The Best TV Shows on CBC Television

Every CBC Television Show Ranked From Best To Worst

CBC Television’s extensive portfolio includes more than 20 shows, spanning the years from 1960 to 2024. Icons of CBC Television, The Nature of Things and Danger Bay made their debut in 1960 and 1985, setting industry standards. Dive into our updated selection of CBC Television’s finest, featuring more than 20 series as of January 2026.

  • Wild Canada
    Wild Canada (2014)8.8

    The four-part series takes an awe-inspiring look at the world around us, shot with ultra-high-definition cameras that capture sweeping panoramas and extraordinary close-ups of Canada’s majestic terrain and diverse species.

  • Anne with an E
    Anne with an E (2017)8.7

    A coming-of-age story about an outsider who, against all odds and numerous challenges, fights for love and acceptance and for her place in the world. The series centers on a young orphaned girl in the late 1890s, who, after an abusive childhood spent in orphanages and the homes of strangers, is mistakenly sent to live with an elderly woman and her aging brother. Over time, 13-year-old Anne will transform their lives and eventually the small town in which they live with her unique spirit, fierce intellect and brilliant imagination.

  • Heartland
    Heartland (2007)8.3

    Life is hard on the Flemings' ranch in the Alberta foothills where abused or neglected horses find refuge with a kind, hard-working family. Debts abound and the bank is about to foreclose. Can they keep the ranch running?

  • Schitt's Creek
    Schitt's Creek (2015)7.8

    Formerly filthy rich video store magnate Johnny Rose, his soap star wife Moira, and their two kids, über-hipster son David and socialite daughter Alexis, suddenly find themselves broke and forced to live in Schitt's Creek, a small depressing town they once bought as a joke.

  • Murdoch Mysteries
    Murdoch Mysteries (2008)7.7

    A Victorian-era Toronto detective uses then-cutting edge forensic techniques to solve crimes, with the assistance of a female coroner who is also struggling for recognition in the face of tradition, based on the books by Maureen Jennings.

  • Kim's Convenience
    Kim's Convenience (2016)7.6

    The funny, heartfelt story of The Kims, a Korean-Canadian family, running a convenience store in downtown Toronto. Mr. and Mrs. Kim ('Appa' and 'Umma') immigrated to Toronto in the '80s to set up shop near Regent Park and had two kids, Jung and Janet who are now young adults. However, when Jung was 16, he and Appa had a major falling out involving a physical fight, stolen money and Jung leaving home. Father and son have been estranged since.

  • Workin' Moms
    Workin' Moms (2017)7.4

    Four women juggle love, careers, and parenthood. They support, challenge, and try not to judge each other as life throws them curveballs. Whether it is an identity crisis, a huge job opportunity, postpartum depression, or an unplanned pregnancy – they face both the good and bad with grace and humour.

  • The Nature of Things
    The Nature of Things (1960)7.1

    The Nature of Things is a Canadian television series of documentary programs. It debuted on CBC Television on November 6, 1960. Many of the programs document nature and the effect that humans have on it. The program was one of the first to explore environmental issues, such as clear-cut logging. The series is named after an epic poem by Roman philosopher Lucretius: "Dē Rērum Nātūrā" — On the Nature of Things.

  • Danger Bay
    Danger Bay (1985)7.1

    Danger Bay is a Canadian television series, produced in Vancouver, with first-run episodes broadcast on CBC Television and the Disney Channel starting October 7, 1985. One hundred and twenty three installments were filmed, ending in 1989, but the series, perceived as wholesome and exciting fare for older children and adolescents, continued to be seen through the 1990s in numerous countries around the world. The plots of the episodes followed the exploits of the Roberts family, led by marine veterinarian Grant "Doc" Roberts, and his two children, Nicole and Jonah. The 30-minute episodes featured the Vancouver Aquarium in nearly every installment. Most episodes focused on environmental issues such as pollution, wildlife endangerment and forest preservation. The series was also broadcast in Gibraltar Bulgaria, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Iceland, Cuba, Trinidad & Tobago, Finland

  • Kenny vs. Spenny
    Kenny vs. Spenny (2003)7.1

    Kenny and Spenny are two best friends who compete against each other. Their competitions are ridiculous, immature and totally intense.

