Horizon (S37E11): The Ape That Took Over the World Summary

The Ape That Took Over the World Summary

In 2001, scientists announced an amazing discovery: the oldest skull of a human ancestor ever found. The 3? million year old fossil was remarkably complete, and unlike any previous fossil find. Its discovery - by a team led by Meave Leakey of the famous Leakey fossil-hunting family - has revolutionized our understanding of how humans evolved. The great mystery of our evolution is how an ape could have evolved into the extraordinary creature that is a human being. There has never been another animal like us on the planet. And yet ten million years ago there was no sign that humans would take over the world. Instead the Earth was dominated by the apes. More than 50 different species of ape roamed the world - ten million years ago Earth really was the planet of the apes. Three million years later, most had vanished. In their place came something clearly related to the apes, but also completely different: human beings!

Episode Viewers and Ratings

Season 37 Episode 11 of Horizon resulted in a 0.00 rating in the 18-49 demographic.

Horizon Season 37 Episodes...

Horizon Show Summary

Horizon is BBC Two's flagship 50-minute science documentary series.

Recognised as the world leader in its field, it regularly wins a sweep of international science, medical and environmental film accolades, and has recently won the Royal Television Society Award and the Prix Italia.

In 2002, the British Academy of Film & Television Arts presented Horizon with the BAFTA Television Award for Best Factual Series or Strand.

In 2003 it won the prestigious Images et Science award for best medical documentary and the Carl von Linne Award at the Living Europe film festival in Sweden. That year, a Horizon co-production with WGBH Boston won the Emmy for best documentary.

In September 2014 it celebrated its 50th anniversary and it continues to enjoy outstanding critical acclaim.