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Spooks – I Spy Apocalypse from 2003

The episode begins with the intelligence unit locked down as part of a simulation about a potential terror incident, monitored by two government representatives. As the situation develops, it becomes clear a real incident has taken place and a chemical weapon has been unleashed. The anxiety increases as incoming communications show a crisis unfolding beyond their walls, and gets worse as the boss appears to be infected, and the two Home Office officials attempt to leave, compelling the character played by Matthew Macfadyen to decide between shooting them or letting them go and potentially infecting the secure MI5 headquarters. Given it’s Spooks, his decision is predictable.

Threads from 1984

Threads was low budget but one of the most frightening programmes I have ever watched owing to its grim authenticity and dismal official figures. Saw it not long ago having watched the original; I used to visit the pub in Sheffield shown in the series that highlighted the truth and the casual, straightforward government details that were transmitted. Continuing to be utterly horrifying decades on.

Severance – The We We Are (2022)

The first season finale of Severance ranks highly in terms of gripping installments. I remained for the whole show literally perched nervously, exerting with Dylan to maintain his grip on the controls that kept the Innies on overtime, while shouting to the Innies to get their truths out there. The final climactic moment – “she survives!” – was like an eruption.

Industry – White Mischief (2024)

Installment five in Industry’s third series caused my heart to pound. I was compelled to halt and rise and depart the area multiple times owing to the vast degree of the reckless self-harm I observed. Rishi Ramdani faces serious trouble at work and home – overwhelmed by debt from unscrupulous lenders because of his compulsive gambling, taking such risks with a bet on sterling which may result in huge losses for his employer. Naturally, he embarks on a betting frenzy, uses copious drugs and alcohol and alternates between success and failure, is brutally attacked. Each instance you believe it can’t get any worse, it deteriorates. There’s hope of redemption at the end of the episode but he squanders the opportunity, with horrifying consequences in the concluding part of the season. Certainly required a rest afterward!

Peep Show – Holiday (2007)

Peep Show itself isn’t necessarily a stressful show. Yet the installment Holiday features such degrees of awkwardness that it can cause you to stand throughout the entire episode, filled with nervousness. It all ramps up as Jeremy and Mark discover having to lie about the dog they unintentionally hit 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 2001 The West Wing episode The Two Cathedrals

Nothing I’ve watched has been more intense 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 personal secretary and builds to a peak with a crisis in Haiti, and the effects of the withheld information of the president’s MS diagnosis, coupled with verification of his aim to seek re-election. Wonderful television. Never bettered.

The 2018 Bodyguard premiere episode

The opening of the British series Bodyguard, featuring the main character on a train with his young son, ranks among the most gripping episodes I’ve seen. He spots a Muslim woman entering the restroom and knows something is off. The bomb squad is alerted, board the train, and try to persuade the woman to take off her suicide vest. Anxiety builds to a practically unendurable point, until yes, the vest is diffused.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer – The Body (2001)

Buffy arrives at her residence to realize her mom has deceased of natural causes, which is the rarest form of demise in this mystical program. The show features no musical score, a somber mood, and we view the installment through the lens of Buffy’s astonishment upon finding her mother.

The Sopranos – Made in America (2007)

The final scene of the final episode of the program was incredibly anxious. And for those who saw it during its initial broadcast, 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? “Recall the minor details.” But the mood is bizarrely ominous. Approaching Twin Peaks-esque horror. The clan sits in an eatery. Meadow stops the car. Tony sadly tells Carmela problems are brewing with an additional associate working with the government. Meadow parks the vehicle. Unfamiliar individuals come into the diner. Gaze at Tony(?) Meadow continues to park. Tony selects a song on the jukebox. Meadow parks her car. The door chimes, a person comes in. It cannot be Meadow, she is still parking. Tony glances upward. Don’t stop. It halts. My spirit fell about 20 minutes later.

The 2016 The Walking Dead episode The Last Day on Earth

I stayed up to watch this episode during the night. It was so intense following the introduction of villain Negan locating the survivors, savagely teasing his prey and then keeping the death a mystery (finished with an unresolved situation). 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