{"id":143656,"date":"2025-09-17T16:38:10","date_gmt":"2025-09-17T16:38:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/143656\/"},"modified":"2025-09-17T16:38:10","modified_gmt":"2025-09-17T16:38:10","slug":"the-10-greatest-tv-theme-tunes-ever","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/143656\/","title":{"rendered":"The 10 greatest TV theme tunes ever"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Spider-Man<\/p>\n

Before cinema was bludgeoned within an inch of its life with the exhausting Universe franchise, Marvel superheroes were largely remembered outside the comics world as protagonists in the growing Saturday morning cartoon block. Depending on your age, it may have been Fox\u2019s 1990s action depiction of the whole gang that kicked off with X-Men: The Animated Series\u2014itself featuring an electric theme with that wild guitar solo\u2014or, you\u2019ll be harkening back to 1966\u2019s The Marvel Super Heroes.<\/p>\n

Most enduring from the Grantray-Lawrence Animation studio was the following year\u2019s Spider-Man<\/a> for ABC. It\u2019s famous theme penned by Paul Francis Webster and Bob Harris, and boasting 12 backing singers from the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, \u2018Spider-Man\u2019s action-packed orchestral swing around immortal lines like \u201cSpins a web, any size \/ Catches thieves just like flies!\u201d has cemented itself with such affection in the Marvel world it\u2019s still considered the friendly-neighbourhood superhero\u2019s de facto anthem.<\/p>\n

Ramones were fans too, recording a punk rock version for the Saturday Morning: Cartoons\u2019 Greatest Hits compilation album, and included as a secret track on 1995\u2019s \u00a1Adios Amigos!.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\"Twin<\/p>\n

You can find entries in Hollywood master surrealist David Lynch<\/a>\u2019s oeuvre that are more frightening, heartfelt, or cryptic, but none are as exemplary of his skewed relationship with Americana as so magically realised as ABC\u2019s Twin Peaks.<\/p>\n

First landing in 1990, Lynch\u2019s supernatural murder mystery and its psychic effect on the small town\u2019s hyper-real population gripped the world, eager to know just who killed Homecoming Queen Laura Palmer. Both subverting and honouring soap melodrama, Lynch imbues his love for the uncanny weirdness of the kitsch and the latent netherworlds that palpitate underneath the veneer of mundanity.<\/p>\n

Such pop mysticism glowed all over its iconic score. Lifted from their collaboration with Julee Cruise on 1989\u2019s \u2018Falling\u2019, Lynch and Angelo Badalamenti\u2019s instrumental rework would stand as Twin Peaks\u2019 essential heartbeat, a sombre ripple of twanging guitar and synth strings that pulls the listener into the namesake town\u2019s beguiling energy with hypnotic allure.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Still the TV benchmark for Second World War documentary, Thames Television\u2019s The World at War presented an authoritative and comprehensive examination of history\u2019s bloodiest conflict, interviewing scores of subjects on both the Allied and Axis sides. <\/p>\n

First broadcast on ITV in 1973, producer Jeremy Isaacs oversaw the most expensive factual programme ever seen to date, and managed to recruit stage thespian and Shakespearean heavyweight Laurence Olivier<\/a> for the series\u2019 commanding narration.<\/p>\n

Most chillingly remembered aside from its subject matter was the haunting score from American-English composer Carl Davis. Striking the opening titles with its fire of destruction behind the graphics, Davis\u2019 orchestral blast seizes the senses with a firm gravitas of the Second World War\u2019s moral ruin, sounding off like a warning of history over merely a TV theme tune.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\"Curb<\/p>\n

It didn\u2019t seem likely that comedian and writer Larry David<\/a> would top his 1990s phenomenon Seinfeld. Yet, casting himself at the centre of a fictionalised version of his world and the mishaps he encounters wrought from his social ineptitude, petty grievances, and fantastic ability to unwittingly create enemies. <\/p>\n

