<PAGE>   1
    As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 27, 1998.

                                                    Registration No. 333-_______
================================================================================

                       SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
                            WASHINGTON, D.C.  20549

                                ----------------

                                    FORM S-8
                        REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE
                             SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

                                ----------------

                               TCA CABLE TV, INC.

             (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

      Texas                                            75-1798185
(State or other jurisdiction of         (I.R.S. employer identification number)
incorporation or organization)

                               3015 SSE Loop 323
                               Tyler, Texas 75701
                    (Address of principal executive offices)

                                ----------------

                             TCA CABLE 401(K) PLAN
                            (Full title of the Plan)

                                ----------------

                                FRED R. NICHOLS
                               3015 SSE Loop 323
                               Tyler, Texas 75701

        (Name and address of agent for service of agent for service)
 
                               (903) 595-3701
                    (Telephone number, including area code,
                             of agent for service)

                                ----------------

                                    COPY TO:
                               JAMES S. RYAN, III
                            Jackson & Walker, L.L.P.
                                901 Main Street
                                   Suite 6000
                              Dallas, Texas  75202

                        CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
======================================================================================================================
                                                                                       Proposed
                Title of                       Amount         Proposed Maximum         Maximum             Amount of
               Securities                       to be          Offering Price     Aggregate Offering      Registration
            to be Registered                 Registered        Per Share (1)          Price (1)             Fee (1)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 <S>          <C>                          <C>                     <C>                <C>                  <C>
 Common Stock, $.10 par value              150,000 shares          $56.75             $8,512,500           $2,511.19
======================================================================================================================
</TABLE>

(1)      Estimated solely for the purpose of calculating the registration fee.
         Pursuant to Rule 457(c) and 457(h), registration fee is based on a
         price of $56.75 per share, which price is an average of the high and
         low prices of the Common Stock on the National Association of
         Securities Dealers Automated Quotation National Market System on March
         23, 1998.  In addition, pursuant to Rule 416 (c) under the Securities
         Act of 1933, this registration statement also covers an indeterminate
         amount of interests to be offered or sold pursuant to the employee
         benefit plan described herein.

(2)      Pursuant to General Instruction E of Form S-8, with respect to the
         shares registered under the TCA Cable 401(k) Plan (formerly, the TCA
         Deferred Savings and Retirement Plan), this Registration Statement
         incorporates by reference the contents of the Registrant's
         Registration Statement Nos. 33-55895, 33-49172 and 33-21901 on Form
         S-8, including all exhibits attached thereto.


<PAGE>   2
                                    PART II

              INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT

ITEM 3.  INCORPORATION OF DOCUMENTS BY REFERENCE.

         The following documents, which have been filed with the Commission by
TCA Cable TV, Inc. (the "Company"), are incorporated herein by reference and
made a part hereof:

                 (i)  Annual Report of the Company on Form 10-K for the year
         ended October 31, 1997 (the "Annual Report");

                 (ii)  Quarterly Report of the Company on Form 10-Q for the
         quarterly period ended January 31, 1998; and

                 (iii)  Annual Report of the TCA Cable 401(k) Plan on Form 11-K
         for the fiscal year ended December 31, 1996; and

                 (iv)  All other reports filed with the Commission pursuant to
         Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
         amended (the "Exchange Act"), since the end of the fiscal year covered
         by the documents referred to in the Annual Report; and

                 (v)  Description of the Common Stock contained in the
         Company's Registration Statement on Form S-1 (No.  2-75516) and
         Registration Statement on Form 8-A (No. 2-88892), effective as of
         March 17, 1984.

         All documents filed by the Company pursuant to Sections 13(a), 13(c),
14 and 15(d) of the Exchange Act subsequent to the date of this Registration
Statement and prior to the filing of a post-effective amendment that indicates
that all of the Common Stock offered hereunder has been sold or which
deregisters all of such Common Stock then remaining unsold, shall be deemed to
be incorporated by reference herein and to be a part hereof from the date of
filing of such documents.

         Any statement contained in a document incorporated or deemed to be
incorporated by reference herein shall be deemed to be modified or superseded
for purposes of this Registration Statement to the extent that a statement
contained herein or in any other subsequently filed document which also is or
is deemed to be incorporated by reference herein modifies or supersedes such
statement.  Any such statement so modified or superseded shall not be deemed,
except as so modified or superseded, to constitute a part of this Registration
Statement.
<PAGE>   3
ITEM 4.  DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES.

         Not applicable.

ITEM 5.  INTERESTS OF NAMED EXPERTS AND COUNSEL.

         Not applicable.

ITEM 6.  INDEMNIFICATION OF DIRECTORS AND OFFICERS.

         The Company is a Texas corporation and the Texas Business Corporation
Act ("TBCA") empowers a corporation organized thereunder to indemnify its
directors and officers or former directors and officers and to purchase
insurance with respect to liability arising out of their capacity or status as
directors and officers.

         Reference is made to Article IX and Article VII, Section 8 of the
Company's Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws, respectively, which provide for
indemnification of officers and directors except as to certain circumstances
and except as provided by applicable law.

