Do you enjoy watching TV every now and again to unwind and relax? I actually find this really hard to do because there isn’t a lot on TV that interests me.
Well, that was the case until I discovered survivor television shows. There is something about seeing people in very precarious situations with so little, yet they are still able to manage to survive somehow. It really motivates me.
So assuming I’m not the only survival TV shows junkie in the world, I wanted to bring you a list of some of the top survival TV shows. Not all of them are still on regular television, but between Netflix, android boxes, and the internet you should be able to stream these survival TV shows.
Fascinating Survival TV shows:
1. Dual Survival
I’ll be honest, this was the show that sucked me in. My husband was watching it one evening and there were two totally opposite men stuck in extreme situations that were forced to work together in order to survive.
Now, if that doesn’t sound like a difficult survival situation, I don’t know what does. But somehow they’d always manage to pull together and survive the situation. They offered a lot of good tips along the way as well.
2. Survivor Man
This show always tripped me out a little. This poor guy is really out in the wild by himself. I mean, he didn’t even have a film crew with him.
So he’d have to set up his camera, then redo whatever he was doing. It was a tirelessly long process for him. Yet, he’d do it just to show you that surviving on your own is actually something that can happen.
3. Man vs. Wild
Bear Grylls is going to appear on this list multiple times. The reason? He is a great survivalist. He usually films himself in a location where someone might end up stranded whether by an accident taking place or for any number of reasons really.
Then he shows you how he would take on these situations. It is really quite interesting, and you could learn some tips from him as well.
4. Naked and Afraid
Do you want to talk about a horrible place to be when trying to survive? These people are literally dropped off in the wilderness with no clothes.
Then they must meet a partner of the opposite sex that they didn’t know up until this point. They are only allowed to bring one item with them. Then they have to survive for weeks with nothing else besides what they are able to find or create in their location.
5. Man Woman Wild
This is another really tough survival situation. This is a man and his wife taking on difficult survival situations all across the globe.
Again, you want to talk about a hard survival situation. I wouldn’t want to be stranded with anyone else besides my husband, but at the same time, it would be pretty easy to get snippy when in those strenuous situations too. Thanks to this show you can get some pointers on how to handle that type of survival situation with your spouse.
6. Out of the Wild: The Alaska Experiment
This television show is one of many that is based around Alaska. It is one of the last true frontiers left in America.
So people find it fascinating when people can survive the harsh conditions and actually learn to thrive in a place that can be both beautiful and unforgiving too.
7. The Island
This is a TV show that is hosted by Bear Grylls. He sends a group of modern men to an island with nothing but the clothes they are wearing and a few survival tools.
So they must hunt, gather, and build anything that they need and must survive in the wilderness. Plus, they have to videotape everything! This is a true test of what you are made of in this day in age.
8. Alone
This storyline is pretty interesting. You have 7 pairs of loved ones that are dropped off separate from each other. They have to first navigate an unfamiliar location in the wilderness to find one another.
Then when they are reunited, they must use the tools that are in their backpack to survive together. They even have to record everything themselves because they have no camera crew. Whichever pair is left standing at the end of the season wins a $500,000 prize.
9. Dude, You’re Screwed
via Survival Wisdom
I love this show! They take the best of the best in the world of survival and put them to the test. You have a group of well-versed outdoorsmen that take turns kidnapping one guy in the mix.
Then they randomly drop the selected guy into a rough environment. They must survive until they find their pick-up location.
10. Survival
This is actually a docuseries that has different episodes filmed over a number of years. It shows how different people survive in different locations.
So you could easily thumb through and see which locations interested you most, or you could watch the whole series. It isn’t something that you have to watch continuously to be able to fully understand.
11. Alone in the Wild
This show is really amazing. It is based around a filmmaker, Ed Wardle who has filmed really difficult voyages he has gone on.
But this is probably his hardest as he tries to survive in the Yukon for 3 months. It literally tests his limits and abilities all the way around.
