One of the greatest TV shows of all time turns 25 today

Today is a big day for TV history, as one of the greatest shows of all-time turns 25.

We’ve recently enjoyed – and might still be enjoying – what commentators have called the “golden age of television.”

From the early 2000s onwards, small-screen fans have been spoiled by the likes of The Wire, Six Feet Under, Mad Men, Sex and the City, and Breaking Bad. While more recently Better Call Saul, Succession, Chernobyl, and The Bear suggest the period might be continuing.

But one show helped kick this period off. In fact, you could call it ‘the godfather’ of the golden age. And that show debuted exactly a quarter of a century ago.

One of the greatest TV shows of all-time turns 25 today

25 years ago today, The Sopranos first aired on US television and promptly changed the TV landscape forever.

The date was January 10, 1999. The channel was HBO. And the story concerned a gangster struggling with his mental health, so seeking the help of a psychiatrist as he tries to find a work-life balance. When that work sometimes involves rubbing people out.

Created by David Chase – who oversaw 86 episodes across 8 seasons where the quality remarkably never dropped – The Sopranos was an immediate commercial hit, as well as a critical darling.

Alongside prison drama Oz, it also ushered in a new era of ultra-violence on cable TV, something that has now found its way onto network television. But the brilliance of Chase’s show was in its skilled juxtapositions, with The Sopranos bloody and funny, sometimes in the same scene.

The Sopranos makes a star of James Gandolfini

But the success of The Sopranos was really driven by great writing, of rich characters, played by as good a cast as has ever been assembled.

James Gandolfini had been a jobbing actor who played heavies in movies like True Romance, Get Shorty, and The Last Boy Scout throughout the 1990s. But his performance as Tony Soprano turned him into a household name, as week-after-week he was a loving family man one minute, and a menacing murderer the next.

Everywhere you looked there were superb actors delivering career-best performances, from Michael Imperioli as Christopher and Edie Falco as Carmela, to Steven Van Sandt as Silvio and Lorraine Bracco as Dr. Melfi.

Those actors won firsts-full of awards through the years, while the show itself picked up the Golden Glove for Best Drama in 2000, and the Emmy for Outstanding Drama in 2004 and 2007.

It all came to an end on June 10, 2007, during a shocking climax that no one saw coming – least of all the characters. Controversial at the time, the finale is still talked about to this day – a memorable ending for one of the greatest TV shows of all-time.

For details on where to watch and stream The Sopranos on its 25th birthday, head here.