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The 2003 Spooks episode I Spy Apocalypse

The show kicks off with the Spooks team confined while undergoing a drill concerning a fictional terrorist event, monitored by two government representatives. As events unfold, it appears that there really has been an attack with a chemical weapon released. The tension ratchets up as messages indicate a crisis unfolding beyond their walls, and intensifies as the superior shows signs of exposure, and the two Home Office officials attempt to leave, forcing Matthew Macfadyen’s character to decide between shooting them or permitting their exit and potentially infecting the secure MI5 headquarters. Given it’s Spooks, the outcome is expected.

Threads (1984)

The production was inexpensive but arguably the most terrifying series I have viewed owing to its grim authenticity and bleak government data. Saw it not long ago having watched the original; I used to visit the pub in Sheffield from the programme which emphasised the reality and the offhand factual official statements which was broadcast. Still absolutely terrifying 35 years later.

Severance – The We We Are from 2022

The concluding episode of Severance’s debut season deserves a top spot among intense episodes. I remained for the whole show actually sitting tensely, pushing alongside Dylan to hold the switches that allowed the Innies to remain active, while shouting to the Innies to get their truths out there. The concluding高潮 – “she’s alive!” – was like an eruption.

Industry – White Mischief from 2024

Installment five in Industry’s third series caused my heart to pound. I had to pause and get up and depart the area multiple times because of the sheer scale of the reckless self-harm I observed. Rishi Ramdani is in major difficulty in his job and domestic life – buried in financial obligations to illegal creditors due to his addictive betting, assuming hazardous chances with a gamble on the pound that might cost his firm millions. Inevitably, he starts a gaming binge, consumes excessive substances and alcohol and experiences wins and losses, gets beaten to a pulp. Whenever you assume it can’t get any worse, it worsens. Redemption seems possible by the episode’s conclusion but he squanders the opportunity, with horrifying consequences in the season finale. Certainly required a rest afterward!

The 2007 Peep Show episode Holiday

Peep Show itself isn’t necessarily a stressful show. Yet the installment Holiday features such degrees of awkwardness that it’ll have you standing up throughout the entire episode, filled with nervousness. It all ramps up as Jeremy and Mark discover having to lie about the dog they accidentally run over and subsequent attempts to dispose of it. You then spend the rest of the episode doubting if it can actually be more terrible than burning, and it can be!

The West Wing – The Two Cathedrals from 2001

No other viewing has been as gripping than the first time I watched the second season finale of The West Wing. The episode starts with the aftermath of the death (in a traffic accident) of the president’s confidential aide and builds to a peak with a crisis in Haiti, and the repercussions of the secrecy of the president’s MS diagnosis, coupled with verification of his aim to seek re-election. Superb programming. Never bettered.

Bodyguard – episode one (2018)

The start of the British program Bodyguard, with the hero aboard a train with his young son, is for me one of the most intense episodes ever. He observes a woman in Islamic attire going into the loo and knows something is off. The explosive disposal specialists are summoned, get on the train, and try to persuade the woman to discard her bomb jacket. Suspense rises to an almost unbearable degree, until, indeed, the vest is disarmed.

The 2001 Buffy episode The Body

Buffy enters her house to find her mum has passed away of natural causes, which is the most unusual type of death in this paranormal series. The show features no musical score, a gloomy atmosphere, and we view the installment through the lens of Buffy’s astonishment upon finding her mother.

The 2007 The Sopranos finale Made in America

The concluding moment of the last installment of the show was pants-wettingly tense. And if you viewed it when it first premiered, you – initially – were uncertain of the reason. Tony’s adversaries, actual and perceived, were all overcome. Surely this has the feel of the season one ending? “Recall the minor details.” However, the vibe is oddly threatening. Approaching Twin Peaks-esque horror. The clan sits in an eatery. Meadow finds a parking spot. Tony gloomily informs Carmela there’s trouble afoot with yet another of his crew cooperating with the officials. Meadow parks the vehicle. Strange people enter the restaurant. Look at Tony(?) Meadow is parking. Tony selects a song on the jukebox. Meadow parks her car. The bell rings, someone enters the restaurant. Can’t be Meadow, she’s still parking. Tony looks up. Don’t stop. It stops. My heart dropped from my mouth roughly 20 minutes after.

The Walking Dead – The Last Day on Earth from 2016

I kept late hours to see this show in the early morning. It was so intense following the introduction of villain Negan finding the group, cruelly taunting his victims then not knowing who he killed (concluded with a suspenseful moment). The first-person perspective of the victim and the muffled sounds – argh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season