12. The Colony
This is a science-fiction drama tv series that is based in the near future. A group of rebels decides to invade Los Angeles. Some people are going with those that invaded and some are fighting against them and paying a high price for doing so.
But this story follows a couple who have to decide which side of the fence they are going to be on when it could determine if they ever see their son again, who they were separated from when the invasion happened.
13. Doomsday Preppers
This is a series that follows seemingly ordinary people around. Though they hold regular jobs and live in normal neighborhoods, they have a secret. They are actually prepping and stockpiling food and other resources so they can survive doomsday.
So some of these people are prepping for a financial collapse. Others are preparing for a natural disaster or nuclear fallout. It is interesting to see how they live a seemingly double life and how they are making preparations to live past whatever apocalypse they foresee in the future.
14. Ultimate Survival Alaska
If you want to see the best of the best go at it in a survival situation, then this is another series you might enjoy.
Basically, they take top survivalist experts and give them 60 hours to complete each leg of the course. They must survive with very few supplies and do all of this over the rough terrain of Alaska.
15. Extreme Survival
This television show is hosted by Ray Mears. He travels the globe in an effort to survive and explore many different locations.
For example, some survival TV shows are filmed in the desert. While others are filmed in the jungle and Alaska as well.
16. Running Wild with Bear Grylls
This is another TV show I really like. Bear Grylls take Hollywood by storm and definitely jerks them out of their comfort zone.
Actually, he takes really famous actors and plunges them into survival situations. They not only have to survive together, but he teaches the celebrities a thing or two along the way.
17. Beyond Survival
Les Stroud is Survivorman. On this new adventure, though, he isn’t going it alone. He is taking some of his good friends with him.
Then they travel to some really remote locations in Africa to meet with indigenous tribes. They learn new survival skills from these tribes and even get to participate in tribal ceremonies.
18. Survive This
This show is enough to send most modern kids into panic mode. Les Stroud takes a group of kids into the wilderness.
But they must leave all electronics at home. He tests them and teaches them how to survive. It is really interesting to see how kids respond to this new reality.
19. Surviving Disaster
This is a show based around a Navy Seal, Cade Courtley. He teaches survival skills that many viewers will need if they find themselves in an unimaginable situation.
So if you would like to stockpile some knowledge in the event you end up in a situation you never dreamed you would, then you’ll want to check this show out.
20. Ray Mears’ Northern Wilderness
I shared how Ray Mears has a television show based in Great Britain and how he tries to explore and survive in that area.
Well, this show is basically the same tale only Ray Mears is now in Canada. He survives in this different atmosphere but also explores nature there as well.
21. Alaska: The Last Frontier
My husband and I watch this show every Sunday night, and I truly think Otto has a twin because my neighbor looks just like him.
But I digress. This show is amazing, and it shows you how a family continues to work together to live on a homestead in Alaska. It is gorgeous, and the ideas they have are amazing. They are actually who inspired my family to begin homesteading.
22. Get Out Alive with Bear Grylls
This TV show is one that has a large prize at the end. 2 groups of 10 take on the New Zealand wilderness with Bear Grylls as their guide.
Each week, they are given a new challenge, and each week Bear Grylls eliminates a team. Whoever is left at the end takes home $500,000.
23. Wild Britain with Ray Mears
This TV show is based out of Great Britain. Ray Mears tries to take on different rugged areas around Great Britain.
But he not only wants to survive, he wants to explore and see what all nature has to offer in different parts of that country.
24. Survival with Ray Mears
This is a three-part documentary where Ray Mears actually goes to different locations and tracks predatory animals in their natural habitats.
So as you can imagine this is a fascinating series with some tense points considering the type of animals that are being tracked.
25. I Shouldn’t Be Alive
Have you ever lived through something and thought, “ I really shouldn’t have survived that.” If so, then you can probably identify with this show.
Basically, they reenact stories of people who were in difficult and unexpected survival situations who actually survived them.
Continue reading:
