1980s Miniseries Were Must See TV (and most of them are now free on YouTube)
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- Опубликовано: 29 сен 2024
- Miniseries were a huge deal in the 1980s. They were such massive events that people would cancel all other plans and literally have watch parties. Of course, the phone was off the hook so there were no interruptions.
I miss these days! So, I made a list of what I think are the 11 best 1980s TV miniseries, and found out where you can watch them now. Here are the links I mention in the video.
• Amerika 01 (of 13)
• Hollywood Wives
• North and South (1985)...
• Farrah Fawcett | Poor ...
/ 252542498476188
• Guyana Tragedy: The St...
• Fatal Vision (1984) Pa...
• Small Sacrifices 1989 ...
I know, no Shogun. I was only 2 when it came out and I never saw it as a kid. I’m so sorry!! Next list I’m gonna have to do honorable mentions. Please forgive me! 🙏
You left out Lace with Phoebe Cates. I even read the Jackie Collins novels.
I don't think I can ever forgive you.
@@israelparper6080 it’s a crime 😂😂. I limited myself way too much. Definitely deserved a mention.
Add Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and Smiley’s People
That’s setting the bar awfully low. The problem is that it’s a lot more costly to make the mini-series than the tacky reality shows.
I thought A Woman Of Substance was better than at least a couple on this list. Also, Jamaica Inn (1983 with Jane Seymour) was worthy of a spot in the top 10. I have A Woman of Substance on DVD but have not been able to find Jamaica Inn in a US compatible format.
Although not a miniseries, the made for TV movie The Burning Bed also features the impactfulness of Farrah Faucett's acting skills. Her portrayal was so real and so powerful.
Very powerful movie
one of her best performances
I remember my mom and her friends saying how much they were impressed with her acting. I was not allowed to watch because I was too young and they didn't feel like it was age appropriate for me. I wonder if it's available online will have to check.
She won an emmy didn't she? I was surprised not here.
Agreed! The Burning Bed was an excellent movie! FF was fantastic in it!
The 1970s were the real deal for TV mini-series. "Roots", "Rich Man Poor Man" and "Salem's Lot" were among the biggest and best of them.
"Salems Lot" was great. The scene that scared me the most was the kid vampire at the window...
Holocaust
I can still see that kid. Thanks for the memory. 😱
Y'all are bringing back some bad memories. I remember being too afraid to go sleep after watching Salon's Lot. I hid under the bed covers.
I agree!
We didn’t have money for cable or for going to the movies, so when these would come out I was excited since it was like seeing a movie. Thank you for reminding me. We also enjoyed Shogun and Roots.
Ms. Farrah owned the miniseries. She also had the unforgettable and still horrifying "The Burning Bed". If you can find it... trigger warnings abound, but magnificent work by Ms Fawcett.
The Winds of War was a huge TV event. I was surprised to see it left off, but this was still a great list. I had overlooked how diverse mini-series offerings were during the 1980s.
watching ‘V’ with my family is one of my fondest and most vivid memories as a kid. It sparked a love of tv/film and particular sci-fi that remejbs a huge part of my life today. I’d like to also give a shout out to the original Shogun mini series which sparked a fascination for feudal Japan culture. A fascination which I took which me to college and ending up doing a thesis on. 🍿
Amerika was such a huuuge series.
This takes me back
North and South and Shogun...my favorites.
"Deceptions" with Stefanie Powers playing twin sisters - one rich, one downtrodden and they swap lives - with disasterous results!
I was a Senior in High School when the second V mini-series debuted in May of 1984. My parents were out of town that week and I had a party the first night and I think we went through 12 cases of cheap beer. For me V is first and foremost on my list but The Thornbirds probably had a greater impact on a lot of people. My case in an argument would be that V was a pop culture bombshell when it hit in the Spring of 1983. The regular series in Fall of 84 really damaged it's "street cred". Miami Vice was a gigantic hit and since it also was on Friday nights but at 10 pm it let college going me still go out to party in the early evening and get back to the dorm to watch Miami Vice. Plus Miami Vice had a better soundtrack.
I only some of these, V and North and South, both of which I really liked. But my favourites would be A Town like Alice ,Against the Wind and All the Rivers Run.
Good list I had forgotten about some of these , the ones I remember are
Lace 1and 2
I'll take manhatten
Princess daisy
Kane and abel
Till we meet again
Pride and prejudice
Jewel in the crown
Atlanta child murders
Edge of darkness
Separated at birth
Billionaire's boys club
The stand
Deliberate stranger
Deceptions
To catch a killer
Kennedy
To name a few more lol .
