This is a list of the longest-running television shows by category. The criterion for being the longest-running show is by the number of years the show has been on the air and not the number of episodes produced.
The Brazilian show Programa Silvio Santos is the longest-running television show of all time hosted by the same person.
Years | Category | Show name | Country | Duration | Channel/network | Episodes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
80 | Outside broadcast | Lord Mayor's Show | United Kingdom | 1937–1938, 1946–present (not broadcast during WW2 1939–1945) [1] | BBC Television Service, BBC One | |
80 | Outside broadcast | Remembrance Sunday: The Cenotaph | United Kingdom | 1937–1938, 1946–present (not broadcast during WW2 1939–1945) | BBC Television Service, BBC One | |
77 | Sports outside broadcast | The Championships, Wimbledon [2] | United Kingdom | 1937, [3] 1939, 1946–2019, 2021–present (not played during World War II, nor in 2020 due to COVID-19 concerns) | BBC Television Service, BBC One/Two | |
75 | News show | Meet the Press | United States | 1947–present | NBC | 4,946+ |
73 | Newscast | CBS Evening News | United States | 1948–present | CBS | 16,400+ |
73 | Religious program | Le Jour du Seigneur | France | 1949–present | TF1 (1949–87) France 2 (since 1987) | |
70 | Sports show | Hockey Night in Canada | Canada | 1952–present | CBC, City/Sportsnet, CTV | |
68 | Sports magazine show | La Domenica Sportiva | Italy | 1953–present | RAI | 3318 (as of 10 May 2020 [update] ) |
Music talent show | NHK Nodo Jiman | Japan | 1953–present | NHK | 2,900 (as of 2012 [update] ) | |
Current affairs series | Panorama | United Kingdom | 1953–present | BBC One | ||
67 | Talk show | The Tonight Show | United States | 1954–present | NBC | |
66 | Song contest | Sanremo Music Festival | Italy | 1951–present | RAI (radio broadcast since 1951, TV broadcast since 1955) | |
Annual live international beauty pageant | Miss Universe | United States | 1955–present | CBS, NBC, FOX | 72 | |
Annual live national beauty pageant | Miss America | United States | 1955–present | ABC, NBC, CBS | 96 (102) | |
67 | Song contest | Eurovision Song Contest | Various participating countries | 1956–2019,2021-present | European Broadcasting Union | The most recent contest (2023) is hosted in Liverpool, United Kingdom, on behalf of Ukraine. |
65 | Science show | The Sky at Night | United Kingdom | 1957–present | BBC One, BBC Four | 804 (as of September 2020 [update] ) |
News show | Telediario | Spain | 1957–present | TVE | ||
Children's show | Blue Peter | United Kingdom | 1958–present | BBC One, CBBC | 5,000 (as of 1 February 2018 [update] ) | |
63 | Historical drama | Zenigata Heiji | Japan | 1958–2006 | various | |
Agriculture information | Plodovi zemlje | Croatia | 1958–present | HRT 1 | 1900 (as of 14 March 2017) | |
62 | Animated | Sandmännchen | Germany | 1959–present | Deutscher Fernsehfunk, Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg | 22,200 |
News show | Telejornal | Portugal | 1959–present | RTP 1 | ||
Soap opera | Coronation Street | United Kingdom | 1960–present | ITV | 10000+ | |
60 | Comedy | KVN | Soviet Union (1961-1991) Russia (1991-present) | 1961–present | Channel One Russia, KVN TV | |
TV feedback show | Points of View | United Kingdom | 1961–present | BBC One, BBC Two | ||
Quiz show | It's Academic | United States | 1961–present [4] | |||
60 | Song contest | Festivali i Këngës | Albania | 1962–present | RTSH | |
60 | Medicine talk show | Trupi dhe Shëndeti | Albania | 1962–present | RTSH | 1000+ |
60 | Science fiction | Doctor Who | United Kingdom | 1963–1989, 1996, [5] 2005–present | BBC One | 875 (as of 25 December 2023) |
