Explore TV Series

Surreal and satirical narratives are assembled entirely out of archive film clips, with new soundtracks provided by voiceover artists.

A Wanted Man is a groundbreaking three‐part British miniseries first shown on BBC2 in September 1989. Directed by Nicholas Renton and written by Malcolm McKay, it evolved from his earlier one‐off play “The Interrogation of John” into a daring trilogy. The series follows the capture, trial, and psychological unravelling of a serial killer, offering an in‐depth exploration of criminal behavior and the ethical dilemmas faced by the justice system. With deliberate pacing, stark realism, and an unflinching look at human darkness, it challenges conventional crime dramas and compels viewers to confront unsettling questions about responsibility, morality, and the nature of evil. Critically acclaimed and award‐winning, A Wanted Man remains essential viewing for anyone seeking a thought‐provoking, intense, and unforgettable drama experience that not only entertains but also forces a deep reflection on the fragility of human nature and the complexities of justice.

Forced to stay with his aunt and uncle for the summer holidays, Tom Long is lonely and bored, until one night he hears the clock strike 13. He suddenly finds himself transported to a magical Victorian garden of the 1880s and meets a girl.

The story of a group of Cambridge students and their lives in the ten years following their graduation.

Fun House is a British children's game show produced by Scottish Television and based on the American show, that aired on CITV from 24 February 1989 to 29 December 1999. It usually aired on Fridays. It was hosted by Pat Sharp, who was also aided by twin cheerleaders, Melanie Grant supporting the red team and Martina Grant supporting the yellow team. The announcer was Gary King. The theme tune was composed by David Pringle and Bob Heatlie.

Lovely and sensitive Maud Ruthyn is sent to stay with her Uncle Silas, a charismatic rogue who stands to inherit the family fortune... should anything untoward happen to young Maud. With the tyrannical Madame De La Rougierre as her governess, Maud finds that the estate holds terrors beyond her imaginings.

The Labours of Erica was a 1989/90 British sitcom starring Brenda Blethyn as self-made businesswoman Erica Parsons. The premise of the show was that Erica found a list she had made as a young girl of everything she wanted to do before turning 18. Realising she hasn't done any of them, she resolves to achieve all her aims before her 40th birthday instead. The series premiered on ITV in the United Kingdom at 8:00pm on Monday 13 March 1989 and ran for two series until the 9 April 1990.

In the future (1999), the UK is subdivided into two regions by barbed wire and border patrols. Northern Britain is cold, bleak and impoverished, while sunny South Britain is a place of relative luxury. When Lord Tewkesbury, the owner of rich conglomerate, decides his son Giles needs more real-life experience, he arranged for Giles to work under an assumed name. Unfortunately, this results in Giles being sent to North Britain to do menial labor, while previously impoverished Gavin is transferred to sunny South Britain.

A harassed secretary at a private golf club steeped in bigotry faces challenges amidst its desperate financial straits. Key events unfold in the club's bar, The Nineteenth Hole. The series was widely condemned as racist, sexist and homophobic. TV producer Paul Stewart Laing, then-controller of programmes for the Plymouth based TSW (Television South West) ITV region, stopped after only three episodes.

Behaving Badly is a 1989 British television serial directed by David Tucker. The teleplay by Catherine Heath and Moira Williams is based on Heath's novel of the same name. It was initially broadcast by Channel 4. The series was released on DVD in 2005. The plot focuses on Bridget Mayor, a middle-aged housewife and part-time teacher who is forced to re-evaluate her life when her husband of twenty years abandons her for a younger woman.

The Best of Magic was a British magic show produced by Thames Television for the ITV network that aired from 13 September 1989 to 19 September 1990. The show was hosted by Geoffrey Durham, Simon Mayo, and Anthea Turner, with frequent guest appearances by Arturo Brachetti and Max Maven.

A retired journalist finds that his life is in danger when he uncovers details of a secret NATO project.

Act of Will is a four-part 1989 British television serial directed by Don Sharp, based on Barbara Taylor Bradford's 1986 novel of the same name. Three beautiful women – grandmother, mother and daughter – struggle bravely through five eventful decades of hidden love, high drama and sudden death. From 1926 to present day, from the Yorkshire Dales to London, Paris and New York, how each woman commits an act of will that changes their life and world.

Dr Robyn Penrose is a lecturer in English at Rummidge University. Vic Wilcox is the Managing Director of Pringle's, an engineering firm in Rummidge. They meet when Robyn is told by her Head of Department to "shadow" Vic as part of Industry Year. They are initially hostile to each other but gradually come to understand each other's point of view. Based on the novel by David Lodge.