Winds of war and war and remembrance I watched religiously
Yes! I forgot about these, but they were excellent and I went on to read both books.
Winds of War was good. Except they waste too much time on 40 year old Ally McGraw playing a 21 year old girl flirting with Airwolf guy and Glasses guy. War and Remembrance I remember to be good only I have not seen it since it aired
I have the DVDs. My fav miniseries.
I just mentioned Winds of War. Way better than some of her choices
Several friends and I would meet at one of our houses after school to catch that week's episode. A great series. Lonesome Dove and North and South are the only others on this list I remember watching.
Ah Richard Chamberlain. He was the GOAT of 1980s miniseries: Shogun, The Thornbirds, Centennial..sigh swoon. ❤
The Raul Wallenberg story and the first "Bourne Identity" adaption, too.
@@gallery7596 I never saw the Wallenberg miniseries, have to check it out. I do like Matt Damon but he's no Anjin-san/Alexander McKeeg or Father Ralph.
We order that on DVD
As someone who watched some of these miniseries, I'm surprised James Clavell's SHŌGUN is not mentioned.
I agree. Also "Taipan" I think it was. Forgive the spelling. Both also starred Richard Chamberlain as you know. He was the king of TV miniseries!
Agreed. Seems like ratings should have been used to make most picks, rather than personal taste, especially taste for true crime. I was there in the 80s and haven't even heard of some of these.
Shogun was superb! That and Marco Polo (1982) got me really interested in history in a way I had not been before.
I think it was late 70s.
@@Himmiefan 1980, so too early for the poster of the video. I think she posted when she was born in the description. :)
I do miss the old miniseries and made for TV movies. The Day After scared the crap out of me.
We were actually warned not to watch it alone.
We watched it at school as we were learning about nuclear war, our parents had to sign permission slips
Me too! I think that created my paranoia
I watched The Day After expecting it to scare the crud out of me but it never really did, even watched it again last year when I was 57, still wasn’t that bad.
@@charlottesmomsame here. I wasn't very scared because the special effects were questionable. The story also seemed unbelievable that the whole world would die out.
North and South should be ranked higher in my opinion.
I'll agree. Mainly because it was filmed where I live and made my senior year of high school awesome! Sets weren't far from my home and high school. After school, we would sometimes we would go and watch them film and the stars like Elizabeth Taylor, Patrick Swayze, Morgan Fairchild, and others.
@@seanswinton6242I’m from the Lowcountry and was thrilled when my aunt and uncle were extras in the film. It was so exciting seeing our home on tv, wasn’t it?❤
Defiantly should be #2 behind only V
North and South book 1 and 2 were great MINUS the God Damn establishing shots that lasted FOREVER!!
I agree I remember North and South being must see tv at the time.
Anne of Green Gables
I can’t believe I forgot that one. New list is coming.
I got goosebumps when "I Know My Name is Steven" came up. That whole thing was such a tragedy. That poor family.
That is the first one I thought of when I saw the title of the video. It made an impression on young me.
@@gloriaf4015 Unfortunately, there was a lot of abuse going on in the Stayner family. The father, an uncle, and the maternal grandfather were all predators.
@@Muirmaiden and his brother became a serial killer. Tragic family!
@@gloriaf4015 Very true.
I saw the Lifetime movie. Great movie, but it's sad.
"Masada," from 1981, is another highly-rated miniseries.
This was one of my favorites!
I didn’t realize it was a real event at first, but I was just a kid. I really appreciated some attention to that time and place later on.
And instantly, the theme music popped into my mind. Masada was epic.
In 2019, I got lost on my way to visit Masada, ending up at an Israeli checkpoint. (As a female American, I somehow thought it was a good idea to tour Israel alone in a rented car, using Google Maps to guide me.😮) The soldiers teased me a bit about heading to Jordan instead of Masada, but they pointed me in the right direction. It was too hot for me to climb the mountain, so I took a tram to the top and wondered for hours around the crumbling Roman fortress. It is a must see place to visit in Israel! My other favorites are Acre (former Knights Templar city)’ Church of the Beatitudes (overlooking the Sea of Galilee), and Mount of Olives (go right before sunset and call to prayers).
Masada is one I remember as a boy
Lace and Lace II starring Phoebe Cates and Queenie (1987) starring Mia Sara were favorites of mine.
Both of those titles were really good.
