Bigger, Bolder, and With More Bite! Discovery Announces Star-Studded SHARK WEEK Programming, Led by Flagship Series DAILY PLANET, July 23-30

TORONTO (June 30,  2017) – Calling all shark fin-atics! SHARK WEEK, Discovery’s most anticipated pop-culture television event of the year gives viewers a dose of “Vitamin Sea”, beginning at 7 p.m. ET from Sunday, July 23 through Sunday, July 30. This year’s extraordinary lineup features all-new, groundbreaking shark stories, with primetime programs airing day-and-date with Discovery U.S., complemented by a wide range of original Canadian content championed by the network’s flagship program, DAILY PLANET. This year, Discovery welcomes a star-studded sea of celebrities to celebrate SHARK WEEK. The most decorated Olympian of all time, Michael Phelps makes a splash with the most interesting race of his career in PHELPS VS. SHARK: GREAT GOLD VS. GREAT WHITE (Sunday, July 23 at 8 p.m. ET), and then gets schooled on all-things “shark” at the Bimini Shark Lab during SHARK SCHOOL WITH MICHAEL PHELPS (Sunday, July 30 at 8 p.m. ET). Chris Noth (SEX AND THE CITY; THE GOOD WIFE) also joins the SHARK WEEK action and finds out there’s more to New York than Carrie Bradshaw as he narrates SHARKS AND THE CITY: NEW YORK (Tuesday, July 25 at 10 p.m. ET). But first, DAILY PLANET kicks off the toothy primetime schedule at 7 p.m. ET from Monday, July 24 through Friday, July 28, as co-hosts Ziya Tong and Dan Riskin anchor five consecutive nights of Canada’s SHARK WEEK on DAILY PLANET. From the first attempt at spotting Great White sharks from a robotic plane to fearless divers who get up-close-and-personal with the apex predator of the sea, DAILY PLANET captures heart-stopping shark stories with full access to cutting-edge research and visually stunning underwater footage of the world’s biggest, strangest, and most mysterious species of sharks. L-R: DAILY PLANET co-hosts Ziya Tong and Dan Riskin anchor SHARK WEEK, July 24-28 on Discovery; PHELPS VS. SHARK kicks off Discovery’s most anticipated week of the year. Subscribers can access live streaming and catch up on previous collections of SHARK WEEK through the Discovery GO app; plus, beginning Friday, July 14, subscribers can access a collection of nearly 50 SHARK WEEK titles available for streaming on CraveTV. Below are highlights from the SHARK WEEK 2017 lineup, debuting Sunday, July 23. (Note: all programming is subject to change; visit discovery.ca  to confirm local broadcast times): DAILY PLANET Monday, July 24 to Friday, July 28 at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT Co-hosts Ziya Tong and Dan Riskin wade into shark-infested waters to deliver five jaw-dropping hours of devoted shark-programming, exclusively to Canadian viewers. Featuring dozens of original shark science stories and content from the world’s vast oceans, DAILY PLANET explores new discoveries using advanced technology, bringing viewers closer to sharks than ever before to the ocean’s greatest predators. All week long, DAILY PLANET delivers three fascinating mini-series – “Weird Sharks”, “Close Encounters”, and “Like a Shark” – investigating the world’s strangest sharks, capturing awe-inspiring close-ups with the predators, and interpreting how sharks relax, travel, birth, dance, and more. For a complete list of DAILY PLANET’s SHARK WEEK highlights, click here. GREAT WHITE SHARK SERIAL KILLER LIVES Sunday, July 23 at 7 p.m. ET/ 4 p.m. PT Every two years in October, attacks by a great white shark have occurred at the same secluded beach on the central California coastline. Is the same shark returning again and again? And will the attacks continue? Dr. Michael Domeier believes the Surf Beach attacks may be more than a tragic coincidence. With the help of shark experts Ralph Collier and Cal Lutheran, and by using satellite tags and DNA technology, Domeier wants to out the killer once and for all. PHELPS VS. SHARK: GREAT COLD VS. GREAT WHITE Sunday, July 23 at 8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT Sharks are one of the fastest and most efficient predators on the planet. And with 39 world records and 23 Olympic golds, Michael Phelps is the greatest champion to ever get in the water… But he has one competition left to win. In an event so monumental no one has ever attempted it before, the world’s most decorated athlete takes on the ocean’s most efficient predator in PHELPS VS. SHARK. The race is on! GREAT HAMMERHEAD INVASION Sunday, July 23 at 10 p.m.ET/7 p.m. PT In early November, giant hammerheads arrive off Bimini in the Bahamas. Leading shark scientist Tristan Guttridge tags and follows these normally solitary sharks to find out why. Many appear to be pregnant females, and Guttridge believes they spend winters in Bimini to feed the growing young in their bellies before moving on to the Florida coast to prey on migrating blacktip sharks. SHARK VORTEX Monday, July 24 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT Each summer, the Gulf Stream pushes north into the waters of southern New England, bringing with it 30 species of shark. Senior fisheries biologist Greg Skomal and award-winning cinematographer Joe Romeiro study the annual spectacle, focusing on three sharks – makos, great whites, and porbeagles – out-swimming, out-thinking, and out-competing all others. SHARKS AND THE CITY: NEW YORK Tuesday, July 25 at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT For decades, great white shark numbers were in decline in the waters surrounding New York. But now, seals are back in New York Harbor, indicating great whites might not be far behind. Narrated by Chris Noth (SEX AND THE CITY; THE GOOD WIFE), SHARKS AND THE CITY: NEW YORK joins marine biologist Craig O’Connell as he attempts to find out how close the sharks really are, and show what a future with great whites in New York will look like.   SHARK SCHOOL WITH MICHAEL PHELPS Sunday, July 30 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT Michael Phelps returns to close out SHARK WEEK, joining Doc Gruber and Tristan Guttridge of the Bimini Shark Lab to get a crash course on everything “shark.” They’ll dispel myths and common misconceptions, teach Phelps how to safely dive with sharks – including how to stay calm when a hammerhead swims just above his face – and even get Phelps up close and personal with the incredible power of a great white. For a complete list of SHARK WEEK highlights, click here.