The Permian Extinction: When Life Nearly Died
The Ancients18 Sep 2025

The Permian Extinction: When Life Nearly Died

It was the biggest mass extinction event in Earth’s history. 250 million years ago, a 252 million years ago, Earth faced its deadliest crisis. 97% of all life was wiped out in the Permian Extinction – a cataclysm so severe it’s known as The Great Dying.


In this episode of The Ancients, the fourth and final part of our Great Disasters miniseries, Tristan Hughes is joined by Professor Michael Benton to uncover the full story of this mass extinction. From the rich and bizarre world of Permian creatures to the apocalyptic events that triggered their downfall, discover how just 3% of life clung on and how their survival paved the way for the rise of the dinosaurs.


MORE

Rise of the Dinosaurs

Origins of Life of Earth


Presented by Tristan Hughes. Audio editor is Aidan Lonergan and the producer is Joseph Knight. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.

All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds

The Ancients is a History Hit podcast.


Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.


You can take part in our listener survey here:

https://insights.historyhit.com/history-hit-podcast-always-on

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episoder(593)

The Roman Forum

The Roman Forum

Another one from the History Hit archive! The Roman Forum, also known by its Latin name Forum Romanum (Italian: Foro Romano), is a rectangular forum (plaza) surrounded by the ruins of several importan...

11 Sep 202025min

The Vestal Virgins

The Vestal Virgins

Priestesses of Vesta, Goddess of hearth, home and family, the College of Vestal Virgins were Rome’s only full-time priesthood. They numbered only six and were selected from noble Roman families at an ...

6 Sep 202046min

Pax Romana

Pax Romana

Time for a delve into the History Hit ancient history archives! In this podcast Dan Snow sits down with the brilliant Adrian Goldsworthy to ask the big questions surrounding the success of Imperial Ro...

4 Sep 202042min

Kingdom of Kush

Kingdom of Kush

Along the banks of the River Nile, directly south of ancient Egypt and hundreds of miles away from the Mediterranean, there was a flourishing kingdom. The Kingdom of Kush. The Egyptians, Assyrians, Pe...

28 Aug 202046min

Battle of Artemisium

Battle of Artemisium

Around this time 2,499 years ago the famous Battle of Thermopylae was raging. But it is important to remember that this clash was not happening on its own. At the same time, to the east of Leonidas' d...

23 Aug 202052min

Battle of Thermopylae

Battle of Thermopylae

2,499 years ago the Persian 'Great King' Xerxes launched history's largest amphibious invasion of Europe before D-Day. Accompanied by a huge army and navy he crossed the Hellespont (modern day Dardane...

20 Aug 202058min

War Elephants

War Elephants

Move over Hannibal. More over Carthage. This podcast is all about a much BIGGER elephant power in antiquity. A power that, at its height, stretched from modern day Bulgaria to the Hindu Kush: the Sele...

16 Aug 202052min

'Killing for the Roman Republic'

'Killing for the Roman Republic'

In 281/280 BC, the Hellenistic King Pyrrhus ventured to southern Italy to aid the Italiote-Greek city of Tarentum against a rising power based in central Italy. This enemy was the Romans. Over the nex...

13 Aug 202059min

Populært innen Historie

rss-dette-ma-aldri-skje-igjen
historier-som-endret-verden
rss-benadet
henrettelsespodden
historier-som-endret-norge
rss-nadelose-nordmenn-gestapo
aftenposten-historie
rss-gamle-greier
rss-frontkjemperne
sektledere
rss-historiske-romanser
historiepodden
historiepodden-ww2
rss-historiepodden-ww2
rss-strid-de-norske-borgerkrigene
sannhet-eller-konspirasjon
med-egne-oyne
undersattene
taakeprat
gangsterpodden-2