  • Wild Cards
    Wild Cards (2024)7.1

    A spirited con woman and a demoted by-the-book detective are given the chance to redeem themselves. The catch? They have to find a way to work together each using their unique skills to solve crimes.

  • Republic of Doyle
    Republic of Doyle (2010)7.0

    Jake Doyle and his ex-cop father, Malachy, run a Newfoundland detective agency. Their rugged seaside town never lacks for intriguing cases, and the Doyles don't always land on the right side of the law.

  • Coroner
    Coroner (2019)7.0

    Jenny Cooper investigates unexplained or sudden deaths in the city of Toronto. Fierce and quick-witted, Jenny is a newly-widowed single mother with secrets of her own to unearth.

  • SkyMed
    SkyMed (2022)6.9

    Life, death and drama at 20,000 feet. The series weaves together intense character journeys and high-stakes medical rescues, as we follow the triumphs, heartbreaks and tribulations of budding nurses and pilots flying air ambulances in remote Northern Canada. They’re all in over their heads, and on their own, with no one to rely on but each other.

  • This Hour Has 22 Minutes
    This Hour Has 22 Minutes (1993)6.6

    This Hour Has 22 Minutes is a weekly Canadian television comedy that airs on CBC Television. Launched in 1993 during Canada's 35th general election, the show focuses on Canadian politics, combining news parody, sketch comedy and satirical editorials. Originally featuring Cathy Jones, Rick Mercer, Greg Thomey and Mary Walsh, the series featured satirical sketches of the weekly news and Canadian political events. The show's format is a mock news program, intercut with comic sketches, parody commercials and humorous interviews of public figures. The on-location segments are frequently filmed with slanted camera angles.

  • Rolie Polie Olie
    Rolie Polie Olie (1998)6.6

    Rolie Polie Olie was a children's television series produced by Nelvana, distributed by Disney, and created by William Joyce, Maggie Swanson, and Anne Wood. The show centers on a little roly pollie who is composed of several spheres and other three-dimensional geometric shapes. The show was one of the earliest series that was fully animated in CGI, and the first CGI animated preschool series.Rolie Polie Olie now airs in reruns on Disney Junior. Rolie Polie Olie won a Gemini Award in Canada for "Best Animated Program" in 1999. The show also won a Daytime Emmy Award for "Outstanding Special Class Animated Program" in 2000 and 2005. William Joyce won a 1999 Daytime Emmy for Best Production Design for this series. The show has a vintage atmosphere reminiscent of the 1950s and early 1960s, with futuristic elements.

  • Frankie Drake Mysteries
    Frankie Drake Mysteries (2017)6.4

    Toronto’s only female private detective in the 1920s takes on the cases the police don’t want or can’t handle. From airplanes and booze running to American G-men, Communists and union busters, Frankie’s fearless sense of adventure gets her into all kinds of trouble, but she always manages to find her way out.

  • Dragons' Den
    Dragons' Den (2006)5.7

    Canadian version of the reality show in which budding entrepreneurs pitch their business ideas to a panel of venture capitalists in the hopes of securing business financing.

  • Allegiance
    Allegiance (2024)5.1

    A star rookie police officer must grapple with the limits of the justice system as she fights to exonerate her politician father and serve her diverse hometown of Surrey.

  • Under the Umbrella Tree
    Under the Umbrella Tree (1987)3.7

    Under the Umbrella Tree is a Canadian children's television series created by Noreen Young that originally aired on CBC from 1986–1993. The show was produced by CBC and Noreen Young Productions, and also later by The Disney Channel. The series centers around a diverse set of main characters who share a house on Spring Street in a suburb of Ottawa, Ontario. The characters include Holly, Iggy, Jacob, and Gloria. The show's title is derived from the fact that the characters live together in a home featuring a prominent indoor umbrella tree. When production of the show ended in 1993, syndication continued on The Disney Channel until 1996, and on YTV and Canal Famille until 1997. Twenty-seven episodes of the show were released to DVD by Cinerio Entertainment in partnership with Noreen Young in 2006, following a long wait for expiration of ownership rights.