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The 2003 Spooks episode I Spy Apocalypse

The episode begins with the MI5 agents confined as part of a simulation relating to a hypothetical terrorist attack, overseen by two Home Office officials. As the situation develops, it becomes clear a real incident has taken place and a chemical agent deployed. The tension ratchets up as messages indicate a catastrophe taking place outside, and gets worse when the leader seems contaminated, and the two Home Office officials attempt to leave, pushing the protagonist portrayed by Matthew Macfadyen to opt for either shooting them or permitting their exit and endangering the sterile MI5 environment. Given it’s Spooks, his decision is predictable.

The 1984 production Threads

Threads was low budget but one of the most frightening programmes I have ever watched owing to its grim authenticity and dismal official figures. Viewed it recently following the initial broadcast; I frequently went to the Sheffield pub featured in the show which emphasised the reality and the casual, straightforward government details that aired. Still absolutely terrifying after three and a half decades.

Severance – The We We Are from 2022

The first season finale of Severance has to be right up there as a tense chapter. I was throughout the episode literally perched nervously, pushing alongside Dylan to maintain his grip on the controls that kept the Innies on overtime, while yelling at the Innies to reveal their realities. The ultimate peak – “she is living!” – resembled a outburst.

Industry – White Mischief from 2024

Installment five in Industry’s third series had my heart racing. I needed to stop and stand and leave the room several times because of the sheer scale of the deliberate ruin I was witnessing. Rishi Ramdani is in major difficulty professionally and personally – overwhelmed by debt to illegal creditors owing to his uncontrollable gaming, engaging in dangerous ventures with a gamble on the pound which may result in huge losses for his employer. Naturally, he embarks on a betting frenzy, uses copious drugs and alcohol and experiences wins and losses, is brutally attacked. Every time you think it can’t get any worse, it deteriorates. There’s hope of redemption by the episode’s conclusion but he squanders the opportunity, leading to terrible outcomes in the season finale. Definitely needed a lie-down after that!

Peep Show – Holiday (2007)

The series Peep Show isn’t typically anxiety-inducing. However, the Holiday episode contains such levels of cringe that it’ll have you standing up for the full show, filled with nervousness. The tension escalates as Jeremy and Mark discover having to lie about the dog they accidentally run over and following tries to eliminate it. You then spend the rest of the episode questioning whether it truly can be worse than incineration, and it is possible!

The West Wing – The Two Cathedrals from 2001

Nothing I have seen has been as tense than the first time I watched the season two finale to The West Wing. The installment begins with the consequences of the demise (in a car crash) of the president’s private assistant and escalates to a高潮 involving a Haitian emergency, and the fallout from the non-disclosure of the president’s MS diagnosis, along with affirmation of his plan to seek re-election. Excellent TV. Unsurpassed.

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 entering the restroom and knows something is off. The bomb squad is alerted, board the train, and attempt to convince the woman to take off her suicide vest. Suspense rises to a nearly intolerable level, until yes, the vest is diffused.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer – The Body (2001)

Buffy comes into her home to find her mum has passed away due to natural factors, which is the rarest form of demise in this supernatural show. The show features no musical score, a gloomy atmosphere, and we witness the episode via the perspective 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 watched it when it originally aired, you – initially – were uncertain of the reason. Tony’s foes, genuine and fictional, were all overcome. Surely this has the feel of the season one ending? “Remember the little things.” Yet the atmosphere is strangely foreboding. Almost Twin Peaks levels of terror. The clan sits in an eatery. Meadow finds a parking spot. Tony sadly tells Carmela difficulties are arising with another member of his team cooperating with the officials. Meadow parks the vehicle. Unfamiliar individuals come into the diner. Gaze at Tony(?) Meadow is parking. Tony selects a song on the jukebox. Meadow parks her car. The door chimes, a person comes in. It isn’t Meadow, she remains parking. Tony looks up. Continue. It ceases. My heart sank roughly 20 minutes after.

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

I remained awake to view this installment in the early morning. It was so intense following the introduction of villain Negan finding the group, cruelly taunting his victims and then leaving the victim unknown (ended on a cliffhanger). The victim’s POV shot and the muted audio – argh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season