The "which one of you bitches is my mother" question, is peak 80s.
With her immortal line, "Which one of you bitches is my mother?"
I was surprised Lace wasn't on the list. It has one of the most famous TV quotes of all time.
I remember Lace, my mom loved it
I was thinking "Roots"... That's a 70s mini series! Time flies
Yes, I thought this one would be #1--I was little but still remember the hype. Also, Napoleon and Josephine was led out.
"Elvis and Me" from the 80s was great.
@@ninav7083 , this is about the 80s. "Roots" was not in the 80s.
The hairspray budget for "Hollywood Wives" must've been through the roof. (Or through the ozone layer, lol!)
Anne of Green Gables didn’t make this list?
It’s one of the only 80’s miniseries to get multiple television releases as reruns (and still does) showing it stands the test of time and breaking the generation gap(s).
My favourite mini series of all time. The entire series was fantastic. Always deep in my heart. ❤
The sad thing is that a lot of these TV movies were better than what is showing in theaters nowadays
I agree.
That part! 🎯
Replace "a lot" with all
Then there's "Birds of Prey" (1973): ruclips.net/video/xYQoSlHDN48/видео.html Who is this "Harley Quinn"?;)
Uh. That’s debatable. I’ve seen a lot of these. They’re not all that great
Growing up in the 80s I had no business watching all these mini series however I was Obsessed 🤩 Thanks for posting
I was born in 1973 and watched most of these with my mom. Thornbirds was massive. I also remember Lace and Lace 2. Centennial (1978) was by far my favorite, but wrong decade 😊.
1974. So much nostalgia.
Born in 76 and I remember watching many of these with my mother too. In particular North and South, V Lace/Lace II and I Know My First Name is Steven. What was I doing watching most of this 🤭. But I rember we used to talk bout V in school. (I was about 7-what the heck 😆)
I loved Centennial . and Lace
I loved Centenniel!
In the 70s… Awakening Land was awesome
Man, the 80s and early 90s were the best. TV events like this were epic in a way people today will never be able to grasp. Thank you for taking us back to this special era in TV.
Seeing Robert Urich reminds me of how ubiquitous he was on television.
He was everywhere!
@@minirth.maggie I miss him. Had he lived, he would have participated in the SWAT reboot as a link to the old series.
I had a crush on Urich's wife Heather Menzies back in the day. Rest in peace Robert and Heather.
I was obsessed about V! It was THAT good! Still holds pretty good! Also, North and South! It has such an epic cast!
Rest in Peace Patrick Swayze and Kirstie Alley ,North and South will always have a special place in my heart , they can't make series like that anymore , Today Confederate soldier can not be the hero of the story .
Oh, man...that was an EVENT. Just an amazing series.
It was quite the romantic set too. George married Constance, Madeline married a producer, Virgilia married her brother Billy (from the second series), and Brett married her BIL Stanley
Pretty good thing we no longer romanticize those slaver traitors and make them into hero.
You should check out Hell on Wheels. It was made only about 11 years ago and finished after 4 years. Well after PC was established (and there is a little of that in it) but before the Woke madness of today. It’s main character is a heroic Confederate played by Anston Mount and he is one of the few characters in the series everybody respects regardless of any differences
Confederate soldiers were not the heroes of any story except in their own minds.
The mini-series actually started in the 70’s. Rich Man, Poor Man, Roots, Holocaust, Centennial, Eleanor and Franklin, The Bastard.
Holocaust was well done. Sad story of course. Roots probably the first come to most people’s minds.
Another was Captains and the Kings.
I'm just recalling John Jakes' (The Kent Family Chronicles) starting with The Bastard was not shown on one of the 3 Major Networks. Does this matter? I don't know. I guess I am wondering how many other people saw The Bastard on their local Not NBC, ABC, CBS channel back in the 1976 (Bicentennial release). I watched The Bastard on Channel 43 in Ohio. There was a series of books by John Jakes that seemed to get worse by the following movie (but I was only 9 yrs old in '76 so what do I know?). Only The Bastard was a 4 hour two part mini series adaptation (I'm wondering if the network spread out The Bastard to last at least 3 nights, so, The Bastard may have been cut up by commercials to cover 6 hours of 4 hour movie ... hmmm). The Rebels and the Seekers were one night movies (at least according to wikipedia). Anyways, The made for tv mini series, a different era of tv watching created before the advent of wide stream cable, kids.
She's not talking about when it started. She's just talking about the best of the 80s.
