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Best Documentary TV Series of the 1970s

168 Documentary series that started in the 1970s, ranked by popularity

All Documentary series All series from the 1970s
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Rating patterns, computed from IMDb episode-rating trajectories. Deliberately strict: only shows with an unmistakable pattern carry one, so expect small numbers.

Rating patterns

Taste tags, judged by our AI taste model. They cover the 5,000 most-rated shows.

Tone & mood
Pacing & structure
Humor style
Themes & subject matter
Characters & perspective
Emotional payoff
Craft & style
Format & audience
Viewing-culture clusters
Intensity & content character
168 series

The World at War

★ 9.2
38K 26 1973–1974
War & military · Docuseries

Top Gear

★ 8.4
25K 530 1978–2002
Long-runner · British TV

Nova

★ 8.7
3K 1034 1974–present
Nature & science · Docuseries

Life on Earth

★ 9.1
3K 13 1979–1979
Nature & science · Wonder & awe

20/20

★ 6.8
3K 1273 1978–present
Crime · Documentary · News

Connections

★ 9.3
2K 10 1978–1978
Documentary · History

60 Minutes Australia

★ 6.8
1K 495 1979–present
Documentary · News · Talk-Show

This Old House

★ 8.1
1K 1265 1979–present
Documentary · Reality-TV

In Search of...

★ 8.4
1K 144 1976–1982
Documentary · Drama · Fantasy

The Ascent of Man

★ 8.8
985 13 1973–1973
Documentary · History

Ways of Seeing

★ 8.4
707 4 1972–1972
Documentary · Family

Austin City Limits

★ 8.4
379 543 1975–present
Documentary · Music

Arena

★ 7.7
375 634 1975–present
Documentary

The South Bank Show

★ 7.1
343 816 1978–2023
Documentary

The Unknown War

★ 8.4
330 20 1978–present
Documentary · History · War

An American Family

★ 7.4
301 12 1973–1973
Documentary · Music · Reality-TV

The Fifth Estate

★ 7.7
287 302 1975–present
Documentary · News

The Cousteau Odyssey

★ 8.4
266 14 1977–present
Documentary

La nuit des César

★ 5.5
243 52 1976–present
Documentary

El hombre y la tierra: Serie ibérica

★ 8.6
200 92 1975–1981
Documentary

V.I.P.-Schaukel

★ 7.2
195 38 1971–1980
Documentary

Hollywood Greats

★ 7.6
184 47 1977–present
Documentary · History

ABC's Wide World of Entertainment

★ 8.0
181 30 1973–1976
Comedy · Documentary · Music

HBO Boxing

★ 8.2
158 343 1973–2018
Documentary · Sport
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