59 | Children's program | Good night, kids | Soviet Union (1964-1991) Russia (1991-present) | 1964–present | Вторая программа ЦТ (1964—1976;1981—1991) Четвёртая программа ЦТ (1976—1981) [6] 1-й канал Останкино (1992—1995) ОРТ (1995—2001) Культура/Россия-Культура (2001—2002, с 2014 года) РТР/Россия/Россия-1 (2002—2015) Карусель (с 2010 года) | 4994 |
58 | Variety show | Programa Silvio Santos | Brazil | 1963–present | SBT | 3000+ |
59 | Music chart show | Top of the Pops | United Kingdom | 1964–2006; Christmas shows only 2006–present | BBC One, BBC Two | 2,219 |
Documentary | Four Corners | Australia | 1961–present | Australian Broadcasting Corporation | ||
56 | Game show | Des chiffres et des lettres | France | 1965–present | France 2 (1965-2006) France 3 (since 2006) | 20,000 (as of October 2012 [update] ) |
56 | Children's show (preschool) | Play School | Australia | 1966–present | Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) | 4,500+ |
56 | Comedy special | Áramótaskaupið | Iceland | 1966–present | Ríkisútvarpið | 56 |
55 | Variety show | Súper Sábado Sensacional | Venezuela | 1968–present | RCTV (1968–1972), Venevisión (1972–present) | 2,800+ |
53 | Anime for kids | Sazae-san | Japan | 1969–present | Fuji Television | 7000+ [7] |
Kids Educational | Sesame Street | United States | 1969-present | NET (1969-1970), PBS (1970-), HBO (2016-2020), HBO Max (2020-) | 4000+ | |
52 | Police procedural | Tatort | Germany | 1970–present | Das Erste | 1,136 (as of 6 September 2020 [update] ) [8] |
51 | Sketch comedy show | Radio Rochela | Venezuela | 1959–2010 | RCTV | 2652 |
49 | Charity show | The Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon | United States | 1966–2014 | Various | 48 |
Sports variety | Grandstand | United Kingdom | 1958–2007 | BBC One, BBC Two | 3500 | |
47 | Film review | Film | United Kingdom | 1971–2018 | BBC One | |
45 | Political satire | Extra 3 | Germany | 1976–present | Das Erste | |
Automotive | Top Gear ( relaunched in 2002) | United Kingdom | 1976–2001, 2002-2023 | BBC Two, BBC One | ||
44 | Variety show | Eat Bulaga | Philippines | 1979-present | RPN 9, ABS-CBN, GMA Network, TV5 | 13,000+ |
38 | Glove puppetry show | Pili | Taiwan | 1984–present [9] | Pili TV | 2,000+ |
37 | Sitcom | Last of the Summer Wine | United Kingdom | 1973–2010 | BBC One | 295 |
35 | Music video show | Rage | Australia | 1987–present | Australian Broadcasting Corporation | |
34 | Comedy drama | Kopi kade | Sri Lanka | 1987–present | ITN | 1,900+ |
34 | Anime for kids | Anpanman | Japan | 1988 - present | Nippon TV | 1,600+ |
33 | Reality show | America's Funniest Home Videos | United States | 1989–present | American Broadcasting Company | |
33 | Adult animation | The Simpsons | United States | 1989–present | Fox Broadcasting Company | 700+ |
28 | Variety Show | Siempre en Domingo | Mexico | 1969-1998 | Televisa | 1,480 |
22 | Historical drama | Cuéntame como pasó | Spain | 2001-2023 | TVE | 422 |
18 | Comedy | Comedy Club | Russia | 2005–present | ТНТ | 738 |
15 | Fantasy | Supernatural | United States | 2005-2020 | The WB | 327 |
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This is a list of British television-related events in 2005.
This is a list of British television-related events from 2003.
This is a list of British television-related events from 1996.
This is a list of British television related events from 1994.
This is a list of British television related events from 1993.
This is a list of British television related events from 1988.
This is a list of British television related events from 1987.
This is a list of British television related events from 1984.
This is a list of British television related events from 1978.
This is a list of British television related events from 1953.
This is a timeline of the history of BBC One.