I was only a kid then, turning 14 in 1980. I think watching these "adult" shows made me a mature person, rather than the mindless rubbish on tv these days.
“East of Eden” with Jane Seymour was my all time favorite mini series. Her performance was incredible, and it was very true to the Steinbeck novel.
Oh God yes! It was right up there with "The Thornbirds" and "North & South". I was smitten with Jane Seymour, Rachel Ward, and Morgan Fairchld. I got to see her and Elizabeth Taylor while they were filming "North & South." Parts were filmed directly behind my HS on side streets and my neighborhood. Really cool.
YESSS!!! That is a great one. Jane Seymour was incredible in it. That should’ve at least been an honorable mention 😊
I was crazy over "East of Eden." Seymour was the epitome of evil. I've read the book twice since then. Amazon has it on DVD.
it absolutely was an epic performance! Would love to see it again. have no idea where it would be!
@@fullerpianostudio4891 I think I saw the DVD on Amazon.
Kane and Abel mini series was also powerful. Starring Sam Neill and Peter Straus
that was my number 1
V and V the Final Battle had us HOOKED!!
I had recurring nightmares. I was always in the resistance. The remake was gosh awful.
When Nancy McKeon has that alien baby!!
@@KrystyneY she was in Facts of Life. Robyn in V played by another actress.
@@kristinesharp6286Blair Tefkin
I think the alien baby puppet was used later in the Ghoulies movies.
The Winds of War was my favorite. Based on one of the best historical fiction novels ever. The seamless blend of the fictional Henry family with real life persons and events is second to none.
How could you not have The Winds of War on this list?
Yes, by Herman Wouk. That awesome! Also "Shogun" and Tai Pan" both starring Richard Chamberlain as well. Come to think of it, those may not have been in the 80's.
It was huge! Also not including Anne of Green Gables in favor of some true crime no one watched back in the day is crazy. Or The Day After.
Anne of Green Gables wasn’t a miniseries - and it was a Canadian production that aired on PBS rather than one of the Big Three networks.
@@tracithomas6543 : it was a mini-series, but, yes, it was Canadian and not on one of the U.S.’s big 3 stations of that time.
@@seanswinton6242 Shogun was just barely in the 80's. Sep 1980.
51 year old gen Xer here. Excellent video and recommendations. V, Fatal Vision and others were a family event i recall. I will watch The Thorn Birds now! Subscribed!
V better be #1, just saying
The #1 on my list was because of personal impact as much as cultural…it was a special movie for me and my mom. Otherwise V would have taken the top spot 😊
I can understand that. @@mysocalledgenxlife
I loved watching V but there is no way it should be #1. Maybe around #7 or so.
Twins!!!😂😂😂😂😂
What about 'The Last Days of Pompeii?'
I can vividly remember watching I Know My First Name is Steven. My mother used it as a lesson for us. I remember watching Small Sacrifices and Farrah Fawcett was stellar. I remember the crazy popularity of Lonesome Dove. Nostalgia is a wild thing but I remember as a kid sitting in front of the TV waiting for the movie of the week. Some were obviously not for kids but if my parents were watching I would watch too. Seeing all the classic TV stars was so familiar a feeling. It's something I dont know we'll ever have again.
I rewatched the Thornbirds as a middle aged person in 2012, and during the pandemic. I realized Ralph was a real jerk. Funny how you see things as an adult, versus a teen. I recall V too. The birth of the alien baby really freaked me and my high school classmates.
@@melissaolson6108 but I love God more
True. Today i will be yelling Forget him move on not worth it. Back then i was crying like a baby.
Yes he was a jerk. But he was a man not a God like priests were thought to be. He not only had passions of the flesh but passion for power and status. I suppose it creepy being with a girl young enough to be his daughter and a woman old enough to be his mom. I was confused why with such a big family only to get 2 grandkids. I also doubt the priesthood passed down through genes. Why was that old woman’s house meant to be theirs? Couldn’t they have saved some money working the place and moved into their own house somewhere else? I didn’t really get why the place was more hers than her brothers? I did like the series though. It showed what happened to women who got pregnant before marriage. The eldest was not the son of the dad. And it was known and not really a good thing. Good thing times different, Nice family saga.
I remember when V came out. I was about 12 and I could not wait for the next installment of the movie. It was so exciting waiting to see that stupid looking alien lizard baby. But that was the best back then so I can't judge it based on that. They did the best with what they had and I still enjoyed it back then. I tried watching the show again but I had a hard time. It was just so dated. You just can't bring back the time this movie came out and how you felt again because we know the future and the Sci Fi just can't hold up.. The Burning Bed was another great mini-series that had a huge impact on me. I don't remember the Thorn Birds that well but I vaguely remember Shogun. I remember the guy being boiled alive the most. Too bad that wasn't included in this list. You may need to do a part 2.
I did do a part 2 😊
I'll take Manhattan with Valerie Bertinelli should've been a honorable mention
Omg yes!!! Her gay brother was a great storyline for the time !!
All judith krantz's
@@tesladisneyfairy6183 It was!
It was a poorly written meandering mess, but I remember watching it at the time and loving it because of Valerie and her hairstyle.
@@JamminJ-xe2bd I liked her and the character she played.
You put "V" at number 2, and that's fair. I remember being glued to the tv for the last few episodes.
"The Thorn Birds" was huge, so it deserves #1. My mother and sister LOVED it. 11 year old me was like,"Yawn. Please."
But "V?" Oh yeah. I bought a disc copy of it in 2013 and watched it, again and again.
1983's Chiefs was an outstanding miniseries, featuring great performances by Brad Davis and Keith Carradine.
Chiefs was a great show! What a story!
Chiefs introduced me to serial killers. Great cast too.
Kane and Abel was another great miniseries.
Good book too.
And Billie D. Williams, Charlton Heston (cameo really), and Wayne Rogers of MASH fame. This was such a great series with more than one plot, including a serial killer who kept just ahead of the law until ...
I both read the Thorn Birds and loved the mini-series. All I can say..... Barbara Stanwyck. Wow
OMG 😱 I’m so glad it’s not just me. The way she stopped the priest in the hall and poured her heart out. It still lives in memory.
Absolutely loved the Thorn Birds. It gives me great pride as an Aussie and I bought it on DVD about a decade ago, so now I don’t need a VCR to rewatch it. Storytelling at its best ❤
There were some great Australian mini series that I remember watching in the UK. Dirt water dynasty, heroes with Jason Donovan in it. My favourite was Bangkok Hilton which was one of Nicole Kidman's first roles. Bangkok Hilton is one youtube
@@rebeccarommell1040 Yeah, we made some great tv in Aus back then. The Underbelly ones were the last good ones I remember.
Shocking you did not mention (possible you didn't know) about the chilling irony about little Judith Barsi's appearance in Fatal Vision.
ICYDK, Judith Barsi was a prolific child actress between 1983 and 1988. An abnormally petite little angel, she appeared in dozens of commercials, multiple tv show guest appearances, and three big name movies,
however her first REAL (non-commercial) role was as Kimberly McDonald (one of the murdered daughters) in flashback scenes in Fatal Vision.
Shes best remembered for Jaws 4 the revenge, as well as voicing "Ducky" in The land Before Time, and the little girl in All Dogs Go to Heaven. Both the animated movies had completed her voice work but not fully finished with production when little judith was shot in the head by her father while she slept, before he shot her mother and later himself.
Little Judith was 10 years old, and her mither and she had been a victim of physical and severe psychological abuse from him for years.
So yeah, its chilling that her first real tv role was as a victim of murder by her father, foreshadowing what would come only about 4 years later.
I remember that /////
I watched "Guyana Tragedy" as a kid. (Nobody really paid attention in those days) Maaaan 🥺🥺🥺
Lonesome Dove is my all time favorite mini-series. The casting was spot on and they really enhanced the book rather than the opposite like most do. The things that were eliminated and characters they combined made sense and did not detract from the narrative and the cattle drive scenes really were so much more vivid than I pictured them in my head as I was reading.
100% right.
I loved Lonesome Dove
Agreed! It was so good!
My favorite. Loved the book and the TV series. Best Western ever.
Should be #1.
Jim Jones's used Flavor Aid, not Kool Aid.
My favorite, by far, is "Centennial," but it came out in 1978-79.
I agree!
Also agree, I have the tapes on this.
I agree! I grew up in Greeley!
But the topic is about the 80s. Do you have a favorite from the 80s?
@@Youttubi Probably "The Thorn Birds," but it's so sad....
In the UK there was ‘A Woman of Substance’ and ‘Widows’. ‘Roots’ must have been earlier!
I literally just rewatched a woman of substance. “Tear it down brick by brick “
With young Liam Neeson before he became an action star!
