50 Best Live Action Sitcoms of All Time

Co-creators Daisy May Cooper, Charlie Cooper, and Paul Chahidi also star in this British documentary-style comedy series. It captures the quirky and occasionally depressing existence of rural life, as experienced by cousins Kerry and Kurtan.

If there’s one cult smash to rule them all, it’s this single-camera series about former MLB pitcher turned middle school teacher Kenny Powers. Doing what he does best, co-creator and star Danny McBride delivers a protagonist who’s equal parts offensive and likeable.

Hoping to snag an affordable apartment, two twenty-something Londoners (Simon Pegg and Jessica Hynes) pose as a romantic couple in this cult series. Director Edgar Wright helmed every episode and later re-teamed with Pegg for a string of iconic comedy films.

One of the most popular sitcoms of all time takes place in the eponymous Boston bar, where everybody knows your name. Touching down on the lives of employees and patrons, it spawned high-profile acting careers and the spin-off “Frasier.” An estimated 93 million viewers tuned in for the series finale.

In the vein of shows like “Friends” and “Seinfeld” came this award-winning British series about the romantic exploits of six close friends. An American version from original creator Steven Moffat was cancelled after just four episodes.

This timely sitcom takes viewers behind the scenes at a fictional big box store by the name of Cloud 9. It opened to mixed reviews before finding its stride, with seasons 2 through 6 earning high marks among critics.

Modern viewers might be surprised to discover that this future film franchise yielded just two seasons during its initial TV run. A satire of suburban life, it tells the story of a macabre but unwittingly hilarious family. Many of the characters are based on a series of New Yorker cartoons by artist Charles Addams.

NYPD Captain Barney Miller (Hal Linden) lies at the heart of this workplace comedy, which gradually became a ratings smash. It takes place in the fictional 12th Precinct, where detectives interact with a rotating door of quirky suspects. In a 2005 op-ed for the New York Times, real-life detective Lucas Miller wrote, “Life really is more like “Barney Miller” than “NYPD Blue,” but our jokes aren’t nearly as funny.”

This coming-of-age sitcom follows young Cory Matthews (Ben Savage) as he learns important lessons about love and life alike. It made up part of ABC’s TGIF line-up and ran for seven seasons. A number of original cast members reprised their roles for the recent spin-off, “Girl Meets World.”

Irrepressible housewife Lucy Ricardo (Lucille Ball) undergoes a series of misadventures in this syndicated stalwart. Winner of numerous awards, it broke viewership records and challenged the standards of its time. Television wouldn’t be the same without it.

What started as a subversive web series became this critically acclaimed sitcom, which offers an eccentric window into urban life. Playing fictionalized versions of themselves, Ilana Glazer and Abbi Jacobson navigate the wild and unpredictable landscape of modern New York City.

Playing the title character, Rowan Atkinson mumbles and mutters his way through this impressively durable British sitcom. It generated 15 original episodes along with an animated spin-off and two theatrical films. Mr. Bean has also appeared in various TV commercials, one-off sketches, and the 2012 Summer Olympics opening ceremony.

Confined to a remote island off the coast of Ireland, three priests and a nosy housekeeper engage in all kinds of ridiculous antics. So goes this outlandish sitcom, which ran for three seasons. “The show maintains a wistful sweetness that keeps its surrealistic gags from becoming too much, while the weird jokes keep that sweetness from becoming too cloying,” wrote Brandon Nowalk for AV Club.

This British mockumentary tells the story of struggling MCs and their friends, who launch a pirate radio station out of West London. A recent film called “People Just Do Nothing: Big in Japan” picked things up three years after the series left off.

After spending three million years in suspended animation, lowly technician Dave Lister (Craig Charles) wakes up aboard the Red Dwarf in this long-running sitcom. It first aired in 1988 and has yielded 12 series (i.e. seasons) to date along with one TV film.

