The Sustainable Law Podcast
If you work in the legal sector and you have an interest in tackling the climate and biodiversity crises then this podcast is for you. How do these challenges affect law firms and what can lawyers to take positive action on climate change for their firms and their clients?
Episode 12: The Making of Ocean - a podcast about hope and recovery
The Making of Ocean: A podcast about hope and recovery
Ocean with David Attenborough (2025) was a powerful and unflinching wakeup call exploring the vital importance of Earth’s oceans and the growing threats they face, featuring shocking footage revealing the devastation caused by bottom trawling.
For this podcast, Amanda Carpenter spoke to Olly Scholey, Field Producer on Ocean, and Dr Tom Appleby, Chief of Legal Affairs at Blue Marine Foundation, to gain insight into the making of the film and examine how the law can—and should—be used to better protect our seas.
How did the production team capture such dramatic footage oftrawling? Why is bottom trawling still permitted in Marine Protected Areas? How has the trawler fishing community responded to the film? How do government policies permit this destruction — and in some cases, actively subsidise it? Considering the fact that the UK fishery and seabed are owned by the Crown on behalf of the public; and the international fishery belongs to all people of all nations, how can lawyers help protect ocean health? We explore all this and more.
Questions for this podcast were based on the audience participation at the LSA’s screening of Ocean and panel discussion, run in partnership with Blue Marine Foundation.
Image credit (c) George Duffield.
More about our guests:
Olly Scholey has worked on a wide range of natural history feature films and documentaries over a fifteen-year career, including four Disney nature films and three landmark TV series, including the Emmy Award-winning Netflix series Our Planet. Over the last eight years, he has specialised in ocean filmmaking, spending nearly 1,000 hours diving and many months at sea. His expertise in working in the marine environment has enabled him to develop pioneering underwater camera technologies and utilise a range of specialist techniques, delivering unprecedented footage of marine wildlife to the productions he works on.
Recently, Olly produced and directed the Ocean episode of BBC One’s Parenthood (2025), which showcased many never-before-seen parenting behaviours. Olly worked as the field producer for Ocean with David Attenborough, which released in cinemas worldwide from 8 May 2025 and on Disney+ and Hulu.
Dr Tom Appleby is Head of Governance and Legal Affairs at the Blue Marine Foundation.
Tom started life as a commercial property solicitor but has worked in the world of marine environmental law for over 20 years. He has worked with the commercial fisheries, ports, government and charitable sectors. Tom has been involved in projects as diverse as small no take zones in Scotland to UN Treaties to European fisheries and conservation regulation. He was one of the first trustees of Blue Marine Foundation and has worked with the Blue Marine since its inception.
He retains a small teaching and research post at the University of the West of England, where he is an Associate Professor and is a member of the UK Environmental Lawyers Association.