Is anyone able to recommend a good TV drama series from the past please?

The Sopranos. The Wire. The Shield. They might not be your 'thing' though.
DH loved them.
Any Dickens ones- David Copperfield, Nicholas Nickleby, Great Expectations etc.
Inspector Morse. Lewis.

The Pallisers - about 24 episodes so really good to get stuck into on long winter nights.

It's all 6 of the Victorian novels by Anthony Trollope and has everything from an heiress forced into a marriage she didn't want, to politics and murder, with a scheming little baggage appropriating a £10,000 diamond necklace - £10k then! - thrown in.

One of my all time favourites. Very beginning is a mite slow but all my family were hooked very soon into episode one.

Another good long one we've enjoyed recently is the original black and white Forsyte Saga.
And of course Upstairs Downstairs and The Duchess of Duke Street.

Just found the original Bouquet of Barbed Wire on youtube settles in for the afternoon.

if you like spy stories try the Sandbaggers from the 70's I think very true to life as the writer was supposedly a spy.I also loved House ,Chicago Hope and more recently Endeavour and Geoorge Gently

Yes, thanks, that was the one. I never watched Bouquet of Barbed Wire.

Do you mean All Creatures Great & Small, Charleygirl, I enjoyed that.

I was completely hooked on Bouquet of Barbed Wire, thanks for reminding me about it KatyK.I remember thinking it was quite risqué, but I expect it would seem very tame these days.

I also loved the vet programmes, cannot remember the titles.

Love for Lydia.

PS I loved the Waltons too.

I wouldn't dare search for it, miep, I could get sucked right back in there. I spent far too many hours watching all the repeats on a Saturday morning in the eighties (nineties? perhaps both!)!

Little House on the Prairie is still screened on Freeview, as is The Waltons. I loved the original Upstairs Downstairs and, going a looong way back, Callan and some of the old quiz shows. And the Bill, when it first started and Peak Practice.

Taxi, St Elsewhere, A Bit of a Do, Thirty Something, Little House on the Prairie (probably just me for that one )

How about The Cazalets ? 60s I think

Ooh I instantly want to see all of these!

I agree re Cracker - fantastic. I also loved Boys from the Blackstuff, When the Boat comes in, Bouquet of Barbed Wire (if you want really far back).

Thank you. I don't mind how old they are, but not very keen on Nast or gruesome

House of Cards starring Ian Richardson from 1990. Simply brilliant.

Tenko With the womens Japanese POW camp. Brilliant perfomances. particular the wonderful Stephanie Cole who is still going strong in all sorts of things.
Brilliantly written as well.

what about Upstairs Downstairs.

Michael Kitchen Ooooh !
West Wing
Grey 's Anatomy
Modern Family although recent is funny.

I remember Flambards, loved it, also the Forsythe Saga, which has just been on radio 4

How far into the past are we talking here? I agree with phoenix Cracker was...... Well it was a cracker.

I loved River too (although a touch more recent) .

Who remembers Flambards and The Cedar Tree? Guess the filming of these oldies may look rather old fashioned these days but I loved them when they were on.

Shogun (mini series)
The Thorn Birds
Brideshead Revisited
Tutti Frutti

As jalima says it's hard to recommend anything with out knowing what type of programs would interest you.
Personally I loved Silent Witness, All Creatures and ER. I could go on