Like the list but you missed Salem’s Lot. And I really miss my vcr
1979 was salems lot. It missed the cutoff. 😊
@@mysocalledgenxlife yeah I caught that as soon as I saw it. 70’s list maybe next? Peace
The Deliberate Stranger with Mark Harmon from 1986.
Celebrity with Michael Beck and Joseph Bottoms from 1984.
The Long Hot Summer with Don Johnson, Jason Robards, and Cybill Sheppard from 1985.
Robin Cook's Invasion, despite being broadcast during the 1990's. It was interesting to see Luke Perry transition into an alien over the course of the miniseries.
There's a few miniseries from the 1970's which were influential to the genre. 1976's Rich Man Poor Man which is considered network TV's first miniseries, the granddaddy of all miniseries Alex Haley's Roots from 1977 and the 1979 followup Roots the Next Generations. Those deserve honorable mention. I highly recommend watching the above miniseries.
Great list, loved one that was not included was Chiefs 1983, Peter the Great 1986 was a masterpiece, loved George Washington 1984 and its sequel in 1986. with Barry Boswick. I remember a bad one, Dream West 1986, it was fun.
I love Chiefs but I think this list tried to tone down having so much matter that might get it demonetized.
Chiefs, Peter the Great, Marco Polo, Shogun, and V are probably my top five of all time from the 80s. Great stuff!
They don’t make TV like this anymore
Thanks mainly to liberals. They destroyed, in short order, Star Wars and Star Trek and Disney and the MCU. Even Putin could never hope to do all that.
Now they have fake reality shows
Nonsense, the new Shogun series although different is every bit as good as the first one was. And while not all of the best TV is done in the form of miniseries, shows like Reacher, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Madmen, Andor, Sherlock (the Cumberbatch version) and many others are well crafted, well acted entertainment. Not everything is reality TV, there's still good out there but you have to go look for it instead of just throwing up your hands and giving up.
@@ashleighelizabeth5916 The downside is to find these shows you have to pay for 3-5 different subscriptions. I am debating Apple plus, Monarch: legacy of monsters and Manhunt.
Shogun?!? You left Shogun off the list?!? Chamberland was much better in it than Thornbirds. Supporting cast was great, great story.
This was a walk down memory lane, as I am in my 50s and remember several of these miniseries. I miss the concept of miniseries in general. Shows like these were an event that viewers looked forward to. I miss the days when everyone would be talking about the same show the next day because there weren't all the viewing options we have today. Thanks for the video!
A time when “must see T.V.” really meant it. These 80’s miniseries were a “blink and you missed it” event viewing. Long running episodic tv shows could drill their iconic theme songs and characters into our collective consciousness and if you missed an episode here or there you could just pick up the next episode. Remembering these miniseries is very nostalgic.
Few VCRs, no streaming, and who knew when or if a box set on tape might be available for purchase. “No phone, no lights, no motor car, not a single luxury.” Times 😄
I thought the last days of Pompeii was pretty good, I also thought the burning bed was a miniseries, I could be wrong
PBS always has mini-series.
For your honorable mentions list: The Atlanta Child Murders. HBO later produced a 2020 documentary titled ‘Atlanta's Missing And Murdered: The Lost Children.’
“America’s first civil war”? How many have there been?
Both "North & South" and "The Thornbirds" are special to me. The former had parts filmed near both my home and high school walking distance away. My classmates and I got to watch some of the filming, see and meet some of the actors and actresses in it like Patrick Swayze, Liz Taylor, Morgan Fairfield and others. We would spend free period watching. The high school I attended was Catholic. That made the "Thornbirds" special and cool. It became the topic of discussion so much after its first night, my religion class teacher, who was a nun, decided to make it homework. It was mandatory to watch and she ditched her plan during its airing! The guys all were smitten over Rachel Ward just like the ladies were over Richard Chamberlain! I remembered Rachel Ward from "Sharkey's Machine." Richard Chamberlain was the king of the mini-series! I remembered him from both "Shogun" and "Tai Pan" (forgive the spelling on the title. The movie "O" was filmed in my HS before it was torn down.
In 1985 my roommate got the videos for The Thornbirds, which I had not seen when it aired on television. We started watching at 8:00 pm on a Saturday night and finished the whole thing at 4:03 am. It was outstanding. It was so good, that I watched it again that same afternoon (back-to-back viewings). The acting was exceptional and the story was riveting, but also heartbreaking!
