Steptoe and Son (1962)

Ron Grainer's Old Ned is a jaunty, slightly creaky tune that trots along like the rag-and-bone cart it was written for. It sounds cheerful until you notice the melancholy under the bounce, which is the whole sitcom in two minutes: father and son stuck together, laughing so they do not cry. Grainer won an Ivor Novello Award for it, and it is a good one to hear next to his Doctor Who theme, written the following year. Few composers have given British television two such different tunes that nobody can forget.