First aired on HBO in 1999, Curb Your Enthusiasm met with critical triumph, forging a place in TV comedy stature that eclipsed his previous NBC mega-hit.<\/p>\n

Among Curb Your Enthusiasm\u2019s litany of playful Italian orchestral backing numbers, the decision to select Luciano Michelini\u2019s \u2018Frolic\u2019 instrumental was a stroke of genius on Sanders\u2019 part. Originally composed for 1974\u2019s La bellissima estate melodrama, the sprightly skip of circus bossa nova languished for years in Universal\u2019s music library before its use on a banking commercial pricked Sanders\u2019 ears. It proved to be the perfect motif for Sanders\u2019 eternal bad luck, finding larger life online as a meme punchline to anyone\u2019s spectacular lapse into hilarious catastrophe.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

The Banana Splits Adventure Hour\"The<\/p>\n

For two years across 1968-\u201970, American children were treated every Saturday morning to NBC\u2019s The Banana Splits Adventure Hour. Developed by Hanna-Barbera and soaking up some of the more innocent ends of psychedelia and garage stomp, Fleegle, Bingo, Drooper, and Snorky were a groovy and very far-out furry animal band that played in a rock band around live-action escapades and animated buffers.<\/p>\n

And they boasted a cracking repertoire of tunes. Alongside genuinely decent numbers like \u2018Wait Til Tomorrow\u2019 and \u2019I\u2019m Gonna Find a Cave\u2019, \u2018The Tra La La Song (One Banana, Two Banana)\u2019 is impossible not to like, a joyous, kaleidoscopic twirl of sugary fun that infectiously connects with the inner child in all of us. While there are disputes as to its authorship, credited to the show\u2019s musical directors, Mark Barkan and Ritchie Adams, Terence Winkless, who played Bingo, has always stated his jingle writer father, NB Jr, is responsible for the children\u2019s classic.<\/p>\n

Cropping up once again, Saturday Morning: Cartoons\u2019 Greatest Hits features Liz Phair<\/a>\u2019s take on \u2018The Tra La La Song (One Banana, Two Banana)\u2019, and The Dickies would later cut a sped-up punk version in 1979.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Whatever was in the air, shadowy government forces and conspiratorial cover-ups seemed to strike a chord in the 1990s\u2019 TV land. First aired in 1993, Fox\u2019s The X-Files would explode as one of the decade\u2019s premier shows, rivalled only by The Simpsons<\/a>. Detailing the investigations conducted by the supernaturalist Fox Mulder and rational sceptic Dana Scully, the duo explores the spooky and alien goings on as part of the FBI\u2019s titular X-Files unit.<\/p>\n

Weaving a grand, extraterrestrial mythos as well as featuring some excellent \u2018monster of the week\u2019 episodes, The X-Files gave fans plenty to chew over during its initial nine-season tenure, and later feature film and series resurrections.<\/p>\n

As well as its innovative opening visuals, Mark Snow\u2019s eerie instrumental theme embedded itself into the popular consciousness. Wrapped in plasmic synths and ethereal atmosphere with just the right amount of hokey whistle fun, \u2018The X-Files\u2019 would stand tall alongside The Twilight Zone as a canonical cut of sci-fi beckon to some of TV\u2019s most strange and creepy realms.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\"Star<\/p>\n

Launching a sci-fi phenomenon rivalled only by George Lucas<\/a>\u2019 lightsaber-wielding saga, Gene Roddenberry couldn\u2019t have predicted just what a franchise his Star Trek concept would balloon to. <\/p>\n

First introducing the world to the USS Enterprise\u2019s Captain Kirk and half-Vulcan science officer Spock by NBC in 1967, each week would see all manner of adventure on beamed-down planets, acting as noble intermediaries between warring species, and Kirk typically seducing a different alien woman every week.<\/p>\n