It's a British/German cartoon with 51 episodes of 5 minutes. It's about a blue raven called Ric, an optimist who tries things out for fun.

Interceptor is a British game show created by Jacques Antoine, Jean Jacques Pasquier and Malcolm Heyworth. It was produced by Chatsworth in association with Thames and shown on the ITV network during the summer of 1989, with one last episode held back and shown on 1 January 1990 for a New Year special. It was made in between Treasure Hunt and The Crystal Maze, game shows from the same production company. The show was hosted by former tennis player and Treasure Hunt sky-runner Annabel Croft. The eponymous Interceptor was played by actor Sean O'Kane. Interceptor was received well by critics and viewers, yet only eight episodes were made. Nonetheless, the show has something of a cult following, which influenced re-runs on digital TV channel Challenge from 2001 onwards. A public vote by UKGameshows.com in 2002 saw the series voted the UK's 13th best game show.

The Poddington Peas is an animated British children's television series made by Paul Needs and Colin Wyatt; the single series has 13 episodes and was first aired on the BBC in 1989. The theme song describes the peas as being "down at the bottom of the garden". Human size garden objects, giant in size to them, are seen such as up turned flower pots serving as most of their buildings. Humans themselves are never seen or mentioned. In 1992, writer Phil Gardner was employed by Poddington plc to help write some new episodes - including one intended to pilot the series in the USA, and featuring a new group of characters, the Bugz. however these were never published. There were also paper back books by Paul Needs, illustrated by Colin Wyatt and published by Box Tree / Award Publications. The paper back books including new titles will be released with a new AP and merchandise to complement these titles is being prepared for release in 2013.

A secretive terrorist commits crimes to disrupt the peace process between the Irish and the Brits. Both sides want him dead. When he decides to assassinate the Pope and blame it on the U.K., only a musician with a secret past can stop him.

Huxley Pig is a stop-motion animated children's television series from 1989 and 1990. Based on the picture books by Rodney Peppé, the series was produced by FilmFair for Central TV. It was narrated by Martin Jarvis.

All Change was an English children's television show on ITV in 1989 and 1990. It starred Frankie Howerd, Peggy Mount, Maggie Steed, Tony Haygarth and Pam Ferris, and was devised by Morwenna Banks and Chris England. The storyline concerned Uncle Bob, played by Howerd, who would give all his money when he died to one branch of his family. One branch was poor and common, the other branch was rich and snobbish. Each family had two parents and a son and a daughter. The rich family lived as the poor family and vice versa, although one child stayed in their own home with the newcomers, finding out how the other half lived. After the end of the series, it was all revealed as a hoax and no-one was any better off.

A middle-class woman contemplating suicide becomes involved with a suspected killer on the run.

About Face is a series of twelve unconnected half-hour sitcoms all starring Maureen Lipman in the lead role. Each episode featured a guest cast of well known actors and actresses. The episodes were written by Richard Harris, Geoffrey Perkins, Chips Hardy & John Henderson, Astrid Ronning, John Wells, Paul Smith & Terry Kyan, Jack Rosenthal, Carol Bunyan and Ian Hislop & Nick Newman. It was made for the ITV network by Central Independent Television.

David Attenborough presents a series on fossils and palaeontology.

The adventures and misadventures of a motley bunch of police officers working at Middleford Police Station.

A seemingly perfect couple's life unravels when the husband's eccentric mother acts on intense jealousy, seeking revenge through a series of incidents implicating her ex-husband, his new wife, and an old friend, then leading to murder.

The stars of the British laughfest, Alas Smith and Jones [Starring Mel Smith & Griff Rhys Jones] briefly abandoned their traditional sketch-comedy format in favor of brief "book" shows.

Eric, the owner of a night-club in Nottingham, is obsessed by the film Casablanca (1942) and dreams of being Rick Blaine.

That's Showbusiness is a television quiz show with celebrity teams answering questions about the entertainment industry. It aired on Monday nights on BBC1 between 1989 and 1996. It was presented by Mike Smith. The subtitle "with Mike Smith" was added during the later years of broadcast.

Part of the BBC's educational "Look and Read" series, Through The Dragon's Eye tells the story of three children transported to the land of Pelamar by Gorwen the Dragon in order to repair the Veetacore: the "life source" of Pelamar. The children must race to find the missing pieces of the Veetacore and repair it before all life in Pelamar ceases to exist.