         Additionally, Article XIII of the Company's Articles of Incorporation
limits the liability of directors of the Company to the Company or its
stockholders (in their capacity as directors but not in their capacity as
officers) to the fullest extent permitted by the TBCA.  The effect of such
Article XIII (based on the TBCA as of the date of this Registration Statement)
is that the directors of the Company will not be personally liable for monetary
damages for breach of a director's fiduciary duty as a director, except for
liability (i) for any breach of the director's duty of loyalty to the Company
or its stockholders, (ii) for acts or omissions not in good faith or which
involve intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law, (iii) for a
transaction from which a director received an improper benefit whether or not
the benefit resulted from an action taken within the scope of the director's
office, or (iv) for an act related to an unlawful stock repurchase or payment
of a dividend.

         Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the
Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers or persons controlling
the Company pursuant to the foregoing provisions, the Company has been informed
that in the opinion of the Commission, such indemnification is against public
policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is therefore unenforceable.

ITEM 7.  EXEMPTION FROM REGISTRATION CLAIMED.

         Not applicable.
<PAGE>   4

ITEM 8.  EXHIBITS.

         The following is a list of all exhibits filed as a part of this
Registration Statement on Form S-8, including those incorporated herein by
reference.

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
Exhibit
Number      Description of Exhibit
-------     ----------------------
<S>         <C>
4.1         Articles of Incorporation of the Company.(1)

4.2         Articles of Amendment to Articles of Incorporation of the
            Registrant.(2)
            
4.3         Articles of Amendment to Articles of Incorporation of the 
            Registrant.(2)

4.4         Bylaws of the Registrant.(1)

4.5         Form of Stock Certificate.(1)

5           Opinion of Jackson Walker L.L.P.(5)

15          None.

23.1        Consent of Coopers & Lybrand, L.L.P.(5)
             
23.2        Consent of Jackson Walker L.L.P. (included in the opinion of
            Jackson Walker L.L.P. filed as Exhibit 5).(5)

24          Power of Attorney (included in Part II hereof).(5)

99          TCA Cable 401(k) Plan.(4)
            
------------
</TABLE>

(1)      Previously filed as an exhibit to the Registrant's Registration
         Statement on Form S-1, File No. 2-76516 dated as of March 16, 1982 and
         incorporated herein by reference.

(2)      Previously filed as an exhibit to the Registrant's Registration
         Statement on Form S-8, File No. 33-21901 dated as of May 16, 1988, and
         incorporated herein by reference.

(3)      Previously filed as an exhibit to the Registrant's Registration
         Statement on Form S-8, File No. 33-55895 dated as of October 7, 1994,
         and incorporated herein by reference.

(4)      Previously filed as an exhibit to the TCA Cable 401(k) Plan's Annual
         Report on Form 11-K filed on the date hereof.

(5)      Filed herewith.

<PAGE>   5
ITEM 9.  UNDERTAKINGS.

    (a)         The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes:

                (1)  To file, during any period in which offers or sales are
         being made, a post-effective amendment to this registration statement:

                                  (i)      To include any prospectus required
                 by section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended;

                                  (ii)     To reflect in the prospectus any
                 facts or events arising after the effective date of the
                 registration statement (or the most recent post-effective
                 amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate,
                 represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in
                 the registration statement.  Notwithstanding the foregoing,
                 any increase or decrease in volume of securities offered (if
                 the total dollar value of securities offered would not exceed
                 that which was registered) and any deviation from the low or
                 high end of the estimated maximum offering range may be
                 reflected in the form of prospectus filed with the Commission
                 pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes in
                 volume and price represent no more than a 20% change in the
                 maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the "Calculation
                 of Registration Fee" table in the effective registration
                 statement;

                                  (iii)    To include any material information
                 with respect to the plan of distribution not previously
                 disclosed in the registration statement or any material change
                 to such information in the registration statement;

         Provided, however, that paragraphs (a)(1)(i) and (a)(1)(ii) do not
         apply if the information required to be included in a post-effective
         amendment by those paragraphs is contained in periodic reports filed
         by the Company pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange
         Act of 1934, as amended, that are incorporated by reference in the
         registration statement.

                 (2)      That, for the purpose of determining any liability
         under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, each such post-effective
         amendment shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating
         to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities
         at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering
         thereof.

                 (3)      To remove from registration by means of a
         post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered which
         remain unsold at the termination of the offering.

     (b)         The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes that, for
purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, as
amended, each filing of the registrant's annual report pursuant to Section
13(a) or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, that is
incorporated by reference in the registration statement shall be deemed to be a
new registration
<PAGE>   6
statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such
securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering
thereof.

