Plot Synopsis

Filmed in one of the most dynamic locations on the African continent, BIG CATS 24/7 is a six-part documentary that captures the big cats' battle to survive through dramatic changes within their families and their home. An elite camera team including wildlife cinematographers Gordon Buchanan, Vianet Djenguet and Anna Dimitriadis, led by Brad Bestelink and his local camera team, documents the dramatic lives of individual lions, cheetahs and leopards for six months, over two extreme seasons. This raw and unfiltered observational wildlife series shows their fight to survive in an increasingly challenging world. From unprecedented wildfire to floods and extreme drought, the African cats and the BIG CATS 24/7 camera crew are tested to their limits. With extraordinary, unparalleled access, filming from the ground, the air and through the night in an area unvisited by tourists, the BIG CATS 24/7 team works together to follow the cats' lives around the clock while forming unique bonds along the way. A revolution in low light camera technology enables the filmmaking team to capture previously unseen behavior at night, while cutting-edge drones are able to track the big cats' movements like never before, as they battle for supremacy in a brutal and unforgiving environment. BIG CATS 24/7 made its U.S. debut on Wednesday, September 18, 2024 with back-to-back new episodes from 8-10pm on PBS (check local listings). A new installment makes its U.S. debut each Wednesday at 8pm through October 16:

Episode One (U.S. Premiere on Wednesday, September 18, 2024 at 8pm ET): The Big Cats 24/7 team begins a six-month expedition following lions, leopards and cheetahs in the Okavango Delta, but a huge wildfire threatens the resident big cats and the team.

Episode Two (U.S. Premiere on Wednesday, September 18, 2024 at 9pm ET): The team continues following the Okavango Delta's big cats after a huge wildfire. The dominant male lions fight intruders, while leopard and cheetah struggle to get a meal.

Episode Three (U.S. Premiere on Wednesday, September 25, 2024 at 8pm ET): A fight with intruders leaves the lion pride males injured and the mothers with cubs vulnerable to attack. Xudum the female leopard takes risks to find a mate.

Episode Four (U.S. Premiere on Wednesday, October 2, 2024 at 8pm ET): The Okavango Delta is transformed by the arrival of the flood, bringing new challenges for the big cats. The lion cubs experience water and the danger it brings for the first time.

Episode Five (U.S. Premiere on Wednesday, October 9, 2024 at 8pm ET): The Big Cats 24/7 team witnesses a baby boom in the Delta. Lioness Matho must protect her cubs along while the leopard Xudum reveals her newborns with danger looming nearby.

Episode Six (U.S. Premiere on Wednesday, October 16, 2024 at 8pm ET): Lion numbers continue to grow, but there's not enough food to go around. A lioness risks her life to feed her five cubs and Xudum's newborn leopard cubs face a deadly threat.