series, with incredible 360-degree access, is a different way of telling a story about the natural world. It’s a compelling environmental narrative, told in six fast-paced half-hour episodes, that’s important to hear within the current climate." — Sreya Biswas, BBC Head of Commissioning, Natural History

BBC Factual today announces On Thin Ice: Putin V Greenpeace (working title), a gripping new 6x30’ box set for BBC Two and iPlayer. When a group of climate activists on a daring mission to disrupt Russia’s Arctic oil production unwittingly sail into a pivotal moment in Putin’s relationship with the West, they are arrested and incarcerated in a brutal Russian prison.

Sreya Biswas, BBC Head of Commissioning, Natural History, says: “This gripping series, with incredible 360-degree access, is a different way of telling a story about the natural world. It’s a compelling environmental narrative, told in six fast-paced half-hour episodes, that’s important to hear within the current climate.”

In 2013, Russia was about to extract the world’s first offshore Arctic oil. A Greenpeace ship set sail for the oil rig, hoping to film a protest and discourage an international Arctic oil rush. Some of the activists were on their very first direct action activity, and none of them knew what they were sailing towards. Russian security services had been monitoring their activities and word came from the very top: the protestors would be made an example of – no one would dare get in the way of Russia’s plans for oil dominance again.

This action-packed series draws on a wealth of previously unseen footage and extensive actuality filmed during and following the protest, plus cinematic reconstructions and interviews, immersing the viewer in the unfolding action. With unprecedented access to both sides, we hear from Russians close to the events, British and Russian politicians, the jailed protestors themselves and senior decision makers at Greenpeace.

On Thin Ice: Putin V Greenpeace (working title), a 6x30’ for BBC Two and iPlayer, is made by Curve Media. It was commissioned by Jack Bootle, Head of Commissioning, Specialist Factual, is Executive Produced by Sunshine Jackson, co-series directed by Chloe Campbell (Murder in the Pacific) and Alice McMahon-Major (Three Mothers, Two Babies and a Scandal) and produced by Clare Beavis. The Commissioning Editor is Sreya Biswas, Head of Commissioning, Natural History. It is distributed globally by ITV Studios.