An extraordinary fossil found in the UK is revealing the secrets of a predator that lived 150 million years ago
Sea monsters are associated with myth and legend, but there were definitely terrifying animals that once swam in our oceans. Following the recent unearthing of an enormous skull in the south of England, science is uncovering the tale of a powerful marine reptile. The exceptionally rare find is the focus of a BBC One documentary, presented by Sir David Attenborough, and is captivating palaeontologists as they reveal new and thrilling information about a ferocious ‘sea rex’.
The 150-million-year-old fossil belongs to a pliosaur, believed to be the biggest and most fearsome hunter that ruled prehistoric waters off the coast of Britain. “The creature would have been horrendously scary,” says executive producer Mike Gunton. “It’s like joining a great white [shark], a saltwater crocodile and a killer whale together with a little bit of penguin.”
Before filming commenced, Mike visited David Attenborough to talk about the pliosaur specimen and plans for the programme. “He was fascinated and asked, ‘Can I be in it?’,” recalls Mike. “It was all decided over a cup of tea in his study. We knew it would be an amazing story, but there was a lot of time pressure as the skull needed to be excavated quickly in case it fell away [from the cliff].”
The following week, David was on location to film the opening shot of this compelling detective story. Throughout the show, he joins experts to analyse the fossil and unlock clues to the appearance and behaviour of the colossal creature to which it once belonged.
The snout of the pliosaur skull was discovered lying in shingle by fossil enthusiast Phil Jacobs while he was walking along a beach near Kimmeridge Bay, Dorset. He alerted local and experienced palaeontologist Steve Etches, who identified the location of the rest of the skull by examining the fault lines in the cliff face using a drone.
As the prize was located 12m up the cliff, the only way to reach it was to abseil down from the top and conduct the whole dig on ropes. Steve assembled a team of experts, including fellow fossil hunter Chris Moore, to help excavate the skull by the end of summer 2022.
“It took three to four weeks to complete,” says producer-director Victoria Bobin, “and was by far the biggest filming challenge, as there are so many health and safety considerations.�
