Popular searches:

The Best TV Shows on TVNZ 1

Every TVNZ 1 Show Ranked From Best To Worst

Showcasing over 20 shows from 1987 up until 2024, TVNZ 1 stands as a beacon of television excellence. Some of the best tv shows from TVNZ 1 include Gloss and City Life, airing in 1987 and 1996 respectively. Explore our list of the top rated shows up to date from February 2025 that includes over 20 unique series.

  • Dancing with the Stars
    Dancing with the Stars (2005)10.0

    The New Zealand version of the British “Strictly Come Dancing” show sees celebrities perform choreographed dance routines which are judged by a panel of renowned ballroom experts and voted on by viewers.

  • MasterChef New Zealand
    MasterChef New Zealand (2010)9.0

    MasterChef New Zealand is a New Zealand competitive reality television cooking show based on the original British version of Masterchef. The first episode aired on 3 February 2010 at 7:30pm on TV ONE. The show currently features judges Ray McVinnie, Josh Emett and Simon Gault. The series is similar to the format of MasterChef Australia whereby contestants compete in weekly elimination challenges, including team challenges. The major difference is the New Zealand series only has one episode per week compared to Australia's five per week. The first series was won by Brett McGregor, over runner-up Kelly Young, in the grand finale which was screened on 28 April 2010. Nadia Lim won the second series, beating runner-up Jax Hamilton in the finale. The third series was won by Chelsea Winter, who beat runner-up Ana Schwarz in the finale.

  • Kiri and Lou
    Kiri and Lou (2019)8.8

    "Kiri and Lou" follows the adventures of Kiri, a feisty little dinosaur with overpowering emotions and Lou, a gentle but thoughtful creature. Kiri and Lou live in a forest of cutout paper and other creatures made of clay. They are joined by motherly Pania, sensitive Sorry, who is an extremely fast little animal who cares about everyone, and Dalvanius. Kiri and Lou invite children to learn about empathy, kindness and the true meaning of friendship. Together, these clay creatures navigate a forest of feelings with laughter, adventures and songs.

  • Sensing Murder
    Sensing Murder (2006)8.2

    Sensing Murder is a television series from New Zealand and Australia, in which psychics are asked to act as psychic detectives to help provide evidence that might be useful in solving famous unsolved murder cases in each country by communicating with the deceased victims.

  • The Gone
    The Gone (2023)7.8

    It follows Theo Richter, an Irish detective who teams with Kiwi cop Diana Huia to find a young Irish couple vanish from an infamous rural North Island New Zealand town. Amidst the search and a race against time, the pair have to contend with a community’s growing disquiet that the disappearances may be linked to a series of historical murders.

  • The Brokenwood Mysteries
    The Brokenwood Mysteries (2014)7.6

    In a seemingly quiet country town the newest resident, Detective Inspector Mike Shepherd, finds that murder lurks in even the most homely location.

  • The Dead Lands
    The Dead Lands (2020)7.3

    Waka, a murdered Māori warrior returned from the Afterlife, and Mehe, a determined young woman, embark on a quest to find who "broke the world" and how to close the breach between the living and the dead.

  • The New Legends of Monkey
    The New Legends of Monkey (2018)7.1

    Follow a teenage girl and a trio of fallen gods on a perilous journey as they attempt to bring an end to a demonic reign of chaos and restore balance to their world. Inspired by the 16th Century Chinese fable “Journey to the West.”

  • My Life Is Murder
    My Life Is Murder (2019)7.1

    Investigator Alexa Crowe, cannot help fighting the good fight – whether it is solving murders or combatting the small frustrations of everyday life. Fearless and unapologetic, Alexa's unique skills and insights into the darker quirks of human nature, allows her to provoke, comfort and push the right buttons as she unravels the truth behind the most baffling of crimes.

  • Border Patrol
    Border Patrol (2002)7.0

    Border Patrol is a New Zealand reality television series, focusing on the Customs, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, and the New Zealand Immigration Service. It is narrated by Tim Balme. They are checking through packages, travelers and goods to find if they try to smugle prohibited or undeclared goods. They have trained staff, dogs and technology to find this out.

  • The Luminaries
    The Luminaries (2020)6.8

    The 19th-century tale of love, murder and revenge as men and women travel across the world to make their fortunes on the wild West Coast of New Zealand's South Island.

  • One Lane Bridge
    One Lane Bridge (2020)6.7

    During a murder investigation in Queenstown, an ambitious young detective reawakens a spiritual gift that endangers the case, his career and his life.

