Patrik Pacard was the sixth ZDF-Weihnachtsserie, and aired in 1984. The series was broadcast in Germany on ZDF, and consisted of 6 episodes. Broadcasting in Germany began on December 25, 1984. The series was also broadcast in Switzerland, and constisted of 12 episodes. Broadcasting in Switzerland began on December 4, 1984.
An English-language version of this series was shown by the BBC in the United Kingdom in 1992, and repeated in 1995, though with a revised plot to reflect the end of the Cold War. A French-language version of this series was broadcast as well.
The shows titular character and theme song are incorporated in an internet meme on YTMND in relation to an alter-ego of Star Trek's Jean-Luc Picard.
We are being monitored, spied on and bugged. Almost every day there are reports that our data is not safe. Are we too careless or victims of a grand scheme? Is a secret conspiracy of intelligence agencies, military leaders, business leaders and politicians targeting all cell phone and Internet communications of the world's population? Is a tightly woven web of surveillance covering the entire planet outside of law and order? What was a bleak vision of the future in George Orwell's day seems to have been caught up with reality today.
The Volga is a myth, a unique river of superlatives and the natural lifeline of Russia. With a length of more than 3,500 kilometers, it is the most powerful and water-rich river in Europe. Their catchment area is larger than France, Spain and Portugal combined. While all the other great rivers on earth flow into an ocean, the Volga fills its own sea, the largest inland lake on earth, the Caspian Sea. On the way there it flows through rustic forest areas, through wide steppes and dry semi-deserts, each of which is home to a unique wildlife. In three years of filming and on countless expeditions, the Altayfilm team and their Russian colleagues managed to capture the fascinating stream in grandiose pictures and to fully portray it for the first time. Opulent pictures and breathtaking aerial photographs alternate with animal behavior that has rarely been documented before, told with fine humor and a special lightness.