This acclaimed satire peels back the curtain of British politics to reveal petty conflicts between various power players. Creator Armando Iannucci went on to helm the movie spin-off “In the Loop” before creating the similarly-themed HBO series, “Veep.”

Comedy legend Carl Reiner drew loosely from personal experience when creating this timeless classic. It depicts the struggles of TV writer Rob Petrie (Van Dyke), who must contend with assorted conflicts at both work and home. Co-star Mary Tyler Moore — who plays Petrie’s wife — later headlined a seminal sitcom of her own.

This crass but endearing British comedy follows four friends as they come of age during their final years of school. It spawned two follow-up feature films, both of which were a commercial success. A low-rated American version was cancelled after just one season.

Crude and sophomoric perhaps, but this hit sitcom helped pave the way for the modern era of television. It also turned the Fox network into an edgy household name. Behold the Bundy family, who reap constant hilarity out of their proud and perennial dysfunction.

Top-notch performances and brilliant writing turned this unlikely sitcom into a smash hit with multi-generational appeal. Set in Miami, it depicts the hilarious exploits of four elderly roommates. It won 11 Primetime Emmys over the course of seven seasons.

A group of suburban Wisconsinites hang out 1970s-style in this popular sitcom, which launched a number of major acting careers. Despite its somewhat traditional format, the show’s youthful energy and retro backdrop lent it a singular presence. Numerous episodes feature an iconic circle scene, during which marijuana makes for a subtle but recurring motif.

Creator Mackenzie Crook stars alongside Toby Jones in this British comedy, which follows two metal detectorists on their endless search for buried treasure. Filmed in a single-camera style, it won Best Scripted Comedy at the 2015 BAFTA Awards.

Centering on a group of close but competitive friends, this beloved sitcom explores the line between reality and fantasy (football, that is). It premiered on FX and then moved over to FXX for its last three seasons.

Once a regular at the Cheers bar in Boston, Dr. Frasier Crane (Kelsey Grammer) moves back to his hometown of Seattle. His erudite arrogance and working-class empathy calls upon the respective temperaments of his brother and father, and also informs the show’s general tone.

Monty Python alum John Cleese was inspired to co-create this classic sitcom after meeting a rude and eccentric hotel owner in real life. He plays the similarly surly owner of a fictional seaside hotel, where farcical mishaps come in steady supply. On BFI’s list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes, this one took the top spot.

The most popular sitcom of the modern era centers on two brainy roommates (Johnny Galecki, Jim Parsons) and the relatively normal waitress (Kaley Cuoco) who lives across the hall. An aggregated audience of approximately 23.4 million viewers watched the series finale. Its prequel-style spin-off “Young Sheldon” is in the midst of a fifth season.

Creator and star Tina Fey channeled her experiences on “Saturday Night Live” into this single-camera sitcom. Set behind the scenes of a sketch comedy show, it fires more jokes per minute than previously thought possible.

Follow Selina Meyer (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) as she goes up and down the political ladder in this laser-sharp comedy. It ran for seven seasons without losing the slightest semblance of its idiosyncratic momentum. Quick-witted dialogue simply doesn’t get any snappier.

A hunky dory tune sets the stage for this black-and-white sitcom, starring Andy Griffith as small-town Sheriff Andy Taylor. It won six Primetime Emmys and finished its final season at the top of the ratings.

An unseen narrator recalls his youth in this ABC dramedy, starring Fred Savage as young Kevin Arnold. Its famous opening credits scene puts home-movie footage to a classic cover song and immediately establishes a nostalgic vibe.

Films such as “Beetlejuice” and “The Rocky Horror Show” helped inspire the tone and narrative of this clever British sitcom. When not haunting the newest owners of an abandoned country home, a group of ghosts squabble amongst themselves. It was recently adapted into an American series of the same name.

A 16-year-old girl and her best friends come of age against the tumultuous backdrop of early 1990s Ireland. New Statesman critic Anna Leszkiewicz praises the show’s ability to move “between pitch-perfect depictions of teenage female experience, brazen sexual humour, knowing political references and shrewd observations.”