OMG these are good choices. I’m old enough to have seen all of these IRL. Lonesome Dove and North &South were so good!!! The best thing about most of these miniseries is they were adapted from or had books written about the story. So like Harry Potter or Dune, you could watch’s the miniseries and stay in that world via the books. ❤
That feeling you get when you see imagery that you haven't seen in decades, since you were a little kid. Crazy. I watched several of these miniseries, but V stands out to me, I was nine. Not on the list because it wasn't a miniseries, but you referenced it in the vid... The Day After *terrified* me. I would lie awake at night after that, wondering if all the buttons had just been pushed. Anyway, great nostalgia, thanks!
Peak 80s kid Cold War fear! We had a good run between The Day After, War Games, Red Dawn…etc…
Oh yeah! My parents didnt filter what we could or couldn't watch, so I was like this 5-6 year old watching that movie, acting like I wasnt freaked out. LOL!
“The Thorn Birds” & “Lace” were my favorite 80s miniseries on VHS, as a kid.
I liked “North & South” a lot, too.
(The Jim Jones one was the creepiest…still.)
I’ve never seen Lonesome Dove…and it’s my brother’s favorite. 😬
I would had included "Mistral's Daughter". It had all the drama you could ask for and gorgeous backdrops.
I am a 80's teen, and recall most of these mini series. Oh the days of TV movies! I have to check that one out.
In my opinion, Lonesome Dove is the finest television production of all time. I’ve watched it dozens of times times since first seeing it when it originally aired in 1989.
What about The Winds of War/War & Remenberance? But loved the video
Saying America's 'first' civil war is just wrong
I love that you caught that.
Watching the thorn birds on DVD, courtesy of my library, a decade ago was a delight. Roasting Father Ralph the entire show really never stopped being fun because he was always out here going “but I love god MORE” and immediately breaking his vows
I remember sitting with my roommate as we sobbed while watching The Thornbirds. The story had so many layers and was beautifully acted and written. I would love to sneak in Captain and Kings starring the late and great actor, Richard Jordan. There were so many great performances in this series but it aired in 1976 and I know you were focusing on the 80s.
Thanks for a great video.
Thanks, i loved seeing this. Now are you going to do a sequel focusing on 1990’s mini series?
Oh yes 😊
Shogun with Richard Chamberlin was the best. My sister loved North and South.
I was only 2 when Shogun aired, but I’ve discovered after making this video that a lot of people LOVED it. I’m gonna watch it next week.
Anybody remember the 1983 miniseries Princess Daisy?
East of Eden, with Jane Seymour, the queen of television miniseries, back in 1981 should have been added. I also remember The Burning Bed with Farrah Fawcett.
Yea, I think The Burning Bed was more well known than the poor little rich girl one.
@anneb889 Very good. But a TV Movie,not a Mini-Series
I think the Burning Bed was a tv movie not a series.
Some honorable mentions from the 80's: "The Last Days of Pompeii" , "Anno Domini (AD)", "Evergreen", "Beulah Land", and "The Blue and the Gray" -- loved these. There were a few from the '70s that I vaguely remember, like "The Captains and the Kings". And pretty much anything by Judith Krantz. I loved this video, thank you!
Honestly the Blue and the Gray was better than North and South IMO. Although I very much like both.
I loved The Last Days of Pompeii. Of course it's heartbreaking when the good guys die (and the animals that didn't make it).
Being from the UK, there were some of these mini series we got and are classics, but there are some I didn't know existed and will now be scouring RUclips for. Thanks for this. It was a great video.
Farrah Fawcett's performance in the "Burning Bed" far surpasses her other 2 performances you mentioned.
I’m Gen Z, but I love North and South and The Thornbirds! 😊 I’ll have to check out some more shows from this list
There were so many memorable mini series productions back then and I so enjoyed Mistral's Daughter as well.
There were do many mini series that I enjoyed in the 70's-80's. Thorn birds, rich man poor man, east of eden, lace and lace 2, Master of the Game, and Princess Daisy Roots original, Centennial and of course, Jesus of Nazareth. There were so many everyone had their favorites. Thank you for the walk down memory lane. I miss these great stories.
I loved Centennial. It was also my Dad's favorite. He probably still has the book somewhere.
Centennial was my favorite in the 70s...especially the Levi Zent years.
East of Eden was my favorite in the 80s because, unlike the 60s James Dean movie, it stuck to the novel and the entire point of the novel.
Anne of Green Gables was my favorite in the 90s, all three series. It was likely a weekly series in Canada, but was shown as a miniseries on PBS Wonderworks in the US like Masterpiece Theater for children.
