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The 2003 Spooks episode I Spy Apocalypse

The episode begins with the MI5 agents locked down during a training exercise about a potential terror incident, supervised by two Home Office agents. As the situation develops, it appears that there really has been an attack and a chemical agent deployed. The anxiety increases as reports reveal a crisis unfolding beyond their walls, and gets worse when the leader seems contaminated, and the government agents endeavor to depart, forcing Matthew Macfadyen’s character to choose between firing at them or letting them go and risking contaminating the sealed MI5 offices. As this is Spooks, his decision is predictable.

Threads (1984)

The production was inexpensive but one of the most frightening programmes I have viewed due to its harsh realism and bleak government data. Saw it not long ago after seeing the first airing; I often attended the bar in Sheffield from the programme which emphasised the reality and the casual, straightforward government details that were transmitted. Continuing to be utterly horrifying after three and a half decades.

Severance – The We We Are (2022)

The concluding episode of Severance’s debut season has to be right up there among intense episodes. I was throughout the episode quite literally on the edge of my seat, straining every sinew with Dylan to keep his hands on the levers that allowed the Innies to remain active, while yelling at the Innies to disclose their facts. The final climactic moment – “she’s alive!” – felt like an explosion.

The 2024 Industry episode White Mischief

Episode five of the third series of Industry caused my heart to pound. I had to pause and get up and leave the room several times because of the sheer scale of the wanton self-destruction I saw. Rishi Ramdani faces serious trouble at work and home – buried in financial obligations to loan sharks owing to his uncontrollable gaming, engaging in dangerous ventures on a wager involving sterling which could lose his company millions. Naturally, he embarks on a betting frenzy, uses copious drugs and alcohol and alternates between success and failure, gets beaten to a pulp. Each instance you believe it can’t get any worse, it deteriorates. There’s hope of redemption at the end of the episode yet he wastes the chance, resulting in dreadful effects in the season finale. Definitely needed a lie-down after that!

Peep Show – Holiday from 2007

Peep Show itself isn’t necessarily a stressful show. Yet the installment Holiday includes such amounts of embarrassment that it’ll have you standing up the whole episode, riddled with anxiety. It all ramps up as Jeremy and Mark discover needing to deceive regarding the dog they accidentally run over and subsequent attempts to dispose of it. You then occupy the remainder of the episode questioning whether it truly can be worse than incineration, and it can be!

The West Wing – The Two Cathedrals (2001)

No other viewing has been as gripping as when I first saw the concluding episode of The West Wing’s second season. The episode starts with the aftermath of the passing (in a road incident) of the president’s confidential aide and escalates to a高潮 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. Unsurpassed.

Bodyguard – episode one (2018)

The start of the British program Bodyguard, featuring the main character on a train accompanied by his small son, ranks among the most gripping episodes I’ve seen. He notices a Muslim female entering the restroom and realizes something is amiss. The bomb diffuser experts are called, get on the train, and endeavor to coax the woman to take off her suicide vest. 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 due to natural factors, which is the least common kind of passing in this mystical program. The show features no musical score, a somber mood, and we witness the episode via the perspective of Buffy’s dismay upon uncovering her mother.

The Sopranos – Made in America from 2007

The concluding moment of the last installment of the program was incredibly anxious. And for those who saw it during its initial broadcast, you – at first – weren’t sure why. Tony’s enemies, real and imagined, were all overcome. This seems similar to the first season’s finale, right? “Think about the small elements.” However, the vibe is oddly threatening. Approaching Twin Peaks-esque horror. The family gathers in a diner. Meadow parks. Tony gloomily informs Carmela difficulties are arising with an additional associate collaborating with the authorities. Meadow secures a parking space. Unfamiliar individuals come into the diner. Stare at Tony(?) Meadow continues to park. Tony puts a record on the jukebox. Meadow parks her car. The bell rings, someone enters the restaurant. It isn’t Meadow, she remains parking. Tony raises his gaze. Don’t stop. It stops. My heart sank roughly 20 minutes after.

The 2016 The Walking Dead episode The Last Day on Earth

I stayed up to watch this episode at 2am. It was incredibly tense after the establishment of antagonist Negan finding the group, mercilessly mocking his targets then not knowing who he killed (concluded with a suspenseful moment). The point-of-view shot from the victim and the muted audio – argh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season