There is no better measure of the success of a television series than looking at how many seasons it has lasted. Well, today we have to present the ones that have lasted the longest.
Although the boom in television shows has been hitting hard for several years, the truth is that throughout the history of television there have been many TV shows. Some was the success in their time and they lasted for quite a long time.
Some are even still on the air today! Because of this, we wanted to make a list of some of the longest TV shows in history.
What we did not count?
For this list we decided to omit those television programs, such as reality shows, contests or night talks such as Saturday Night Live, which despite having 1000 episodes, are not considered in this category.
We also did not include children’s productions such as Sesame Street nor Sazae-San from Japan, which despite having been on the air for more than half a century, have modified their original narrative, characters and concepts.
Days of Our Lives
Ted and Betty Corday, its creators, were encouraged to produce a series that revolves around the Horton family (Brady Black, DiMera and the Kiriakis).
All families must overcome different tragedies and defeats, as well as triumphs and joys.
Among the most relevant stories are the revelation of the true father of Mickey Horton, one of its protagonists; the different love triangles between the young people of the families and even the marriage of Linda, one of the most loved actresses in the series.
Popularity is so great in the United States that Hollywood pay more than 100 tributes in film and television. One of them is in Friends, where Joey must play doctor Dr. Drake Ramoray, evoking the character of the show, Tom Horton. In The Simpsons, there are also various tributes to the plot with the McBain action movies, where the characters in the show are mentioned.
Most of its main characters are still alive and actively participating. There are currently more than 14,000 episodes from 55 seasons, making it one of the longest running show in history.
General Hospital
The show created by Frank and Doris Hursley in 1963 tells the story of internists on the seventh floor of the fictional city of Port Charles General Hospital.
There, the producers had the luxury of exploring all kinds of situations, from the romantic relationships of the doctors, to the misfortunes of the patients.
General Hospital has managed to survive the passage of time with this narrative arc that accumulates 15,000 episodes and stellar performances by James Franco, Elizabeth Taylor and Roseanne Barr, among others.
In addition to being one of the longest series in the world, it has 13 Emmy Awards.
Coronation Street
With 7 million viewers per episode, Coronation Street stands as one of the UK and Europe’s favorite series. You can also watch via satellite from any part of the world. Read more about satellites here.
Story tells about inhabitants of Weatherfield, a fictional city where industries dominate the landscape and most of its inhabitants are blue-collar workers.
With dark humor and strong characters, the 60-season TV soap, created by British production company Granada Production, portrays the lower middle class in the most realistic way possible.
In fact, the video I Want to Break Free, by the British band Queen, in which Freddie Mercury appears dressed as a woman, is a tribute to Bet Lynch, one of the characters in the series, who plays a housewife and always expressed that he wanted to get rid of that life.
Power Rangers
The Power Rangers are perhaps one of the only franchises in the world that can compete equally with Disney. In addition to having the most colorful superheroes on television, its formula is timeless and equally striking for children and young people.
Since its first broadcast in 1993, it has managed to entertain with its fights, explosions and somersaults in the air. Characteristic combination of the characters inspired by the Japanese series Super Sentai.
Its producer, Haim Saban, assured the Hollywood Reporter that the phenomenon of the rangers will continue forever, since there is a group of Power Rangers for each generation.
Doctor Who
This British science fiction television series produced by the BBC is listed on Guinness World Records as the longest science fiction television series in the world.
However, Doctor Who is really a series divided into two stages, the classic series between 1963 and 1989, with 26 seasons; and the current version that started in 2005 and is still in broadcast.
Doctor Who narrates the adventures of a time Lord named ‘the Doctor’, who explores the universe in his Tardis ship, where he travels through time.
In his travels, ‘the Doctor’ saves civilizations and fights against the injustices of the universe. Jodie Whittaker is the thirteenth protagonist since 2024.
The Simpsons
Broadcast in several countries, this satire of American life has won numerous awards, including 25 Emmy Awards, 24 Annie Awards (for Best of Animation) and a Peabody Award, and was even rated by Time magazine as the best show of the twentieth century.
Although the critics would like to end the series with a worthy ending and have finished it several seasons ago, its creator Matt Groening, in the company of Fox Production, considers that there is still Simpson for a while, as they want to make specials with other world-class animated programs such as Rick and Morty.
Today, this show is still relevant and according to tv-aerials-uk.co.uk, you should update your TV set to fully enjoy one of America’s most beloved families.
Lassie
Who would have thought that the adventures of a collie would give to become one of the longest series in the world? The adventures of Lassie and a curious boy have given their fans 19 seasons since 1954.t
Lassie’s kindness, intelligence, and fidelity in saving her owner and dealing with her adversities inspired the entire world to make movies about dogs, other television series like Inspector Rex.
Law and Order
20 seasons were enough for this American series to become one of the most important police TV shows in the world.
Produced and broadcast by the NBC television network, it was completed in 2010 due to a dramatic drop in its rating.
Conclusion
If you start watching them now, until you’re all done, you will be old, certainly.