@STho205 exactly the levi zent years were the years I enjoyed watching. Centennial was written so well that the stories were gripping. An endless number of celebrities in this series. I also remember the Anne of Green Gables stories they were awesome. I also agreed about east of eden. The mini series was so good, and Jane Seymour was unforgettable.
@@cindymorales408 Steinbeck makes it clear that Kate was born evil...not just circumstances...she was born bad. Typically that gets soften by revisionist portrayals...but Jane Seymour played it exactly as written.
The 70's also had I, Claudius, "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, " "Jewel in the Crown", The 6 Wives of Henry the VIII.
I loved Centennial too! Winds of War" "Master of The Game" were pretty good. Loved, loved, loved the Anne of Green Gables mini series! So well cast.
The scene that always stuck with me from Small Sacrifices was when she was on the stand and they started playing Hungry Like the Wolf by Duran Duran. The way she reacted was so twisted. Farrah was a damn good actress who didn't get the respect she deserved because she worked so much in TV movies like this.
I know my name is stephen is a personal one for me. It was one my mum actively looked for here in the uk on sky television.
She passed away on may 2nd. Im glad you placed this mini series / movie on this last. Great work.
I’m very sorry for your loss. You have my deepest condolences. ❤
@allysonhennelly6808 thank you so much for replying ❤️❤️
Shogun should have been number 1 . Not thorn birds
V
Thorn Birds
North & South
I remember those clearly. They were tv events!
People of 2024 need to watch Amerika.
It wasn’t Kool Aid at Jonestown! It was Flavor Aid. Kinda kills the whole cliché.
I almost said purple drank 😂😂😂 but went with koolaid instead.
The thing about the murder Mini-Series events is that back then, stories like that (a mother killing her children, a soldier killing his whole family) were so huge on TV because they did not happen often! And no,it isn't because we just didn't know about them because we didn't have the internet. Nowadays multiple family murders and children murders happen daily.
*V* was so scary to me as a little little kid but I couldn't get enough! It was so good!
Now they are called 'limited series' and are 13 episodes long because the word 'miniseries' is offsetting for viewers.
Fatal Vision! Such a sad case, but so well-written and acted. I was only two months old when it aired, but I saw years later on Lifetime.
He's guilty.
@jeffharper9854 that is what I thought after I saw the documentary.
The different blood types. CSI before CSI.
Lindsay Wagner ruled the 80s. She was the TV movie and miniseries queen and an excellent actress. I feel she should have been mentioned.
She ruled the 80s TV movie, not necessarily the miniseries. She will get her own video. And so will Jaclyn Smith and Farrah Fawcett.
@@mysocalledgenxlifeThank you. I like forward to the videos.
I don't know if "The Blue And The Gray" was popular in 1982, but I have it on dvd and do watch it at least once a year.
It definitely was…I just didn’t want two civil war movies in the list. So, I only included north and south. But The Blue and the Grey was good stuff!
True! forgot about that one.
Centennial, The Women's Room, Rich Man Poor Man and just about anything with Richard Chamberlin,
I say North and south is the best!
What, you think you can just go around making statements like that?
Roots debuted in 1977, but a sequel came out in the '80's.
Just found your channel with this video. Fellow Gen-X er here! :D
Ah, mini-series! They really were major TV events back in the day. The first one I have a memory of is Masada...and I don't think I even saw it! I just remember all the commercials for it! I do remember watching North & South, V (including the series!), Lonesome Dove, and The Thorn Birds.
Some of my favorites were The Winds of War and it's sequel, War And Remembrance, Shogun, The Last Days Of Pompeii, and Fresno.
But my all-time favorite has to be 1982's Marco Polo. It captured my imagination like nothing else with it's adventure, culture, and travel to far-off lands. Sadly it's very difficult to find online (it's always all the later Marco Polo series - bleh!). I did manage to watch it on RUclips several years ago, but unfortunately it's no longer fully on YT anymore.
Thanks for your comment! You brought up great titles that I didn’t include for one reason or another…but I hadn’t heard of Fresno. I just looked it up, and oh man! I’m not sure how I missed it. But I’m gonna watch that immediately!
Great choices! I remember all of those! Again, yet another thing that made the 80's a great time to be alive! The 80's were my HS and university years!
I vividly remember scenes from Marco Polo, Shogun, and Christopher Columbus. There seemed to be a lot of "historical explorer in foreign lands" type stories in the early 1980s.