[quote name=\'DrBear\' date=\'Sep 11 2005, 12:25 AM\']Just because somebody should, heres the whole list for perspective: (And where are any of the Gerry Anderson marionette shows?)
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Annotated:
The full list of ITV's 50 Greatest Shows:
1 Coronation Street
Soap on 44 years and counting.
2 Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway
Variety show with some games--the title game allows a contestant to go home with some or all of everything sold in an ITV commercial break, from a can of dog food to A NEW CAR!
3 A Touch of Frost
Detective show. Don't think has ever been on here.
4 Inspector Morse
Mystery seen on PBS' "Mystery!" here.
5 Emmerdale
Soap that's only been on since 1972.
6 I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!
Already been discussed. This was a hit in the UK while "Survivor" bombed.
7 The Bill
Long-running cop show with soap overtones. It's been airing twice a week for many years now.
8 The Muppet Show
You know it.
9 Pop Idol
Change "Pop" to "American"...
10 Spitting Image
Puppets representing various celebrities. U.S. version bombed, "Spitting Image" puppets star in the Genesis video "Land of Confusion."
11 Cold Feet
"Thirtysomething"-ish drama series of 90s. Has aired here on Bravo and BBCA and had unsuccessful American remake on NBC.
12 Cracker
Quirky cop show--aired on A&E here and had unsuccessful American remake on ABC.
13 This Morning
The original UK Regis and Kathie Lee/Kelly show. Currently hosted by Philip Schofield ("Winning Lines") and Fern Britton ("Ready...Steady...Cook!").
14 Footballers' Wives
Prime time soap about soccer players. It's on BBCA now.
15 Minder
70s cop show. Never aired over here.
16 Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?
Think you've heard of that one.
17 The Avengers
Same here.
18 Prime Suspect
Series of detective dramas with Helen Mirren. All have aired on PBS here.
19 The Sweeney
60s and 70s cop show.
20 Tiswas
Anarchic live Saturday morning kids show of early 80s hosted by Chris Tarrant, his first big break.
21 Rising Damp
Beloved 70s sitcom.
22 Stars In Their Eyes
Musical impersonation contest. Famous for "Tonight, Matthew, I'll be..." catch phrase. Two unsuccessful Americanizations ("Your Big Break" with Natalie Cole in syndication and "Appearing As..." with Todd Newton for Fox.)
23 Upstairs Downstairs
Beloved drama series about Victorian family, one of "Masterpiece Theatre"'s greatest moments in the U.S. on PBS.
24 Hillsborough
Not familiar with that one.
25 The Kenny Everett Show
Proto music video show with comedy bits from genuinely zany DJ. Briefly ran in syndication in the U.S. in early 80s.
26 An Audience With...
Series of specials where mostly comedians perform a one-person show for a celeb-packed studio audience. As my sig indicates, Bob Monkhouse was one of the subjects.
27 The Darling Buds of May
Sitcom that introduced Catherine Zeta-Jones and her darling buds of May to the world.
28 The World At War
Distinguished documentary series on World War II. If you brought the idea into ITV today, they'd laugh at you. Has aired many times over here.
29 The Naked Civil Servant
One-shot drama on the life of author Quentin Crisp, one of the first programs on either side of the Atlantic to deal with homosexuality. Aired on PBS here, IIRC.
30 The Prisoner
Classic SF/fantasy series from 1967 starring Patrick McGoohan.
31 7 Up
Every seven years, Michael Apted has chronicled the lives of seven people for decades, starting at age 7 and going on from there ("14 Up, "21 Up," etc.) The films have been released theatrically over here.
32 World In Action
Long-running newsmagazine series, replaced by "Tonight with Trevor MacDonald," where the doc on Maj. Charles Ingram had its original UK airing.
33 The Benny Hill Show
Think you've heard of this. "SOTC" host Nicholas Parsons was one of Benny's straight men.
34 Brideshead Revisited
Distinguished 1981 mini-series based on Evelyn Waugh's book. Aired on "Masterpiece Theatre" here.
35 Blind Date
We call it "The Dating Game." Hosted by Cilla Black.
36 Jimmys
Not familiar with it.
37 Sunday Night at the Palladium
The Sullivan show of the UK. Hosted by Bruce Forsyth, among others and featured a "Beat the Clock" segment where Brucie cut his teeth on game shows. Didn't he do well?
38 Heartbeat
Medical drama.
39 Survival
Long-running nature series, which has aired here in various guises. Other than "Sale," Anglia's most famous contribution to national ITV.
40 Death On The Rock
Not familiar with it.
41 Ready, Steady, Go!
Seminal pop music series of the 60s. All of the Mods and Rockers seemed to head from Carnaby Street to the Rediffusion studios every Friday evening.
42 The South Bank Show
Long-running arts series with the theme that's the only Andrew Lloyd Webber I really like. Ran on Bravo here in the old days (called here "Bravo Profiles" in the early 90s after "Biography" became a hit for A&E).
43 This Is Your Life
Think you've heard of that one.
44 Candid Camera
Ditto.
45 Tonight With Trevor McDonald
See "World in Action" above.
46 The Jewel In The Crown
Another high-gloss mini-series seen on "Masterpiece Theatre" here.
47 Whicker's World
Travelogue hosted by the very mannered Alan Whicker. See the "Monty Python" sketch.
48 Opportunity Knocks
Talent show that moved from Radio Luxembourg and ran for eons. Hosted by the unctuous Hughie "And I Mean That Most Sincerely, Folks" Green.
49 It'll Be Alright On The Night
Blooper show. Has deal with Dick Clark's people to share material and vice versa.
50 Family Fortunes
We call it the "Feud."
That's it.
