Greatest TV Shows Ever

We have a thread for current tv here's one for TV favourites. Whats your all time fav shows-it can be anything at all.

I'll kick us off with Twin Peaks, a favourite of mine, groundbreaking in so many ways. Ostensibly the story of a murder. Laura Palmer, High School Prom Queen washes up dead on the beach, the victim of a brutal death. FBI Agent Dale Cooper is sent to investigate and teams up with the local Sherriff.
But thats just to scrape the surface. As you would expect from drecor David Lynch it is about much more. No other TV show since has had so broad a canvas, or been so unafraid to go to dark, strange places. Mixing several genres, surreal and often powerful in a way conventional tv cannot ever be and wih a beautiful hauning soundtrack this is my idea of TV gold.

Clip 1; Tragedy- Laura Palmers parents receive the news of her murder.



Clip 2: Tradgy/comedy -Laura's father begins to crack up following her death.



Clip 3: Comedy: Albert, forensic expert lacking in any social niceties, pushes the Sheriff to far, provoking this brilliant little speech.



Clip 4: Dreamy. Twin Peaks had a lot of sexual undercurrents, but everyone kept their clothes on.



Clip 5 : Surreal. Welcome to the Lodge. I am making no attempt to speculate on this as it would make for a huge post!

I've seen a couple of Twin Peaks episodes, absurd it was. Scariest intro music I've ever heard, too That dream scene is a good example of the absurdity and creepiness of the show

My favourite's got to be The Sopranos. Not quite your style perhaps, Petty, but the writing is superb One of my favourite scenes

Another classic from Paulie

You are right Ringdroteen Sopranos is not realy my thing- but no denying the quality of the writing or the perfomances.

This was responsible for making my childhood a lot more terrifying that it needed to be!
Skip to 5.40 to get to the meat of it. An odd mix of documentary and drama when such a thing was rare, it had a huge impact at the time it was broadcast and gave me many sleepless nights, lying in the dark listening to the US nuclear sub base parked in the loch outside wondering if I and everyone I knew was going to be incinerated at any moment.

Threads

I think I saw a bit of that on one of Charlie Brooker's show, I think it looks pretty disturbing, imagine what a child would have thought of it!

Yeah it did make one of Brookers shows but can't remember what the context was. Gave me many a sleepless night.

Fortunetly I had stuff like this to help; Blake's 7. A BBC scifi that had all the hallmarks of being so- wobbly sets, rubbish effects and no money for anything. I remember on the kids show Blue Peter they showe you how to make a Blakes 7 wrist cimmunicator out of a empty plastic juice bottle- turned out they werent showing you how to make a copy, but that the actual ones- thats how the BBC had made them!
However it was brilliantly written. I will allow wiki to sum up the basic set up:

'Set in the "third century of the second calendar",Blake's 7 follows the exploits of revolutionary Roj Blake as he leads his band of rebels against the forces of the totalitarian Terran Federation which rules the Earth and many of the planets of the galaxy. The Federation controls its citizens using mass surveillance, brainwashing and pacification with drugged food, water and air. Sentenced to deportation to a penal colony on a remote planet, Blake escapes with the help of his fellow prisoners and gains control of the Liberator, an alien spacecraft far in advance of anything the Federation possesses. The craft has superior speed and weaponry and a teleport system that allows crew members to be transported to the surface of a planet without having to land the ship. Blake and his crew then attempt to disrupt and damage the Federation.
While Blake is an idealistic freedom fighter, his associates are petty crooks, smugglers and killers. Notably, Kerr Avon is a technical genius more interested in self-preservation and seeking personal wealth than engaging in rebellion. When Blake is separated from his crew, Avon takes over, confirming the inherent duality in his personality and the loyalty he had for Blake's vision. However, Avon remains a target for Federation forces.
Although many of the tropes of space opera such as spaceships, robots, galactic empires and aliens are present, the series is primarily noted for its strong character interaction, ambiguous morality and pessimistic tone.'

The following contains major spoilers if you ever plan on watching.

Thinking about it, I think it was his newest show- How TV ruined your life. Didn't catch all of it, but of what I did see it was great!
Never really heard of blakes 7 before, maybe I'll get it on dvd one day, after I finish watching the boxset of A Bit Of Fry And Laurie!

Fry and Laurie- good choice- if you havent already I recommend their version of Jeeves and Wooster too.

