And now for something completely different: Monty Python's Flying Circus was simply the most influential comedy program television has ever seen. Five Englishmen, all working under the constraints of conventional TV shows such as The Frost Report (for which the five Englishmen wrote), gathered together with an expatriate American in the spring of 1969 to break the rules. The result, first airing on BBC-1 on October 5, 1969, has influenced countless future men and women in the media and comedy since.
| Season | From | To | Episodes |
|---|---|---|---|
| All Seasons | |||
| Specials | April 1971 | September 2019 | 67 |
| Season 1 | October 1969 | January 1970 | 13 |
| Season 2 | September 1970 | December 1970 | 13 |
| Season 3 | October 1972 | January 1973 | 13 |
| Season 4 | October 1974 | December 1974 | 6 |
| Unassigned Episodes | 16 |
| Season | From | To | Episodes |
|---|---|---|---|
| All Seasons | |||
| Specials | 0 | ||
| Season 1 | October 1969 | November 1969 | 6 |
| Unassigned Episodes | 122 |
| Season | From | To | Episodes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | October 1969 | December 1974 | 45 |
| Unassigned Episodes | 83 |
| Name | Number of Episodes | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Terry Jones | 55 | 10/05/1969 - 10/05/1999 | |
| Terry Gilliam | 52 | 10/12/1969 - 10/05/1999 | |
| Ian MacNaughton | 47 | 10/05/1969 - 10/05/1989 | |
| John Howard Davies | 4 | 10/05/1969 - 10/26/1969 | |
| Roger Graef | 1 | 11/13/2014 | |
| Tony Bilbow | 1 | 12/19/1974 | |
| Jon Riley | 1 | 01/01/2007 | |
| Aubrey Powell | 1 | 03/25/2010 | |
| Terry Hughes | 1 | 06/25/1982 | |
| Elaine Shepherd | 1 | 10/05/1999 | |
| Owen Harris | 1 | 10/19/2011 | |
| Bill Jones | 1 | 10/03/2009 | |
| Ben Timlett | 1 | 10/03/2009 | |
| Alan G. Parker | 1 | 10/03/2009 |
| Name | Number of Episodes | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Graham Chapman | 52 | 10/05/1969 - 11/02/2012 | |
| Eric Idle | 51 | 10/05/1969 - 03/25/2010 | |
| Michael Palin | 51 | 10/05/1969 - 10/05/1999 | |
| John Cleese | 48 | 10/05/1969 - 10/05/1999 | |
| Neil Innes | 3 | 10/31/1974 - 12/05/1974 | |
| Douglas Adams | 2 | 12/05/1974 | |
| Charles Alverson | 1 | 04/15/1977 | |
| David Sherlock | 1 | 11/02/2012 | |
| John Du Prez | 1 | 03/25/2010 | |
| Tim Brooke-Taylor | 1 | 06/25/1982 | |
| Tony Roche | 1 | 10/19/2011 |
No artwork of this type.
No artwork of this type.
No artwork of this type.
The best shows are the ones that take advantage of the length that movies don't have and use the imagery that novels can't conjure. They can captivate big audiences and change their lives forever.
The “TV 101” list honors classic, trailblazing series and miniseries, as well as current and critically acclaimed programs, from comedies and dramas to variety/talk and children’s programming. At their core, all of these wonderful series began with the words of the writers who created them and were sustained by the writers who joined their staffs or worked on individual episodes. “This list is not only a tribute to great TV, it is a dedication to all writers who devote their hearts and minds to advancing their craft.
We are what we watch-and over the last half century, we've watched some pretty fabulous TV. From Mary to Jerry, from Tonight to Today, from the sublime (Prime Suspect) to the ridiculous (Gilligan's Island), EW recalls everything you need to know about 100 shows that tell us who we are.
A ranking of the most game-changing, side-splitting, tear-jerking, mind-blowing, world-building, genre-busting programs in television history, from the medium’s inception in the early 20th century through the ever-metastasizing era of Peak TV BY ALAN SEPINWALL
From iconic British sitcoms to epic American sagas, inventive animations and daring anthologies, these are the shows worth getting lost in, that have proved instrumental in evolving a storytelling form that continues to offer deeper and more complex narratives
What's the best TV show of all time? Who knows? This poll is strictly about favorite shows, the programs people in Hollywood hold nearest to their hearts — that remind them of better times or speak to their inner child or inspire their creativity or just help them unwind after a crappy day at the studio — even if one or two of the programs listed here aren't exactly masterpieces of the medium.
From time-capsule sitcoms to cutting-edge Peak-TV dramas — the definitive ranking of the game-changing small-screen classics
IGN and some of our friends have decided the best in the world of TV.
So many golden ages, so much brilliance from which to choose. In culling from the "60 Greatest" lists we've compiled during our 60th-anniversary year, we shook things up, blending drama, comedy and other genres to salute the shows with the biggest cultural impact and most enduring influence. What will the next 60 years bring? We can't wait to find out.
The BFI TV 100 is a list of 100 television programmes or series that was compiled in 2000 by the British Film Institute (BFI), as chosen by a poll of industry professionals, with the aim to determine the best British television programmes of any genre that had been screened up to that time.
From a pioneering variety show from the black-and-white days to two faves on now -- see our No. 1. To see EW's picks of the top 100 all-time greatest TV shows
No lists.
Please log in to view notes.
