D’oh!
One of the biggest TV tropes has always been the TV dad. Usually hard working and downtrodden, he’s the everyday hero we love to love.
While there is no end of amazing shows and therefore amazing dads, I would be here all year if I tried to list them all. Instead, I’ve picked ten of my all-time favourite tv dads, from shows new and old.
Homer Simpson
The first TV dad that always comes to mind first for just about everyone is Homer Simpson from The Simpsons.
The Springfield resident and father of three, Homer struggles to find the perfect balance in life and often gets himself into trouble with his boss Mr.Burns and wife Marge.
He may be clumsy and forgetful, but he has a heart of gold and in one episode holds down several jobs just to buy his daughter Lisa a pony.
Red Forman
https://www.instagram.com/p/BjipMlCHIMy/?tagged=redforman
Red doesn’t know what’s gone wrong but he’s pretty sure it’s Nixon’s fault.
The straight-shooting That 70s Show dad isn’t afraid to tell others, particularly his son Eric just how it is.
Often seen as a hard-ass, Red shows a softer side when he informally adopts Hyde after his mother abandoned him.
He still thinks he’s a dumb ass though.
Uncle Phil
Not to be confused with Dr.Phil, Uncle Phil was one of the most iconic father figures of the 1990s.
When Phil and his wife Viv, take in Viv’s nephew Will, in The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Phil’s once quiet life gets a whole lot more interesting.
Though a lot of times exasperating with Will’s shenanigans he sees him through times good and bad.
In one tough episode, Phil comforts a broken-hearted Will after his dad, who promised to take him to live with him, abandons him for the second time in his life.
Tobias Funke
https://www.instagram.com/p/1yPVa4KK1T/?tagged=mrsfeatherbottom
Tobias is far from the usual father.
The Arrested Development psychiatrist come actor often lets his notions of becoming world famous get in the way of spending time with his daughter, Maeby.
From his ill-fated attempts to join the Blue Man Group to his tragic Fantastic Four inspired musical his acting career is a disaster.
The best has to be when he badly tries to do a Mrs.Doubtfire and pretends to be a housekeeping to get access to his daughter.
Wayne Fields
https://www.instagram.com/p/BX4WGz6hFoP/?tagged=waynefields
Decent dads were in short supply on Pretty Little Liars. Most had cheated on their wives or been involved in some kind of fraudulent activity.
Then there is Wayne Fields.
Honourable, considerate and unconditionally loving, Wayne goes above and beyond for his wife and daughter, Emily.
Though a pretty conservative guy, he supports Emily when she tells him she’s gay. In one episode he even flies all the way from Texas to Pennsylvania just to take her to a father and daughter dance.
He really is the loveliest.
Al Bundy
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bj42NSVHiAD/?tagged=albundy
Nobody quite sums up the downtrodden dad like Al Bundy.
We all know Al from Married… With Children.
He works a thankless job that he hates, he can’t get a break from his wife and kids and his neighbours drive him crazy.
Every so often life goes his way but it’s few and far between.
Jim Hopper
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bj47D0SB7M9/?tagged=jimhopper
Before you ask why Steve is not on the list, unfortunately, he’s not actually a dad, we just wish he was.
Jim Hopper the moody, chain-smoking Stranger Things detective in a small town with big problems. One of those problems is a young girl who has been experimented on, and after escaping the lab she was held in, needs a new home.
Having lost his own daughter to illness, Hopper adopts Eleven, later named Jane and proves there’s a big heart underneath all those guns.
Hal Wilkerson
https://www.instagram.com/p/BdlCPwThoO-/?tagged=halwilkerson
Hal is a sunny side up kind of guy just trying to get through this thing called life.
The Malcolm in the Middle, father of five, Hal and his wife Lois try their best to keep a roof over their heads without pulling all of their hair out.
Saying that it takes a lot to bring down Hal Wilkerson as we see in season one when he dons his roller skates and shows us all how it’s done.
Richard Gilmore
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bitj82zAK-z/?tagged=richardgilmore
Father of Lorelai and grandfather to Rory, Richard Gilmore is the ultimate pipe-smoking, bowtie-wearing dad. Let’s face it without Richard the Gilmore Girls wouldn’t have it’s Gilmore.
Though he and Lorelai have had their ups and downs, he tirelessly stood up for her and was always there to help when she needed him.
Extremely doting to Rory he even had a painted portrait of her hanging pride of place in his study.
One particularly memorable scene was when he ate the head of Michem Huntzberger after he told Rory to give up pursuing journalism which led to her leaving university. Nobody takes on Richard the Lionheart.
Jack Geller
One of the most underrated characters from Friends, Jack Geller, Ross and Monica’s dad is comedy gold.
Between him wanting to get in on this ‘sundried tomato business’ and asking to be buried at sea because he thought the family would be able to make a day of it, it’s hard not to love to laugh at Jack.
As well as being hilarious he’s also a fantastic dad and grandfather which leads to Monica naming her son, Jack, after him.
