Season 1
Escape to Chimp Eden is an American wildlife docu-reality television series produced by Creative Differences which documents South Africa's Eugene Cussons as he rescues chimpanzees from the horrors of human captivity and gives them a new life in Mpumalanga's chimpanzee sanctuary, Chimp Eden.
The series originally aired in the USA on Animal Planet from 8 February to 9 May, 2008. There are 32 episodes in two seasons to date.
Escape to Chimp Eden premiered in South Africa on DStv's Animal Planet on Monday 3 November 2008, at 14h15. See "Seasons" below for seasonal broadcast dates and times.
Season 1 aired from 3 November to 15 December, 2008, on Mondays at 14h15. The premiere episode is an hour long; all remaining episodes are half an hour in length. As from Week 2 the half-hour episodes aired back-to-back weekly.
Repeats
(Double episodes from Week 2 onwards)
Mondays: 21h00
Tuesdays: 03h30
Sundays: 22h00
Mondays: 04h20
Synopsis
Chimpanzee rescuer Eugene Cussons leads liberation missions and brings chimpanzees to safety in Animal Planet's Escape to Chimp Eden.
Cozi and Jao are two of the many residents at the Jane Goodall Institute's chimpanzee Eden. Set in the heart of the Mpumalanga province of South Africa, the sanctuary is a sort of halfway house for chimpanzees rescued from the horrors of human captivity.
Until now, many of these chimps have been forced to endure the insides of tiny cages, physical abuse, malnutrition, abandonment and habitual lack of care.
The chimps find community, safety and nurturing at the hands of the chimp Eden's rescue director, Eugene Cussons, who is set on giving these chimps a life close to what they would have experienced in the wild.
Witness these compelling stories of rescue, recovery, friendship and fraternity unfold as the chimps – one by one – make their "Escape to Chimp Eden".
Seasons
(All seasons air exclusively on Animal Planet)
Season 1 (12 episodes)
Premiere: 3 November 2008 | Finale: 15 December 2008 | Mondays, 14h15 (double bill)
Season 2 (20 episodes)
Premiere: 16 November 2009 | Finale: 18 January 2010 | Mondays, 18h15 (double bill)