Yes, Minister. Yes, Prime Minister. The Darling Buds of May.

odo banks wrote:Yes, Minister. Yes, Prime Minister.

I've been slowly working my way through those shows when I have the time ever since Petty introduced me to them. I don't think I've ever laughed that hard at a TV show; I love the political satire.

"Get Smart" though I've seen it FAR TOO MANY TIMES by now. "Everybody loves Raymond" was good too - which surprised me at first. I thought initially, judging by the promos, it would be your typical glib American sitcom. It was far better than that I found:-Jane

Robin of Sherwood- the definitive version of the Robin Hood story, great cast, brilliant writing, paganism clashing with Christianity and Clannad on soundtrack.



And if you don't plan on watching then this is the final scene of series 2- my first big shocking, emotional, I don't *#*!*# believe they just did that moment as a viewer. This was a big day for me in my viewing youth.
Huge almighty spoiler if you plan on watching series- you have been warned!!

When were these made? I don't think I know this series:-Jane

1980's Jane. They are generally regarded as being in two parts- the first two series concerning Robin of Locksley- and the final series concerning Robert of Huntingdon.
All three series are well written with excellent charcaters but Jason Connery as Robert is particularly poor in the acting stakes, for that reason the first two series are generally considered the best (although one of the fav episodes is a Connery one, but its becasue it concerns Will Scarletts character I like it-a young Ray Winstone).

Just to celebrate Mr Winstones perfomace heres Clannads song for Will Scarlett and the man himself. (My fav charcater now, 2nd fav when I was a kid behind Nasir who fought with two swords and hardly ever spoke- the height of cool when your 14).

Monkey!

Buddishm in a kids Tv show. Madness, rudeness, satire, philosphy, fights and the funkiest 70 soundtrack ever- its Monkey magic don't you know?

Classic, never get tired of watching this show. Got them all on DVD.



Mr Brown is off to town and he aint 21
Is acctually
Mr Brown is off to town on the 8-21.
I didnt no that.

My favourite scene, but i cant find it in English.

That toughest of sells- a sitcom in a prison Yet this made classic TV- if you have no idea who Ronnie Barker is here is as good an introduction as any to one of Britains all time great comedy actors in Porridge.

Love Porridge, one of my favourites. Also nice with plenty of sugar.

Sugar!! Sugar!! Heathen! Salt my friend, made with nothing but salt and water and with a dash of cold milk on top- thats porridge!

I don't watch much TV so am not familiar with some of these shows, but of the ones mentioned that I have seen, thought 'Yes Mininster' was very funny and tried to catch all the Robin of Sherwood episodes, which were an intriguing take on medieval politics. I was also into Doctor Who for a while, but only made it to number 7.

Yes, Minister is still rpbably the best modern comedy I have seen- its not just its funny, itsnot just its damn clever without being smug or superiour about it- its that its all those things and its about civil servants and politicians and quaotas, and inter-departmental meetings- it should be dull and awful- the fact its completely the opposite is its greatest triumph.

I love Robin of Sherwood- even after the first Robin left and Jason Connery took over the role and proved he hadn't bothered learning any acting the scripts still held up to carry it.

I'd recommend Porridge too, great sitcom, simply superb central performances.
Add Blackadder to that list to- I'd recomend any era Blackadder (although series 1 is the hardest to get into probably-they pretty much rewrote everything for series 2) but if you only have time to watch one series make it Black Adder Goes Forth (the 4th series and final series), the 2nd is the funniest, the 3rd runs a close second with Hugh Lauries brilliantly dim Prince but the forth is the best mix of comedy and tragedy of them all. And it has General Melchard (Baaaaaaahhhhh!)



As to Doctor WHo- the greatest TV show ever- simple one that- I would recommend giving it a go again from the start of either Ecclestons run or Tennants or Smiths- any are feasable starting points.

oh do try the ninth Doctor Chris Eccleston Turembar, its great stuff. and Black Adder goes forth.

First episode of series 2- the Elizabethan era.



The first episode of series 4 -the WW1 era Blackadder.



British Comedy Gold. Nobody can turn a phrase quite like Rowan Atkinson. And the supporting cast Stephen Fry, Tim McInnerny, Tony Robinson, Miranda Richardson, Hugh Laurie are all outstanding perfomers in their own right.

Nobody has plans quite as cunning as Baldrick.