Some of your favourite TV shows of the past 5 decades are available on DVD from the library. Whether you prefer British comedies, American spy shows, or classic New Zealand shows, you can find them at Wellington City Libraries.

Over the past few weeks, we’ve added a number of new titles spanning the past 40 years of television. Some would be considered classics of their era, others you wish could be forgotten.

Mission: Impossible is the classic spy show from the 60s which paved the way for iconic television sayings to enter the English language. “This MP3 player will self-destruct in 60 seconds” doesn’t quite have the same menace as “This tape will self-destruct in 60 seconds”. As hard as I try to forget Lenny and Squiggy, they continue to rear their greasy hairdos when least expected. For those who don’t know these characters, have a look at Laverne & Shirley. A “Happy Days” spin-off from the 70s that was set in the 50s and featured 2 women room mates who worked in a bottle-capping factory. Surprisingly the show ran for 8 seasons.

Moving from the 70s to the 80s, we have 21 Jump Street. A show that gave us Johnny Depp, and the premise “American teenagers look like 30 year olds”. The 90s are a decade we’ll avoid for the moment. Not that there weren’t any good shows, just they haven’t released them on DVD yet.

From the 00s (or noughties) we have the latest Emmy darling from the US sitcom scene. 30 Rock is a comedy show about the making of a comedy show. Devised by Tina Fey from “Saturday Night Live” fame, the show centres around Liz Lemon. “Liz Lemon, head writer of the sketch comedy show ‘TGS with Tracy Jordan’, must deal with an arrogant new boss and a crazy new star, all while trying to run a successful TV show without losing her mind. “–IMDb.

These are just a few of the TV shows available. What are some of your favourite/forgettable shows of the past 5 decades?

Life on Mars. Series two
“Life On Mars shot out of nowhere at the beginning of 2006 to become a vital, gripping drama, and this second series more than maintains the sky high standards that the first so memorably set. What makes it even more surprising is that all the ingredients were there for it to go so tragically wrong. The central premise, that for unknown reasons modern day police detective Sam Tyler wakes up in the 1970s, is fraught with potential potholes, yet the creators of Life On Mars twist it very much in their favour, delivering a skilful, taut comparison between policing then and policing now. It’s this clash of approach that provides many of Life On Mars’ sparks, but nonetheless, it has much more than that going for it. It boasts, for instance, a terrific level of attention to detail, and weaves in quality narrative too, with Tyler frequently caught between unravelling his predicament, the crimes before him, and his 1970s’ colleagues with their 1970s’ tactics.” — Amazon

Life on Mars is just one of our DVD recent picks this month. Also featured, you’ll find: The Nanny Diaries with Scarlet Johansson; the story of Albert Pierrepoint - Britain’s most notorious hangman (Pierrepoint); Robert Redford’s Lions and Lambs (also starring Tom Cruise and Meryl Streep); Quentin Tarantino’s revival of Grindhouse - Death Proof - featuring New Zealander Zoe Bell; I am Legend (post-apocalyptic zombie flick loosely based on Richard Matheson’s classic science-fiction novel about a lone human survivor); and, the return of Jack Bauer in Season Six of 24. Plus, a few more  brand new DVD releases, including Season One of compelling new crime series Criminal Minds, and a few more tasty television morsels.