Best historical (period set) series
by guardianofthewhills | created - 9 months ago | updated - 1 month ago | PublicVintage, and period set TV shows and mini-series, organized by the years they take place. I capped it at the 1980s. (I'm a female millennial that grew up watching all the classics)
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1. Young Blades (2005)
TV-MA | 60 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
Based on the novel The Three Musketeers by Dumas, Young Blades follows a group of youths as they cross swords with dastardly villians while keeping up on their studies at the Musketeer Academy.
Stars: Tobias Mehler, Mark Hildreth, Zak Santiago, Robert Sheehan
Votes: 314
1625-1628
2. Our Blooming Youth (2023)
16+ | 60 min | Drama, History, Mystery
A story about a prince who receives a book about ghost stories containing all kinds of curses of life and feels that the curse is happening one by one
Stars: Park Hyung-sik, Jeon So-nee, Pyo Ye-jin, Yun Jong-seok
Votes: 797
Joseon period
3. Warrior Baek Dong Soo (2011)
65 min | Action
Childhood friends Baek Dong Soo and Yeo Woon are both prodigies in combat. But while Baek Dong Soo became the top swordsman in the land, Yeo Woon would go on to serve a group of clandestine assassins whose aim is to overthrow the throne.
Stars: Shin Hyeon-bin, Jun Gyu Park, Sung Ji-ru, Ji Chang-wook
Votes: 666
1743-1816
4. Poldark (2015–2019)
TV-14 | 60 min | Drama, Romance
Ross Poldark returns home after the American Revolutionary War and rebuilds his life with a new business venture, making new enemies and finding a new love where he least expects it.
Stars: Aidan Turner, Eleanor Tomlinson, Jack Farthing, Beatie Edney
Votes: 36,133
1781-1801
5. Sense & Sensibility (2008)
TV-14 | 58 min | Drama, Romance
The sisters Eleanor and Marianne Dashwood try to find love and security in the 1800's. These two sisters coudn't be more different. Where Eleanor is calm and always acts proper Marianne is passionate and usally forgets herself.
Stars: Dominic Cooper, Charity Wakefield, Hattie Morahan, Janet McTeer
Votes: 12,999
1790s
6. Pride and Prejudice (1995)
TV-PG | 55 min | Drama, Romance
While the arrival of wealthy gentlemen sends her marriage-minded mother into a frenzy, willful and opinionated Elizabeth Bennet matches wits with haughty Mr. Darcy.
Stars: Colin Firth, Jennifer Ehle, Susannah Harker, Julia Sawalha
Votes: 92,357
1813
7. Great Expectations (2011–2012)
TV-PG | 60 min | Drama
The orphan Pip becomes a gentleman when his life is transformed by a mystery benefactor.
Stars: Douglas Booth, Jack Roth, Ray Winstone, David Suchet
Votes: 8,244
1812-1840
8. Little Dorrit (2008)
TV-PG | 34 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance
The Dorrits are a family whose life revolves around the Marshalsea, a debtor's prison. Amy Dorrit's kind nature brings the family into contact with a wide swath of English society, from the poorest to the richest, and back again.
Stars: Matthew Macfadyen, Claire Foy, Tom Courtenay, Judy Parfitt
Votes: 10,492
1820s
9. Victoria (2016–2019)
TV-PG | 60 min | Biography, Drama, History
The early life of Queen Victoria, from her ascension to the throne at the tender age of 18 to her courtship and marriage to Prince Albert.
Stars: Jenna Coleman, Adrian Schiller, Tommy Knight, Jordan Waller
Votes: 30,908
1837-1851
10. Cranford (2007–2009)
TV-PG | 469 min | Drama
In the 1840s, Cranford is ruled by the ladies. They adore good gossip, and romance and change is in the air, as the unwelcome grasp of the Industrial Revolution rapidly approaches their beloved rural market-town.
Stars: Judi Dench, Imelda Staunton, Julia McKenzie, Deborah Findlay
Votes: 10,636
1840s
11. Alias Grace (2017)
TV-MA | 45 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
Grace, an Irish immigrant in 19th-century Canada, is convicted of the murder of her employer. However, things take a different turn when a psychiatrist arrives to analyze her mental state.
Stars: Sarah Gadon, Edward Holcroft, Rebecca Liddiard, Zachary Levi
Votes: 37,854
1843-1880s
12. Bonanza (1959–1973)
TV-PG | 49 min | Western
The Wild West adventures of Ben Cartwright and his sons as they run and defend their Nevada ranch while helping the surrounding community.