     (c)         Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the
Securities Act of 1933, as amended, may be permitted to directors, officers and
controlling persons of the registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or
otherwise, the registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the
Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is against public
policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable.  In
the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than
the payment by the registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director,
officer or controlling person of the registrant in the successful defense of
any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or
controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the
registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been
settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction
the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as
expressed in the Securities Act and will be governed by the final adjudication
of such issue.
<PAGE>   7
                                   SIGNATURES

         Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as
amended, the Registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe
that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form S-8 and has duly
caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of Tyler, State of Texas on
the 26th day of March, 1998.

                                       TCA CABLE TV, INC.


                                   By:  /s/  Fred R. Nichols 
                                       -----------------------------------------
                                       Fred R. Nichols, Chief Executive Officer,
                                       Chairman of the Board and President
                                       (Principal Executive Officer)


                               POWER OF ATTORNEY

         Each person whose signature appears below authorizes Fred R. Nichols
and Jimmie F. Taylor, and each of them, each of whom may act without joinder of
the other, to execute in the name of each such person who is then an officer or
director of the Registrant, and to file any amendments to this Registration
Statement necessary or advisable to enable the Registrant to comply with the
Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and any rules, regulations and requirements
of the Commission, in respect thereof, in connection with the registration of
the securities which are the subject of this Registration Statement, which
amendments may make such changes in such Registration Statement as such
attorney may deem appropriate.
<PAGE>   8
         Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as
amended, this Registration Statement has been signed by the following persons
in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
Signature                           Title                                          Date
---------                           -----                                          ----
<S>                                 <C>                                            <C>
   /s/ Fred R. Nichols              Chief Executive Officer, Chairman of the       March 24, 1998
-------------------------------     Board and President
Fred R. Nichols                     (Principal Executive Officer)


   /s/ J. Taylor                    Vice President, Chief Financial Officer        March 24, 1998
-------------------------------     and Treasurer
Jimmie F. Taylor                    (Principal Accounting and Financial
                                    Officer)


                                    Director                                       
-------------------------------                                                                  
Fred W. Smith


  /s/ Wayne J. McKinney             Director                                       March 24, 1998
----------------------------                                                                     
Wayne J. McKinney


  /s/ Ben R. Fisch, M.D.            Director                                       March 24, 1998
------------------------------                                                                   
Ben R. Fisch, M.D.


                                    Director
-------------------------------             
Kenneth S. Gunter


  /s/ Randall K. Rogers             Director                                       March 24, 1998
------------------------------                                                                   
Randall K. Rogers


  /s/ A. W. Riter, Jr.              Director                                       March 24, 1998
-------------------------------                                                                  
A. W. Riter, Jr.


  /s/ James F. Ackerman             Director                                       March 24, 1998
-----------------------------                                                                    
James F. Ackerman
</TABLE>
<PAGE>   9

<TABLE>
<S>                                 <C>                                           <C>
   /s/ DARRELL CAMPBELL             Director                                      March 24, 1998
-------------------------------                 
Darrell Campbell


  /s/ ROBERT B. HOLLAND, III        Director                                      March 24, 1998
-------------------------------
Robert B. Holland, III
                                                                                   

 /s/ Michael S. Shannon    
------------------------------      Director                                       March 24, 1998
Michael Shannon
</TABLE>

<PAGE>   10
THE PLAN

         Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the Plan
has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of Tyler, State of Texas,
on the 26th day of March, 1998.

                                                TCA CABLE 401(K) PLAN (the Plan)

                                                By: TCA Compensation Committee



                                                By: /S/ A. W. RITER, JR.
                                                   ----------------------------
                                                    Committee Member





<PAGE>   11
                               INDEX TO EXHIBITS

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
Exhibit No.                     Exhibit
-----------                     -------
<S>              <C>
4.1         Articles of Incorporation of the Company.(1)

4.2         Articles of Amendment to Articles of Incorporation of the
            Registrant.(2)
            
4.3         Articles of Amendment to Articles of Incorporation of the 
            Registrant.(2)

4.4         Bylaws of the Registrant.(1)

4.5         Form of Stock Certificate.(1)

5           Opinion of Jackson Walker L.L.P.(5)

15          None.

23.1        Consent of Coopers & Lybrand, L.L.P.(5)
             
23.2        Consent of Jackson Walker L.L.P. (included in the opinion of
            Jackson Walker L.L.P. filed as Exhibit 5).(5)

24          Power of Attorney (included in Part II hereof).(5)

99          TCA Cable 401(k) Plan.(4)

------------
</TABLE>

(1)              Previously filed as an exhibit to the Registrant's
                 Registration Statement on Form S-1, File No. 2-76516 dated as
                 of March 16, 1982 and incorporated herein by reference.

(2)              Previously filed as an exhibit to the Registrant's
                 Registration Statement on Form S-8, File No. 33- 21901 dated
                 as of May 16, 1988, and incorporated herein by reference.

(3)              Previously filed as an exhibit to the Registrant's
                 Registration Statement on Form S-8, File No. 33- 55895 dated
                 as of October 7, 1994, and incorporated herein by reference.

(4)              Previously filed as an exhibit to the TCA Cable 401(k) Plan's
                 Annual Report on Form 11-K filed on the date hereof.

(5)              Filed herewith.