The BBC has acquired the rights to cult Japanese anime One Piece in a deal covering more than 1,000 episodes.
The show - based on Eiichiro Oda's manga, which has sold a record 500 million copies - follows a gang known as the Straw Hat Crew on their quest to find a mythical treasure known as the One Piece.
On air since 1999 in Japan, One Piece has run for 21 seasons to date and the BBC's deal will see English dubbed versions of the entire franchise made available on iPlayer over the next few months.
"It's a really exciting move to bring the One Piece franchise to UK audiences in the coming months," said Fiona Campbell, the BBC's controller of youth audiences.
"With its captivating storytelling, rich characters and global fanbase, One Piece has become a cultural phenomenon and we're so excited to see how the fanbase will enjoy this huge canon of episodes available in English only on iPlayer."
The release begins this Sunday, September 1 with the first three sagas - 'East Blue', Alabasta' and 'Sky Island - Skypiea' - dropping on iPlayer, with the remainder being gradually added by the end of the year.
Neil Wilkes
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