Stars: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Pernell Roberts
Votes: 11,005
1861-1867
13. Daniel Deronda (2002)
53 min | Drama, Romance
Set in Victorian London, Gwendolen Harleth is drawn to Daniel Deronda, a selfless and intelligent gentleman of unknown parentage, but her own desperate need for financial security may destroy her chance at happiness.
Stars: Jodhi May, Edward Fox, Amanda Root, David Bamber
Votes: 5,206
1870s
14. The Wild Wild West (1965–1969)
TV-PG | 50 min | Action, Adventure, Western
Two Secret Service agents, equipped with a wide array of gizmos, work for the government in the Old West.
Stars: Robert Conrad, Ross Martin, Dick Cangey, Whitey Hughes
Votes: 6,504
1870s
15. The Rifleman (1958–1963)
TV-PG | 30 min | Family, Western
The adventures of a Wild West rancher, wielding a customized rapid-fire Winchester rifle, and his son.
Stars: Chuck Connors, Johnny Crawford, Paul Fix, Joe Benson
Votes: 5,018
1870s-1880s
16. Little House on the Prairie (1974–1983)
TV-PG | 60 min | Drama, Family, Romance
The life and adventures of the Ingalls family in the nineteenth century American Midwest.
Stars: Melissa Gilbert, Michael Landon, Karen Grassle, Rachel Lindsay Greenbush
Votes: 26,916
1870s-1890s
17. Branded (1965–1966)
30 min | Western
In the 1880s Jason McCord travels the country trying to prove he's no coward. He needs to do this because the military career of this West point graduate came to an end when he was thrown out of the army after being accused of cowardice.
Stars: Chuck Connors, Chuck Hamilton, William Bryant, John Pickard
Votes: 915
1880s
18. Vienna Blood (2019– )
TV-14 | 45 min | Crime, Drama, History
Max Liebermann, a medical student and protegé of Sigmund Freud, helps Detective Rheinhardt in the investigation of a series of disturbing murders around 1900s Vienna.
Stars: Matthew Beard, Juergen Maurer, Amelia Bullmore, Conleth Hill
Votes: 8,280
1906
19. Downton Abbey (2010–2015)
TV-PG | 60 min | Drama, Romance
A chronicle of the lives of the British aristocratic Crawley family and their servants in the early twentieth century.
Stars: Hugh Bonneville, Phyllis Logan, Elizabeth McGovern, Brendan Coyle
Votes: 225,041
1912-1928
20. The Waltons (1972–1981)
TV-G | 60 min | Drama, Family, Romance
The life and trials of a 1930s and 1940s Virginia mountain family through financial depression and World War II.
Stars: Jon Walmsley, Mary Beth McDonough, Eric Scott, Kami Cotler
Votes: 9,062
1933-1946
21. Poirot (1989–2013)
TV-14 | 100 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
Hercule Poirot, a famous Belgian detective, who has an impeccable knack for getting embroiled in a mystery, solves crimes along with Captain Hastings and Scotland Yard Chief Inspector James Japp.
Stars: David Suchet, Hugh Fraser, Philip Jackson, Pauline Moran
Votes: 52,147
1930s-1940s
22. Home Fires (2015–2016)
TV-PG | 45 min | Drama, War
A drama following a group of inspirational women in a rural Cheshire community during World War II.
Stars: Clare Calbraith, Brian Fletcher, Samantha Bond, Ruth Gemmell
Votes: 4,359
1939-1940
23. McHale's Navy (1962–1966)
TV-G | 30 min | Comedy, War
The misadventures of a misfit PT boat crew during World War II.
Stars: Ernest Borgnine, Joe Flynn, Tim Conway, Carl Ballantine
Votes: 3,277
1941-1945
24. Hogan's Heroes (1965–1971)
TV-PG | 25 min | Comedy, War
The inmates of a German World War II prisoner of war camp conduct an espionage and sabotage campaign right under the noses of their warders.
Stars: Bob Crane, Werner Klemperer, John Banner, Robert Clary
Votes: 12,349
1942-1945
25. Marple (2004–2013)
TV-14 | 2,090 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
An elderly spinster living in the village of St. Mary Mead helps her friends and relatives solve mysterious murders.
Stars: Geraldine McEwan, Julia McKenzie, Stephen Churchett, Isabella Parriss
Votes: 10,698
1950s
26. I Love Lucy (1951–1957)
TV-Y | 30 min | Comedy, Family
The wife of a band leader constantly tries to become a star - in spite of her having no talent, and gets herself (along with her best friend) into the funniest predicaments.