Before the wildly popular NBC sitcom, there came this British mockumentary of the same name. Co-created by and starring Ricky Gervais, it chronicles the daily lives of employees at a fledgling paper company. This is cringeworthy comedy at its best.

Welcome to Sunnyvale Trailer Park in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, where three petty criminals hop from one hairbrained scheme to the next. Their ongoing exploits are the subject of not just this TV mockumentary, but Christmas specials, feature films, and an animated spin-off as well.

Twenty-somethings Mark and Jez put the “odd” in odd couple in this acclaimed British sitcom. It makes clever use of POV shots and internal voice-overs while dispensing with classic dry humor. While never a ratings smash, it earned a loyal cult following over time.

As they navigate the world of modern medicine at a teaching hospital, Dr. J.D. Dorian (Zach Braff) and his fellow rookies occasionally lapse into romance and daydreams. Unconventional in more ways than one, the show punctuates slapstick comedy and breakneck pacing with moments of genuine drama.

It takes nine seasons and 208 episodes for a father to tell his kids exactly how he met their mother. Thankfully, this never-ending love story comes chock full of irresistible characters and hilarious situations.

Rising movie star Vince Chase (Adrian Grenier) is living the Hollywood dream and taking his closest friends along for the ride. Co-star Jeremy Piven won three Emmys for his performance as Ari Gold, whose character was reportedly inspired by real-life super-agent Ari Emmanuel.

Laughter is almost literally the best medicine in this seminal sitcom, which takes place in an Army hospital during the Korean War. Its legendary finale was reportedly watched by 106 million viewers, setting a record at the time.

In the basement of a corporate office building, a motley crew of IT workers give the job their very least. Hollywood has tried and failed to adapt this British cult series on three separate occasions.

Three interrelated families get the documentary treatment in this “Office”-style sitcom, which quickly became a ratings smash. Each of its first five seasons won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series.

This witty comedy follows Detective Jake Peralta (Andy Samberg) and the other officers of New York’s 99th Precinct. Even when the episodes tackle topical issues, an underlying charm persists. It aired on Fox for five seasons before migrating over to NBC.

Loosely based on creator Dan Harmon’s own experiences, this cult favorite follows disbarred lawyer ​​Jeff Winger (Joel McHale) to Greendale Community College. Its memorable characters and unique brand of meta-humor generated an ardent fanbase, who rallied for its sixth and final season on Yahoo! Screen.

The power of mockumentary-style comedy strikes once again in this modern-day classic. Satirizing small-town politics, it chronicles the evolving ambitions of mid-level bureaucrat Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler). An impressive number of successful careers were thus spawned.

One of the most influential single-camera comedies of all time remains more of a cultural cornerstone than a ratings hit. It tells the story of the Bluths, a dysfunctional upper-class family who must make do in the sudden absence of their patriarch.

This long-running British sitcom built a loyal following over time and scored high ratings during its later years. It tells the story of two working-class brothers, who resort to various get-rich-quick schemes in their pursuit of great fortune. A spin-off series and three prequel specials would follow.

Comedy genius Larry David steps in front of the camera for this game-changing HBO series, which consists primarily of improvised performances. Putting his particular brand of neurosis on bold display, the “Seinfeld” co-creator upends every possible societal convention. And for that, we love him.

Expertly written and perfectly cast, this mega-popular sitcom depicts the Manhattan-based misadventures of six close friends. It so duly captured the zeitgeist that psychologists would study the impact of its catchphrases and style trends across various cultures.

By the time it concluded, the show about “nothing” had ultimately touched down on every aspect of modern single life. Actively devoid of sentimentality, it delivered comedy at all costs and rewrote the sitcom playbook in the process.

Adapted from the British sitcom of the same name, NBC’s ever-popular mockumentary chronicles daily life at the Dunder Mifflin Paper company. As unforgettable each character may be, it’s the chemistry between them that makes this ensemble comedy shine.