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Spooks – I Spy Apocalypse (2003)

This installment starts with the intelligence unit confined during a training exercise about a potential terror incident, monitored by two government representatives. As the situation develops, it appears that there really has been an attack and a chemical weapon has been unleashed. The suspense builds as reports reveal a catastrophe taking place outside, and escalates as the boss appears to be infected, with the two officials trying to exit, pushing the protagonist portrayed by Matthew Macfadyen to opt for either shooting them or letting them go and potentially infecting the secure MI5 headquarters. As this is Spooks, the outcome is expected.

Threads (1984)

Threads was low budget but one of the most frightening programmes I’ve ever seen because of the stark reality and dismal official figures. Watched it about a month ago having watched the original; I used to visit the pub in Sheffield shown in the series which emphasised the reality and the casual, straightforward government details that were transmitted. Continuing to be utterly horrifying decades on.

The 2022 Severance episode The We We Are

The first season finale of Severance deserves a top spot among intense episodes. I was throughout the episode quite literally on the edge of my seat, exerting with Dylan to maintain his grip on the controls that sustained the Innies’ extended time, while screaming at the Innies to reveal their realities. The concluding高潮 – “she survives!” – was like an eruption.

Industry – White Mischief (2024)

Installment five in Industry’s third series made my pulse quicken. I needed to stop and stand and exit the space repeatedly because of the sheer scale of the reckless self-harm I saw. Rishi Ramdani is in major difficulty at work and home – overwhelmed by debt from unscrupulous lenders because of his compulsive gambling, engaging in dangerous ventures with a bet on sterling which may result in huge losses for his employer. Naturally, he embarks on a betting frenzy, does tons of drugs and drink and experiences wins and losses, is severely assaulted. Whenever you assume it can’t get any worse, it deteriorates. Redemption seems possible as the installment closes but he squanders the opportunity, resulting in dreadful effects during the season’s final episode. Definitely needed a lie-down after that!

The 2007 Peep Show episode Holiday

The series Peep Show isn’t typically anxiety-inducing. But the episode Holiday includes such amounts of embarrassment that it will make you rise throughout the entire episode, filled with nervousness. The situation intensifies as Jeremy and Mark discover needing to deceive regarding the dog they unintentionally hit and later efforts to get rid of it. You then spend the rest of the episode doubting if it can actually be more terrible than burning, and it turns out to be!

The 2001 The West Wing episode The Two Cathedrals

Nothing I have seen has been as tense compared to my initial viewing the concluding episode of The West Wing’s second season. The show opens with the fallout of the death (in a traffic accident) of the president’s confidential aide and builds to a peak with a situation in Haiti, and the fallout from the non-disclosure regarding the president’s multiple sclerosis diagnosis, with confirmation of his intention to run for another term. Wonderful television. Never bettered.

The 2018 Bodyguard premiere episode

The opening of the British series Bodyguard, with the hero aboard a train with his young son, ranks among the most gripping episodes I’ve seen. He observes a woman in Islamic attire heading to the toilet and senses something is wrong. The bomb squad is alerted, enter the train, and endeavor to coax the woman to take off her suicide vest. Anxiety builds to a practically unendurable point, until, finally, the vest is neutralized.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer – The Body (2001)

Buffy comes into her home to discover her mother has died due to natural factors, which is the rarest form of demise in this paranormal series. The episode has no background music, a gloomy atmosphere, and we see the episode through the experience of Buffy’s shock of discovering her mother.

The 2007 The Sopranos finale Made in America

The ultimate sequence of the series finale of the series was extremely nerve-wracking. And if you viewed it when it first premiered, you – initially – were uncertain of the reason. Tony’s enemies, real and imagined, were all vanquished. Doesn’t this resemble the season one conclusion? “Think about the small elements.” Yet the atmosphere is strangely foreboding. Approaching Twin Peaks-esque horror. The family gathers in a diner. Meadow finds a parking spot. Tony gloomily informs Carmela difficulties are arising with another member of his team collaborating with the authorities. Meadow secures a parking space. Unfamiliar individuals come into the diner. Gaze at Tony(?) Meadow parks. Tony plays a track on the music machine. Meadow finds a spot. The door chimes, a person comes in. It cannot be Meadow, she is still parking. Tony glances upward. Don’t stop. It ceases. My heart sank roughly 20 minutes after.

The Walking Dead – The Last Day on Earth (2016)

I stayed up to watch this episode at 2am. It was incredibly tense following the introduction of villain Negan locating the survivors, cruelly taunting his victims then not knowing who he killed (ended on a cliffhanger). The victim’s POV shot and the muted audio – oh no! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season