The technique of television microscopy is the only available technique for the direct quantitative measurement of skin capillary blood flow. Television microscopy has applications in both research and clinical practice, and has attracted considerable interest from clinical groups attempting to study capillary blood flow. The critical requirements for a functioning system are difficult to ascertain from the published literature. The aim of this article is therefore to describe the individual components of a television microscope system, outline the current methods of analysis and briefly describe some of the clinical applications of television microscopy.