History KeepCirculatingTheTapes / LiveActionTV

** In November 2019, Pluto TV launched the [=NickGames=] channel which included some of the 1990s game shows, including ''Double Dare'', ''Guts'', ''Legends of the Hidden Temple'', and ''Figure It Out''; in 2020, [=NickGames=] was discontinued and its programming was divided between Nick and Tweens.

* The ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent'' episode "The Glory That Was" only appears to be available as a premium video from USA Network's channel on [=YouTube=], presumably because of the lesbian sex scene that opens the episode. This is unfortunate because it's also one of the few episodes in which the fate of Wheeler's ex-fiancée is mentioned.

* While all of the episodes of ''Series/CoppersEnd'' survive in the archives in some form, they haven't been re-aired since 1971 or released on DVD. One episode was uploaded to Website/YouTube in June 2023, but the channel where it was uploaded has since been terminated, with the episode in question gone once more.

* ''Series/TheBrittasEmpire'': Not the show itself (which is easy enough to locate both online and on [=DVD=]), but the post-show series ''Get Fit With Brittas'' (A series of 10-minute shorts released after the show ended which aimed to educate the public on the importance of physical health) counts. It’s not included on the DVD box set of the show and very little evidence of it exists online, with the exception of one episode that resurfaced on [=YouTube=] in September 2021. You can watch it [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZUoHfYC9lU&ab_channel=VHSWonderland here]].

* ''Series/TheWorldAccordingToJeffGoldblum'', the Creator/NationalGeographicChannel's most-hyped Disney+ launch title, nevertheless disappeared from Disney+ in May 2023, without any official physical or PVOD release.

* ''Series/PoliceCameraAction'', an extremely popular Creator/{{ITV}} show, has bootlegs floating around on torrent sites but has ''never'' had an official DVD release. Add [[WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings the fact that fans want]] '''all''' versions, including the EditedForSyndication copies, and it looks impossible, but not unlikely. UsefulNotes/{{Copyright}} of police footage comes into play here. Music rights are an often-cited theory as to why the show hasn't been released.

* ''Series/{{In Justice|2006}}'', which has the bonus of being difficult to search for since its title is a common phrase, was a fairly well-done ''Franchise/LawAndOrder''-type show with a big subversion: most of their clients '''didn't''' do the crime and were wrongfully imprisoned, so the lawyers had to unravel the clues to find the real perp and free the innocent convict. In one memorable episode, a man faced execution for a murder he probably didn't commit. A viewer may be surprised by the ending: [[spoiler:[[TearJerker he was put to death anyway.]] ]]

* It's not easy being a Japanese fan of ''Series/{{Goosebumps}}'', since the dub of the series that aired on public broadcaster NHK is presumed to be lost, with the videos from Website/NicoNicoDouga removed for copyright infringement. It last aired on Disney XD in 2009.

Due to the sheer volume, some programmes have higher priority than others. ''MissingEpisodes/DoctorWho'' has had top priority from the beginning of the recovery efforts. Still, it is likely that some programmes will be lost forever.

Due to the sheer volume, some programmes have higher priority than others. ''Series/DoctorWho'' has had top priority from the beginning of the recovery efforts. Still, it is likely that some programmes will be lost forever.

Programmes that aired on Creator/TheBBC prior to 1978 are particularly prone to this. Prior to that year, it was BBC policy to regularly erase tapes. Untold volumes of programming has been lost due to this, and The BBC Archives have been scouring the Commonwealth and wider Earth for original recordings and copies that affiliates and licensees may have kept to complete archives of programmes that may have had content erased under this policy.

Programmes that aired on BBC television and radio prior to 1978 are particularly prone to this. Prior to that year, it was BBC policy to regularly erase tapes. Untold volumes of programming has been lost due to this, and The BBC Archives have been scouring the Commonwealth and wider Earth for original recordings and copies that affiliates and licensees may have kept to complete archives of programmes that may have had content erased under this policy.