  • A Remarkable Place to Die
    A Remarkable Place to Die (2024)6.3

    Detective Anais Mallory returns home to picturesque Queenstown, only to be faced with shocking homicides. Amongst the mysteries and idyllic scenery, disturbing echoes from her own past emerge.

  • Gloss
    Gloss (1987)5.0

    Gloss was a television drama series in New Zealand that screened from 1987-1990. The series was about a fictional publishing empire run by the Redfern family. It was a starting point for many actors who went on to many productions in New Zealand, Australia and around the world including Temuera Morrison, Miranda Harcourt, Peter Elliott, Lisa Chappell, Danielle Cormack and Kevin Smith. Writers for the show included James Griffin, who went on to write Outrageous Fortune, Rosemary McLeod and Ian Mune. The show's title theme song was performed by Beaver Morrison. The show has not been rescreened since its original screening, but selected extracts have been made available for viewing on NZ On Screen.

  • Nothing Trivial
    Nothing Trivial (2011)5.0

    Nothing Trivial is funny, warm and romantic and about people at a crossroads in their lives, particularly when it comes to finding that significant other to love and grow old with. It’s about people trying to find the answers to life’s big questions, while answering a whole lot of small and trivial ones… and winning the bar tab while they’re at it!

  • Filthy Rich
    Filthy Rich (2016)4.4

    Three illegitimate children discover they each have a claim to the fortune of one of NZ's wealthiest men, John Truebridge. With so much money on the line, John's legitimate family will do anything to stop these new, unexpected heirs!

  • City Life
    City Life (1996)1.0

    City Life was a New Zealand soap opera that screened on TVNZ from 1996-1998. It was portrayed the lives and loves of ten singles who lived in an upmarket apartment building in Auckland, New Zealand. The show was touted as New Zealand's answer to Melrose Place. The show starred Claudia Black, Lisa Chappell, Laurie Foell and Oliver Driver and featured a guest appearance by well known New Zealand actor, Kevin Smith. The show had a long development period, and the original treatment for the show had it set in Wellington with the working title 96 Oriental Parade. However, it was decided to produce the show in Auckland instead, and as such, the shows setting was changed along with the name to City Life. The first episode began with a controversial first scene, featuring a drunken Damon who owned the apartment building, in a homosexual kiss with his former lover Ryan on the night before his wedding. Damon was later killed off in the same episode after being hit by a car on the way to his wedding, and he left his apartment building to all of his friends. However, Damon's fianceè vowed to fight for her share of Damon's estate, leading to a storyline that would span the show's first five episodes.

  • Duggan
    Duggan (1997)N/A

    Duggan was a TVNZ police drama from 1997, featuring New Zealand actor John Bach as Detective Inspector John Duggan and Fiona Mogridge as Ruth Duggan. Unlike other New Zealand police drama series, Duggan was produced as a series of one-off programmes, akin to British crime series of the time such as Inspector Morse and Midsomer Murders. In all, 13 episodes were made between 1997 and 1999.

  • Mercy Peak
    Mercy Peak (2001)N/A

    Mercy Peak was a New Zealand television series that ran for three seasons on local network TV One, between 2001 and 2004. The series rated well in New Zealand and won multiple awards for its cast. Though an ensemble show, Mercy Peak centres on a doctor who leaves the city to work at a hospital in the small town of Bassett. She works alongside stuffy but caring doctor William Kingsley. The series was produced by Auckland company South Pacific Pictures; a number of those who worked on the show would have a big hand in South Pacific Pictures hit Outrageous Fortune, including co-creator Rachel Lang, directors Mark Beesley and Simon Bennett, and producer John Laing.

  • Auckland Daze
    Auckland Daze (2011)N/A

    The series is a spoof comedy that follows four hapless wannabes - a model, a stuntman, a dwarf entertainer and a stand-up comedian who are all chasing fame in Auckland's ridiculously small entertainment industry. Starring a number of local talents including Millen Baird (The Millen Baird Show), Jennifer Ward-Lealand (Xena: Warrior Princess), Natalie Medlock (Shortland Street) and Glen Levy, the stuntman described by National Geographic as "the 20th deadliest man on the planet". Auckland Daze takes the interactive experience that made Reservoir Hill a success to the next level. Screening on TVNZ Ondemand, which has over three hundred thousand unique viewers per month, Auckland Daze will also be embedded into Facebook where viewers will be able to watch, "like" and share the episodes with their friends without having to leave their Facebook profile. After the episode, the audience will be prompted to say what they think.