🔗 Share this article

The 2003 Spooks episode I Spy Apocalypse

The show kicks off with the MI5 agents restricted as part of a simulation about a potential terror incident, supervised by two Home Office agents. As events unfold, it seems an actual attack has occurred and a chemical weapon has been unleashed. The anxiety increases as messages indicate a crisis unfolding beyond their walls, and escalates as the boss appears to be infected, and the two Home Office officials attempt to leave, pushing the protagonist portrayed by Matthew Macfadyen to decide between shooting them or allowing them to leave and endangering the sterile MI5 environment. This being Spooks, it is unsurprising which one he chooses.

Threads (1984)

The production was inexpensive yet among the scariest shows I have ever watched due to its harsh realism and bleak government data. Watched it about a month ago following the initial broadcast; I often attended the bar in Sheffield featured in the show that highlighted the truth and the offhand factual official statements which was broadcast. Remaining completely frightening 35 years later.

The 2022 Severance episode The We We Are

The concluding episode of Severance’s debut season deserves a top spot among intense episodes. I spent the entire episode literally perched nervously, pushing alongside Dylan to hold the switches that allowed the Innies to remain active, while screaming at the Innies to get their truths out there. The ultimate peak – “she’s alive!” – was like an eruption.

Industry – White Mischief from 2024

The fifth episode of Industry’s third season caused my heart to pound. I had to pause and get up and exit the space repeatedly because of the sheer scale of the wanton self-destruction I saw. Rishi Ramdani is in deep shit in his job and domestic life – up to his eyeballs in debt from unscrupulous lenders owing to his uncontrollable gaming, taking such risks with a gamble on the pound that might cost his firm millions. Inevitably, he starts a gaming binge, consumes excessive substances and alcohol and wins, loses, wins, is severely assaulted. Each instance you believe it can’t get any worse, it does. Redemption seems possible by the episode’s conclusion yet he wastes the chance, with horrifying consequences in the concluding part of the season. Definitely needed a lie-down after that!

Peep Show – Holiday from 2007

Peep Show is not inherently a tense series. But the episode Holiday includes such amounts of embarrassment that it’ll have you standing up for the full show, riddled with anxiety. The situation intensifies 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 wondering if it might be more awful than cremation, and it can be!

The West Wing – The Two Cathedrals (2001)

Nothing I have seen has been as tense than the first time I watched the second season finale of The West Wing. The episode starts with the aftermath of the passing (in a road incident) of the president’s personal secretary and reaches a crescendo involving a Haitian emergency, and the fallout from the non-disclosure of the president’s MS diagnosis, with confirmation of his intention to pursue re-election. Superb programming. Unequaled.

Bodyguard – episode one (2018)

The start of the British program Bodyguard, featuring the main character on a train accompanied by his small son, is personally a top tense installment. He spots a Muslim woman going into the loo and senses something is wrong. The bomb squad is alerted, enter the train, and attempt to convince the woman to remove her explosive vest. Anxiety builds to a practically unendurable point, until, finally, the vest is neutralized.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer – The Body (2001)

Buffy enters her house to realize her mom has deceased due to natural factors, which is the most unusual type of death in this paranormal series. The episode has no background music, a gloomy atmosphere, and we view the installment through the lens of Buffy’s dismay upon uncovering her mother.

The 2007 The Sopranos finale Made in America

The final scene of the final episode of the show was pants-wettingly tense. And if you watched it when it originally aired, you – at the start – didn’t understand the cause. Tony’s foes, genuine and fictional, were all overcome. This seems similar to the first season’s finale, right? “Recall the minor details.” However, the vibe is oddly threatening. Approaching Twin Peaks-esque horror. The family gathers in a diner. Meadow finds a parking spot. Tony gloomily informs Carmela problems are brewing with yet another of his crew collaborating with the authorities. Meadow parks the vehicle. Unfamiliar individuals come into the diner. Gaze 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 glances upward. Don’t stop. It ceases. My heart sank around 20 minutes subsequently.

The Walking Dead – The Last Day on Earth from 2016

I remained awake to view this installment in the early morning. It was extremely gripping following the introduction of villain Negan discovering the characters, cruelly taunting his victims then not knowing who he killed (ended on a cliffhanger). The victim’s POV shot and the subdued noises – ugh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season