Stars: Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, William Frawley
Votes: 28,934
1951-1957
27. Ordeal by Innocence (2018)
TV-MA | 60 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
Christmas 1954. Wealthy philanthropist Rachel Argyll is murdered at her family estate Sunny Point. Her adopted son Jack Argyll is arrested for her murder. He vehemently protests his innocence.
Stars: Morven Christie, Anthony Boyle, Christian Cooke, Bill Nighy
Votes: 11,592
1954
28. The Pale Horse (2020)
TV-MA | 59 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
Is a trio of witches responsible for a series of sudden deaths or is there a rational explanation?
Stars: Kaya Scodelario, Georgina Campbell, Rufus Sewell, Sean Pertwee
Votes: 6,194
1960s
29. Paranormal (2020)
TV-14 | 45 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
Set in the 1960s, the series, packed with mystery and suspense, depicts the adventures of Doctor Refaat Ismail, a single hematologist who finds himself faced with a series of supernatural events.
Stars: Razane Jammal, Philip Shahbaz, Karla Maatouk, Ahmed Amin
Votes: 74,354
1960s
30. Inspector George Gently (2007–2017)
TV-MA | 89 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
With the help of DS John Bacchus, Inspector George Gently spends his days bringing to justice members of the criminal underworld who are unfortunate enough to have the intrepid investigator assigned to their cases.
Stars: Martin Shaw, Lee Ingleby, Simon Hubbard, Lisa McGrillis
Votes: 8,532
1960s
31. The Andy Griffith Show (1960–1968)
TV-G | 30 min | Comedy, Family
Widower Sheriff Andy Taylor, and his son Opie, live with Andy's Aunt Bee in Mayberry, North Carolina. With virtually no crimes to solve, most of Andy's time is spent philosophizing and calming down his cousin Deputy Barney Fife.
Stars: Andy Griffith, Ron Howard, Don Knotts, Frances Bavier
Votes: 17,000
1960-1968
32. Car 54, Where Are You? (1961–1963)
TV-PG | 30 min | Comedy
Sitcom featuring the zany hijinks of New York's finest.
Stars: Joe E. Ross, Fred Gwynne, Paul Reed, Al Lewis
Votes: 1,880
1961-1963
33. The Addams Family (1964–1966)
TV-G | 30 min | Comedy, Family, Horror
The misadventures of a blissfully macabre but extremely loving family.
Stars: John Astin, Carolyn Jones, Jackie Coogan, Ted Cassidy
Votes: 21,817
1964-1966
34. The Munsters (1964–1966)
TV-PG | 30 min | Comedy, Family, Fantasy
A family of friendly monsters have misadventures, never quite understanding why people react to them so strangely.
Stars: Fred Gwynne, Al Lewis, Yvonne De Carlo, Butch Patrick
Votes: 16,910
1964-1966
35. Bewitched (1964–1972)
TV-G | 25 min | Comedy, Family, Fantasy
A witch married to an ordinary man cannot resist using her magic powers to solve the problems her family faces.
Stars: Elizabeth Montgomery, Dick York, Dick Sargent, Agnes Moorehead
Votes: 24,397
1964-1972
36. I Dream of Jeannie (1965–1970)
TV-G | 25 min | Comedy, Family, Fantasy
A United States astronaut finds his life vastly complicated when he stumbles on to a bottle containing a female genie.
Stars: Barbara Eden, Larry Hagman, Bill Daily, Hayden Rorke
Votes: 17,460
1965-1970
37. Endeavour (2012–2023)
TV-14 | 90 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
Set from 1965 into the 1970s, the show follows Endeavour Morse in his early years as a police constable. Working alongside his senior partner DI Fred Thursday, Morse engages in a number of investigations around Oxford.
Stars: Shaun Evans, Roger Allam, James Bradshaw, Sean Rigby
Votes: 33,468
1965-1970s
38. Dalgliesh (2021– )
TV-MA | 45 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
Follows Dalgliesh's crime-fighting career from 1970s England to the present day.
Stars: Bertie Carvel, Carlyss Peer, Jeremy Irvine, David Pearse
Votes: 5,521
1970s
39. Stranger Things (2016–2025)
TV-14 | 60 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
When a young boy vanishes, a small town uncovers a mystery involving secret experiments, terrifying supernatural forces and one strange little girl.
Stars: Millie Bobby Brown, Finn Wolfhard, Winona Ryder, David Harbour
Votes: 1,337,736
1980s
40. Cruel Summer (2021–2023)
TV-14 | 45 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
In this anthology series, each season follows a new cast of characters who deal with traumatic events over several timelines, and how those events impact their lives.
Stars: Chiara Aurelia, Olivia Holt, Sadie Stanley, Lexi Underwood
Votes: 20,083
1980s-1990s
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