Followed by the iconic \u2018Where No Man Has Gone Before\u2019 opening spiel from Kirk actor William Shatner, Alexander Courage\u2019s wide-eyed and lush score captures everything utopian and exciting about the original Star Trek series, evoking the spirit of the old Buck Rogers serials while also glittering with a modernist sheen illustrating the subtle themes of humanity\u2019s diverse and trans-national crew working together in the pursuit of galactic exploration and endeavour.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons\"Captain<\/p>\n

British TV producers Gerry and Sylvia Anderson<\/a> were already five \u2018Supermarionation\u2019 programmes in when they struck upon their greatest puppet series. With Stingray and Thunderbirds behind them, the couple sought to craft a more realistic cast of marionette dolls for 1967\u2019s Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, reaching for a slightly darker and more intense sci-fi thriller. <\/p>\n

Depicting the titular far-future agent\u2019s counter efforts against the invisible Mysteron Martians, Captain Scarlet\u2019s uncanny healing powers wrought from alien energy made him a worthy foe every week against the sinister extraterrestrial forces.<\/p>\n

A long-term composer of the Andersons\u2019 Century 21 Productions, Barry Gray curiously opens the show with the eldritch \u2018The Mysterons\u2019 numbers, but it\u2019s the \u2018Captain Scarlet\u2019 theme over the end credits which stands as the show\u2019s main number, a groovy brass bluster with big band rock flourish and smattered with ondes Martenot electronic whines and innovative vocal effects.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\"I<\/p>\n

Having scored a major hit with ABC\u2019s Bewitched, series creator Sidney Sheldon swapped witches for genies and dreamed up the frothy romantic comedy<\/a> of I Dream of Jeannie for NBC. <\/p>\n

Starring Barbara Eden and Larry Hagman, astronaut Tony Nelson uncovers an exotic bottle on a South Pacific island and uncovers the 2,000-year-old titular genie from Basenji. Cue scrapes and comedic clashes as Nelson tries to hide his new genie companion from his US Air Force boss and peers.<\/p>\n

Buoyed with an effervescent waltz, Richard Wess\u2019 original jazz instrumental captures the ditzy charm of Jeannie\u2019s devoted but accident-prone interventions in Nelson\u2019s life, perfectly evoking the era\u2019s swinging style of the day. Resurrected for the late 1980s, \u2018Jeannie\u2019 would later be sampled by DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince\u2019s \u2018Girls Ain\u2019t Nothing but Trouble\u2019 from their debut Rock the House.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

For a manufactured band, The Monkees<\/a> had some fantastic songs under their belt. Created by Bob Rafelson and Bert Schneider as a US version of The Beatles\u2019 A Hard Day\u2019s Night, 1966\u2019s NBC show followed the pop rock band as they eagerly attempted to enter the music industry and seek stardom. <\/p>\n

Starting life as a little more than a poster boy band, by the decade\u2019s end, they\u2019d truly deep dived into the counterculture, dropping the not bad at all Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd record, and appearing in Jack Nicholson\u2019s cult satire Head movie.<\/p>\n

But back when they were adorned on lunchboxes, frontman Micky Dolenz was crooning to \u2018(Theme From) The Monkees\u2019, a perfectly giddy whip of jaunty beat rock that unveils a world of 1960s pop not too far away from The Banana Splits\u2019 sunny tomfoolery. Written by the Boyce and Hart popsmith duo, their theme to The Monkees TV show sparked a rock pop gang that ended up scoring the decade as deeply as anybody from Woodstock\u2019s billing.<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Before cinema was bludgeoned within an inch of its life with the exhausting Universe franchise, Marvel superheroes were…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":143657,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[66375,66376,96,596,12072,66377,391,66378,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-143656","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tv","8":"tag-angelo-badalamenti","9":"tag-curb-your-enthusiasm","10":"tag-entertainment","11":"tag-homepage","12":"tag-star-trek","13":"tag-the-monkees","14":"tag-tv","15":"tag-twin-peaks","16":"tag-uk","17":"tag-united-kingdom","18":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/143656","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=143656"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/143656\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/143657"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=143656"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=143656"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=143656"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}