Original Run: September 2005 - Present
Seasons: 5

How I met Your Mother is one of the biggest sitcoms currently still in its original run. Currently in its fifth season, HIMYM follows the life of Ted Mosby in his quest to find the woman he’ll one day marry. Each episode opens with Mosby telling his children the story of how he met their mother 20 odd years later, before transitioning into the format of a traditional sitcom.

While it won’t go down in the same league as the following four classics, How I Met Your Mother is extremely popular with the youth of today, and as such has been likened to Friends, at least in influence. As our favourite sitcom still in its original run, and for Barney Stinson, How I Met Your Mother is deserving of the number 5 slot.

Original Run: October 2001 - May 2009; New Format: 2010 - Present
Seasons: 9

Straight off the bat, yes, Scrubs is continuing with a 9th season; however, in the eyes of many fans the original show ended last year, if not earlier due to a decline in quality of late. The 9th season will transition the show from Sacred Heart Hospital into a Medial School, with only two characters from the first season continuing in a recurring role. John "J.D." Dorian, the main character and narrator from seasons 1-8, will return in a handful of episodes to help with the transition, but will play a much smaller role.

Regardless of its future, Scrubs was one of the best sitcoms of the 2000s, at least for its first 5 seasons. Scrubs has received a stack of Emmy nominations, and has been commended for its humorous take on hospital life, whilst being able to portray serious messages when appropriate. The stories in Scrubs are like something out of a drama, rather than a sitcom; however, the humour offers a refreshing take on a setting that has an abundance of quality, but serious natured, shows.

Original Run: September 1996 - May 2005
Seasons: 9

Everybody Loves Raymond focuses on sportswriter Raymond Barone and his family of five. His parents, Frank & Marie, and brother Robert live across the street, much to the disgust of Ray’s wife Deborah; most of the show’s running jokes play on the dysfunctional family situation.

Everybody Loves Raymond is one of the most crucially acclaimed and successful sitcoms of all time. Like many others with that description, it finished while on top after 9 strong seasons. Each episode generally featured a new storyline, with very little subplots, making it an idea show to sit down and watch for a casual chuckle.

Original Run: September 1994 - May 2004
Seasons: 10

Friends featured 6 main characters, which went on to become household names after its debut in 1994. Despite wrapping up over 5 years ago, the Friends characters, Joey, Rachel, Monica, Ross, Chandler and Phoebe, are still incredibly popular and influential on fans’ lives. Joey's catchphrase, "how you doin'?" still makes appearances on Saturday nights, although, perhaps is a little less successful these days.

Originally touted as “another Seinfeld wannabe”, Friends proved its early day critics wrong by becoming one of the most popular sitcoms of all time. The chemistry between the characters was particularly impressive and the quality of the writing was applauded for its creativity.

Original Run: July 1989 - May 1998
Seasons: 9

The number one sitcom of all time. Seinfeld is still deserving of the crown two decades after the pilot Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David thought would flop. It went on to become phenomenon and one of the most popular shows of all time.

The show about nothing primarily took place in a New York apartment or local coffee shop and followed the everyday events of Jerry Seinfeld, as a comedian, George Costanza, Elaine Benes and Cosmo Kramer. Seinfeld revolutionsied what TV executives thought viewers wanted to see. None of the main characters were related, but instead bounced off each other with their trivial everyday problems. Rather than facing major dilemmas, each episode focused on something small that the audience could relate to, at least in the early season.

Seinfeld still enjoys regular re-runs and is one of the few shows you can watch over and over again. It truly is the number 1 sitcom of all time.

Notable Mentions

• Frasier
• The Simpsons
• Cheers
• The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
• The Office

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