* The original Latin American dubbed version of ''Kometto-san'' (''Señorita Cometa'' in Spanish), a 1960s WidgetSeries {{Toku}} mixing live action, puppets and animation (And ended on a BittersweetEnding, as [[https://youtu.be/SHBKeXp9BNo?t=10m10s seen here]]) that aired in Mexico and other Latin American countries through the 1970s and mid-1980s was lost after an earthquake in 1985 destroyed part of the facilities (including some of the tape archives) of Televisa, the network that held the rights to the series. Home copies of some episodes that were recorded prior to 1985 in formats such as Betamax (home tapes were not as common then) have been posted online. Although the dub's master tapes were permanently lost, a redub of the entire series was made in 2013 that aired on the Mexico City channel Cadenatres (now known as Imagen TV) until 2015.

** As of this writing, the entire run of ''The Cosby Show'' is still available for streaming on Amazon Prime, as are ‘’The Bill Cosby Show’’ and ''Cosby''. His Nick Jr. series ''WesternAnimation/LittleBill'' is still available, but only on a pay-per-episode basis on Vudu. As of Dec 2018, the show has resumed airing on TVOne.

* ''Series/AllegrasWindow'' has only six long out-of-print VHS tapes that each last ''no more than 30 minutes'' and are mostly expensive. Fortunately, the first season is available on iTunes and Prime Video, and the series was added to Creator/ParamountPlus in 2021.

* All three seasons of 1967-1968 series ''Series/TheRevenueMen'', about a British government team investigating smuggling and people trafficking, are believed to be completely lost.

*** Music/GaryGlitter appeared as a guest presenter on multiple episodes throughout TheNineties. After being arrested and convicted for possessing child pornography on his computer in 1997, all episodes featuring him were removed from rotation; his later arrests and convictions for soliciting sex from minors in southeast Asia ensured that these episodes' absence from airwaves would be permanent.
*** When allegations were made against Dave Lee Travis (who, unlike Savile, was still alive at the time) his episodes were also withdrawn, permanently after he was convicted.
*** The late Mike Smith's episodes also aren't being played, but for completely less controversial reasons: Smith chose not to sign licence extensions to permit rebroadcast. The fact that every news report on the Savile scandal used clips of the one episode he co-hosted with him may have influenced that decision.
*** Episodes hosted by Adrian Rose who presented between 1991 and 1992 also can't be aired because he didn't sign the licence extension allowing his shows to be rebroadcast
*** Episodes featuring Jonathan King hosting a US charts segment were edited to remove him while he was being investigated by the police between 2015 and 2018 (King had previously been convicted for child abuse in 2001). This occasionally also removed other performances as he sometimes linked back to a performance happening back in the UK.
*** 1990s episodes featuring Music/RKelly have been edited for similar reasons. It is assumed if episodes from the 2000s are repeated, performances by Music/{{Lostprophets}} will also be removed.

*** Episodes hosted by Dave Lee Travis (1972-84), due to his groping conviction.
*** Episodes hosted by Mike Smith (1982-88), who was due to sign a licensing agreement to permit rebroadcasts when the Savile revelations happened and every news report used footage of the one episode they presented together. He then blocked all footage of any of his shows being used and passed away before the reruns got to his episodes, meaning the episodes are still blocked today.
*** Episodes hosted by Adrian Rose (1991-92) due to him not signing the licensing agreement allowing his episodes to be rebroadcast. As a result many performances including the infamous Music/{{Nirvana}} performance cannot be shown in its original context.
*** Episodes featuring Jonathan King hosting a US charts segment are edited to remove him due to his pedophilia convictions. This occasionally also removes other performances as he sometimes linked back to a performance happening back in the UK.
*** Episodes featuring performances by convicted pedophile Music/GaryGlitter (who later hosted the show Three times in TheNineties) are edited to remove him (unless he appears during the UK chart rundown). Prior to the Savile revelations, his footage was left intact since it was felt that enough time had passed and he did not earn any royalties from the reruns.
*** Episodes featuring performances by Rolf Harris are edited for similar reasons. It is assumed if episodes from the 2000's are re-run, then performances by Music/{{Lostprophets}} will also be removed.