British sitcom about a role reversed married couple.

For five days in February 1989 the BBC Railwatch camera team followed British Rail staff in a live to air broadcast on the occasion of the electrification of the Eastern Coast Main Line from London to York.

Split Ends is a British Sitcom which ran for one series on ITV in 1989. It was written by Len Richmond and directed by Alan J. W. Bell. Cath is a beautiful woman in her thirties, who runs a hairdresser's shop. Each episode sees Cath trying to decide if she wants to be with Clint or David. The series also featured Barbara New and Nimmy March in supporting roles.

Clive Anderson mixes comedy and his legal training to conduct a series of irreverent interviews with various guests. Also included is a satirical look at topical events.

Bangers and Mash was a children's cartoon series broadcast on CITV in 1989, and repeated until around 1993. The series consisted of 24 five minute episodes.

Magic and stunts for all the family, hosted by Jeremy Beadle.

Keith Floyd, known for his television programmes and books combining cookery and travel, goes on a gastronomical pilgrimage to explore the cuisine of the United States of America.

Brian Conley: This Way Up was a sketch comedy show starring Brian Conley. It ran from 20 May 1989 to 1 June 1990 on ITV in the United Kingdom. Whilst the show wasn't as popular as its successor, The Brian Conley Show, This Way Up gave one of Conley's most popular characters, Nick Frisbee and Larry the Loafer, their debut. This Way Up ran for two series. The final show ended with Brian saying "See you next year!". Although a third series was never produced in 1991, The Brian Conley Show started the following year. The show led Conley to be named the freshest face on ITV, and he was awarded the "Most Promising Artiste" title at the 1991 Variety Club Awards. During the late 1990s, the show was repeated regularly on satellite channel Granada Plus.

The Ghost of Faffner Hall is a British/American children's television series from The Jim Henson Company and the British ITV company Tyne Tees Television which aired from August 16, 1989 to November 11, 1989 in the UK, and slightly later in the US. The puppets for this show were created by Jim Henson's Creature Shop, and the series was recorded at the Tyne Tees Studios in Newcastle upon Tyne and directed by Tony Kysh, then senior director within that company's children's department.

Two-part documentary celebrating the 75th anniversary of what was once the biggest film production centre outside Hollywood: Elstree.

The Hit Man and Her was a British television dance music show hosted by Pete Waterman and Michaela Strachan. The programme was produced for Granada Television and ran from September 1988 until December 1992.

Series of One-Off dramas produced by various companies for Channel 4.

Grim Tales is an animated British television program based on fairy tales by the Brothers Grimm, featuring Rik Mayall as the storyteller dressed in his pyjamas and dressing gown. The twenty-two episodes were broadcast on ITV from 1989 to 1991,The series is rated TV-14 the released on video and audio cassette, with the slightly different title Grimm Tales.

An eccentric documentarian encounters a naked Martian and decides to show him around London.

Shashi Kapoor presents a history of the Hindi film industry from its roots in 1913 to the 1980s, illustrated with clips and interviews.

Series of four programmes in which writer John Berger and photographer Jean Mohr question the nature and practice of photography. GB. Annalogue, for the BBC. BBC2 tx 07/05/1989 - 28/05/1989

Set in 2050, social journalist James Burke looks back at events of the world from the dawn of civilization and shows how climate change has affected human history. At the point of the Industrial Revolution, humans began to do things to the climate, rather than the other way round. When he brings us up to date (1989), that is when the predictions begin. From Kyoto to the two Gulf Wars, Burke accurately predicts many of the events that have taken place so far. His predictions have been sound, even to the tune of carbon credits and climate change agreements. Using virtual reality computer simulations, Burke traces the Earth's history of ice ages and warming trends and presents several possible scenarios caused by the greenhouse effect during the 1990s to 2050.

Happy Families is a children's television series made in the late 1980s based on the Happy Families series of books by Janet and Allan Ahlberg. Each tale is about a family of characters which in turn is based on the Happy Families card game. The cast played several different characters throughout the series with many recurring roles for the main cast including Milton Johns, Annette Badland and Elizabeth Estensen. Happy Families ran for two series, 24 episodes in all, and was shown on Children's BBC in 1989 and 1990.

Recently divorced Laura Kingsley arrives home after ten years in California to find her beloved Britain much changed.

Eight country-by-country accounts of the origins of the Second World War.

BBC 2 series of comedy pilots.

A BBC series which delves into the world of British military tradition.

1989 two-part documentary following the progress of 29 men who want to become Royal Marine Officers.