I am trying to obtain a copy of a documentary I saw on TV about two
badger cubs growing up in the wilderness.  I remember seeing it on the
Discovery Channel or BBC in England about 10 years ago and once in
Taiwan (in English with Chinese subtitles).  I think one of the cubs
was named Johnny or John and it was about 30 minutes in length.  If
anybody can find information about it and how to obtain a copy,
preferably dvd, but any other popular media form works too, I would
really appreciate it.  Thank you!

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Request for Question Clarification by pinkfreud-ga on 11 Feb 2005 12:48 PST

Could this be the documentary you're looking for?

http://www.spider-design.freeserve.co.uk/badgerwatch/video.htm

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Clarification of Question by bluesky89-ga on 11 Feb 2005 13:14 PST

This looks right.

I'm delighted to have been able to help you find your badger video.
I've reposted the link below, with some additional material that you
may find interesting.

"A BADGER?S YEAR
 The video 
  
This video forms the most complete record ever made of the life of a
family of wild badgers. Secretive and nocturnal by nature, they are
notoriously difficult to watch throughout the year, let alone to film.
However, this tape, which required over 1000 hours behind a camera,
includes behaviour both dramatic and beautiful from throughout their
season, much seldom previously seen and never before recorded. As an
aid to understanding the way of life of one of our more elusive and
attractive mammals this is compulsive viewing.
  
 Scripted, Produced and Filmed by Alistair Kilburn.
 Script reviewed by the late Dr Ernest Neal.
 Narrated by Andrew Sachs. 
 Running time approx. 46 minutes"
 
The New Forest Badger Watch: A Badger's Year 
http://www.spider-design.freeserve.co.uk/badgerwatch/video.htm

Another source for the same video:

"A Badger's Year 
Narrated by Andrew Sachs 
The most complete record ever made of the life of a family of wild
badgers, filmed throughout their season which includes behaviour both
dramatic and beautiful. Seldom previously seen and never before
recorded, this video shows the intimate details of a sett in the New
Forest and is an aid to understanding the way of life of one of our
more elusive and attractive mammals. It is compulsive viewing. ?A
truly magical video? - David Bellamy.
duration 46 minutes 
VHS video - £15.99  
 
Second Sight Productions: Rural Life
http://www.secondsightproductions.co.uk/catalogue/viewCat.php?category=Rural%20Life

Here is another video that badger-lovers will enjoy:

"Johnny Kingdom's Badger Watch Video... 

The famous wildlife character Johnny Kingdom narrates and presents
this well-regarded and informative video. A look at the badgers living
on Exmoor, they are captured here on film at work and play."

Badgerland: Badger Watch
http://www.badgerland.co.uk/shops/videos_dvds/badgers/johnny_kingdom.html

And be sure to visit the Secret World Wildlife Rescue website, where
you'll find some lovely true stories about the rescue and
rehabilitation of orphaned badger cubs:

Secret World Wildlife Rescue: Storm Badgers Release!
http://www.secretworld.co.uk/data/badgers_stormsbadgersrelease.htm

The delightful video "Badgers in My Kitchen" is available as part of a
"Badger Adoption Gift Pack":

Secret World Wildlife Rescue: Adopt a Badger
http://www.secretworld.co.uk/data/adopt-badger.htm

Other badger videos:

The Brock Shop: Badger Videos
http://www.badgers.org.uk/brockshop/badger-videos.html

I hope this is helpful. If anything is unclear or incomplete, or if a
link doesn't work for you, please request clarification; I'll be glad
to offer further assistance before you rate my answer.

Very best regards,
pinkfreud

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Request for Answer Clarification by bluesky89-ga on 11 Feb 2005 13:55 PST

Thanks so much for the very speedy answer.  The only problem is, I
believe that the video is in U.K. VHS format.  As I am in the U.S., it
looks like I would not be able to view it.  You have already answered
my question, but any advice or additional information would be much
appreciated.

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Clarification of Answer by pinkfreud-ga on 11 Feb 2005 14:42 PST

I'm sorry, I had assumed that you were in the UK, since you mentioned
having seen the documentary on the BBC. I will do some additional
research to see whether I can find any of these videos in NTSC format
(the video standard used in the United States and Canada).

~pinkfreud

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Clarification of Answer by pinkfreud-ga on 11 Feb 2005 14:56 PST

It appears that these videos are not currently available in NTSC
format. However, there are services which can do a conversion for you.

Here are a few such services:

APM Studio
http://www.apm-studio.com/products/conversion/

Video for You
http://www.videoforyou.com./fn-vhs.htm

Videos2DVD
http://www.videos2dvd.com/paltodvd.html

~pinkfreud

Thanks again for the great work!!  I will probably try to convert from
PAL VHS to NTSC DVD but still need to figure out how to get copyright
permission...

Thank you very much for the five stars and the nice tip!

You may want to check with local merchants in your area who provide
professional video services and/or equipment. Many of them can convert
from PAL to NTSC, and as long as they know that you have purchased a
legal, commercial tape, they may not be likely to fuss about copyright
technicalities. A friend of mine was given several videotapes in PAL
format by a relative from the UK, and a local video shop made NTSC
copies of them without any fuss whatsoever.

~pinkfreud

I was finally able to to watch the documentary. :)  The content of the
video is indeed similar to what I had in mind, but certain sections,
such as 2 young cubs playing around, that I remember seeing on TV were
not in the video...  Is it possible that the BBC aired additional
sections of video clips from the New Forest Badger Watch?  Any
comments would be much appreciated.  Thank you.

It is entirely possible that additional New Forest material might have
been included in BBC programming. Some of the folks at the Badger
Message Board might be able to tell you more about badger-related BBC
shows. Most of the board's members are from the UK:

http://www.badgers.org.uk/cgi-bin/badgerboard/YaBB.cgi

If I come across anything further that I think would be of interest,
I'll post it here for you.