Your five all-time favourite TV series named

Sex and the City was one of the few shows from recent years to make the top of the list.

The best TV series ever made were, according to readers, in the 1970s and 1980s, with the exception of current Kiwi favourite Outrageous Fortune.

Responding to Herald columnist Ian Bayly, who this week launched a scathing attack on the state of television, we asked readers to name their Top 5 shows of all time.

The results show that humour wins and that Kiwis do prefer a bygone era.

In general, the Kiwi sense of comedy chooses the dry wit of the British over the quick one-liners of the Americans. The Americans do win out on the crime genre and it seems that most Kiwis will choose at least one mystery/crime thriller to feature in their top five, a favourite being the CSI family.

The top three are all British and are at least 20 years old: Fawlty Towers, Only fools and horses and Blackadder.

The dark comedy/drama M*A*S*H comes in just behind those three quirky British series. M*A*S*H is another one from the past; it began in 1972 and finished in 1983. The final episode was watched by about 125 million viewers.

Fifth place is closely tied between more recent hits Sex and the City and Outrages Fortune. Both were or are being shown this decade and both deal with trials and tribulations of the modern world, with dramatic and comedic effect.

There were a few surprise choices. It appears only one person chose New Zealand staple Shortland Street and an unusual choice from another reader was Captian Pugwash.

The often award-nominated Flight of the Conchords was not as high on the list of favourites as it might have been overseas, where it has something of a cult following.

The Top 5:
Fawlty Towers
Only Fools and Horses
Blackadder
M*A*S*H
Sex and the City/Outrageous Fortune

- NZHERALD STAFF