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Spooks – I Spy Apocalypse (2003)

The episode begins with the MI5 agents restricted as part of a simulation about a potential terror incident, supervised by two Home Office agents. As things progress, it seems an actual attack has occurred and a chemical weapon has been unleashed. The suspense builds as messages indicate a catastrophe taking place outside, and escalates as the superior shows signs of exposure, and the two Home Office officials attempt to leave, forcing Matthew Macfadyen’s character to opt for either shooting them or allowing them to leave and endangering the sterile MI5 environment. Given it’s Spooks, it is unsurprising which one he chooses.

Threads from 1984

Threads was low budget yet among the scariest shows I have viewed due to its harsh realism and grim official statistics. Watched it about a month ago having watched the original; I often attended the bar in Sheffield shown in the series that highlighted the truth and the glib matter-of-fact official information that aired. Remaining completely frightening decades on.

The 2022 Severance episode The We We Are

The season one finale of Severance has to be right up there as a tense chapter. I spent the entire episode actually sitting tensely, straining every sinew with Dylan to keep his hands on the levers that sustained the Innies’ extended time, while yelling at the Innies to get their truths out there. The ultimate peak – “she’s alive!” – was like an eruption.

Industry – White Mischief (2024)

Episode five of the third series of Industry had my heart racing. I was compelled to halt and rise and exit the space repeatedly because of the sheer scale of the deliberate ruin I was witnessing. Rishi Ramdani is in major difficulty professionally and personally – buried in financial obligations from unscrupulous lenders owing to his uncontrollable gaming, taking such risks with a gamble on the pound which may result in huge losses for his employer. Inevitably, he starts a gaming binge, uses copious drugs and alcohol and alternates between success and failure, is severely assaulted. Whenever you assume things cannot decline more, it does. There is a chance for salvation as the installment closes but he misses the opening, with horrifying consequences in the concluding part of the season. Certainly required a rest afterward!

Peep Show – Holiday from 2007

The series Peep Show isn’t typically anxiety-inducing. But the episode Holiday features such degrees of awkwardness that it will make you rise for the full show, permeated with worry. The tension escalates once Jeremy and Mark find themselves having to lie about the dog they unintentionally hit 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 is possible!

The 2001 The West Wing episode The Two Cathedrals

Nothing I have seen has been as tense 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 personal secretary and builds to a peak with a crisis in Haiti, and the repercussions of the secrecy about the president’s MS condition, coupled with verification of his aim to seek re-election. Wonderful television. Unsurpassed.

The 2018 Bodyguard premiere episode

The opening of the British series Bodyguard, with the hero aboard a train accompanied by his small son, is for me one of the most intense episodes ever. He spots a Muslim woman going into the loo and senses something is wrong. The bomb squad is alerted, board the train, and attempt to convince the woman to remove her explosive vest. Tension escalates to an almost unbearable degree, until, indeed, the vest is disarmed.

The 2001 Buffy episode The Body

Buffy comes into her home to realize her mom has deceased due to natural factors, which is the least common kind of passing in this paranormal series. The installment lacks any soundtrack, a sullen tone, 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 final scene of the final episode of the program was incredibly anxious. And if you watched it when it originally aired, you – at the start – didn’t understand the cause. Tony’s foes, genuine and fictional, had all been defeated. 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 sorrowfully notifies Carmela there’s trouble afoot with yet another of his crew working with the government. Meadow secures a parking space. Odd persons arrive at the eatery. Stare at Tony(?) Meadow is parking. Tony plays a track on the music machine. Meadow finds a spot. The door chimes, a person comes in. Can’t be Meadow, she’s still parking. Tony looks up. Keep going. It ceases. 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 in the early morning. It was incredibly tense after the buildup of bad guy Negan locating the survivors, mercilessly mocking his targets and then leaving the victim unknown (ended on a cliffhanger). The victim’s POV shot and the muted audio – ugh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season