** ''Nickel Flicks'' is another example. It was the first show to be created after Nickelodeon launched and also the first show to be cancelled on the network. It showed serials from the 1920s–40s, in addition to early comic one-reelers and silent short films. There were host segments to talk about the serials by John Moschitta, who later on became famous as the "World's Fastest Talker" in FedEX commercials and was his first onscreen appearance. While we do know and have the serials, the host segments have never been released as the original masters were stolen in a storage unit.

* ''Series/GettingTogether'' has never been aired since 1972 or released on home media, although episodes occasionally turn up on Website/EBay.

* ''The New Addams Family'', aired on Fox Family, has never been released on DVD, or even VHS, in North America, as the rights are now tied up with Disney (owner of co-producer Saban's library), Corus Entertainment, and the Creator/CharlesAddams estate. The only DVD release was [[NoExportForYou from the UK]] as a 2-disc set containing the first eight episodes. Its pilot film, ''Addams Family Reunion'', hasn't fared much better, having only been released on VHS, which is now out-of-print and fairly pricey on [=eBay=].

** According to Website/ThatOtherWiki, the only episode to get a video release was "Bad Timing" (the one where the older son, played by Creator/JasonBateman, and his GirlOfTheWeek contemplate having sex[[note]]it marked the first primetime usage of the word "condom" and was preceded with ContentWarnings suggesting that younger viewers watch with their parents - and this was back in 1987[[/note]]), released "especially for teachers and health educators to use as a tool to promote safe sex"; nowadays even ''that'' can't be found on [=eBay=].

* ''Series/SaturdayNightLive''. Season sets, as opposed to best-of compilations, finally saw the light of day in 2009, with the music rights sorted out for each episode to air uncut. However, the boxsets stalled at season five (1979 to 1980 season; the last one featuring the remnants of the "Not Ready for Primetime" players and featuring Creator/HarryShearer before he did voicework on ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''). The next couple of seasons constitute are usually considered best left unreleased (particularly season six, which is often cited as ''SNL'''s worst season ever). Netflix had ''Saturday Night Live'' episodes from 1975 to the end of season 38 (2012-2013)[[note]]that's around 740-odd episodes[[/note]], but only the 1970s episodes are shown uncut and uncensored. The episodes in the 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s collections are edited to remove music and sketches that are either not funny, have been cut due to controversy [[note]](the Martin Lawrence monologue still has the bumpers that explain that the second half of Martin's monologue will never be shown again due to how disgusting it was and how the show was nearly canceled because of it)[[/note]], or have licensing/copyright issues [[note]](mostly with music, though some sketches that have popular music on them will have it either dubbed out or replaced with a generic soundalike)[[/note]]. Now, Netflix has dropped the 1970s and 1980s collections. The Canadian feed of Netflix had the 1990s (but only from season 20 to season 25) and the 2000s collection (from season 26 to 33) until Valentine's Day (February 14) 2014, while the American feed has the 2010s collection of ''SNL'' episodes and only has seasons 37 (2011-2012) and season 38 (season 2012-2013) as of this writing.

** Sketches can be removed even after a day (when ''SNL'' appears on [=XFinity=] On-Demand or Hulu), especially if they have copyrighted music. The Music/LadyGaga hosted episode of 2013 had several sketches (including her opening monologue and the bittersweet sketch where Lady Gaga appears as an old woman named Mrs. Germanotta[[note]]Lady Gaga's real name is Stefani Germanotta[[/note]] who tries to convince her landlord that she used to be known for her songs "Poker Face" and "Bad Romance" and for her bizarre costumes and stage shows) removed when the episode was uploaded to Hulu the next day.

[[folder:SKY UK]]

* ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Strangerers The Strangerers]]'' (sic) was a science fiction comedy-drama made for Creator/SkyOne, starring Mark Williams and Jack Docherty and written by [[Series/RedDwarf Rob Grant]]. Sky cancelled the show after one season and has never repeated it (and Sky repeats ''everything''), or released it on DVD.

* Season 3 of ''Series/OnceAndAgain'', thanks to music licensing issues.

* ABC's 50th Anniversary Celebration was a special that aired in 2003 that showcased ABC's shows for the past 50 years. Due to copyright issues with the shows and footage, don't expect a DVD Release anytime soon. The special is available on Website/YouTube, however.

* ''Series/VengeanceUnlimited''.