This article is part of the author's current research into science teachers' perspectives on the theory of evolution and its teaching in the classroom. Anti-evolutionary views have recently become very prominent in the context of science education, with almost one third of science teachers in the United Kingdom agreeing that creationism should be taught alongside evolution in the science classroom. However, these are not new views. Indeed, they have been around since the publication of Charles Darwin's "Origin of Species" in 1859. The article focuses on the main anti-evolutionary movements which arose in the 20th century such as the ideas leading to the Scopes Trial, Flood Geology and Neo-creationism. It analyses the reasons for the emergence of these movements with the aim of understanding the conditions which motivate the development of fundamentalist religious ideas. Conclusions are drawn about why this debate still persists today and about the impact this has had on science education. One might ask: "Why are the polar ends of the spectrum so prominent in the public arena?"