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Spooks – I Spy Apocalypse (2003)

The show kicks off with the Spooks team confined during a training exercise relating to a hypothetical terrorist attack, monitored by two government representatives. As things progress, it seems an actual attack has occurred and a chemical weapon has been unleashed. The anxiety increases as messages indicate a disaster happening externally, and gets worse as the superior shows signs of exposure, and the two Home Office officials attempt to leave, pushing the protagonist portrayed by Matthew Macfadyen to opt for either 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 dismal official figures. Viewed it recently following the initial broadcast; I often attended the bar in Sheffield featured in the show which emphasised the reality and the casual, straightforward government details which was broadcast. Remaining completely frightening 35 years later.

Severance – The We We Are (2022)

The concluding episode of Severance’s debut season ranks highly in terms of gripping installments. I was throughout the episode actually sitting tensely, exerting with Dylan to hold the switches that sustained the Innies’ extended time, while screaming at the Innies to reveal their realities. The ultimate peak – “she survives!” – resembled a outburst.

The 2024 Industry episode White Mischief

Episode five of the third series of Industry made my pulse quicken. I had to pause and get up and exit the space repeatedly due to the immense extent of the wanton self-destruction I observed. Rishi Ramdani is in major difficulty at work and home – overwhelmed by debt to illegal creditors owing to his uncontrollable gaming, assuming hazardous chances with a gamble on the pound which could lose his company millions. Inevitably, he starts a gaming binge, uses copious drugs and alcohol and experiences wins and losses, is severely assaulted. Each instance you believe the situation cannot deteriorate further, it does. There is a chance for salvation as the installment closes but he squanders the opportunity, resulting in dreadful effects during the season’s final episode. Absolutely had to relax following that!

Peep Show – Holiday from 2007

The series Peep Show isn’t typically anxiety-inducing. But the episode Holiday includes such amounts of embarrassment that it will make you rise throughout the entire episode, filled with nervousness. The situation intensifies when Jeremy and Mark realize having to lie about the dog they accidentally run over and later efforts to get rid of it. You subsequently use the rest of the installment doubting if it can actually be more terrible than burning, and it turns out to be!

The West Wing – The Two Cathedrals from 2001

Nothing I’ve watched has been more intense as when I first saw the second season finale of The West Wing. The episode starts with the aftermath of the demise (in a car crash) of the president’s personal secretary and builds to a peak involving a Haitian emergency, and the fallout from the non-disclosure about the president’s MS condition, with confirmation of his intention to run for another term. Excellent TV. Never bettered.

Bodyguard – episode one from 2018

The beginning of the UK show Bodyguard, with the hero aboard a train with his young son, is for me one of the most intense episodes ever. He notices a Muslim female going into the loo and senses something is wrong. The explosive disposal specialists are summoned, get on the train, and attempt to convince the woman to remove her explosive vest. Tension escalates to a nearly intolerable level, until, finally, the vest is neutralized.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer – The Body (2001)

Buffy comes into her home to realize her mom has deceased of natural causes, which is the least common kind of passing in this supernatural show. The episode has no background music, a somber mood, and we see the episode through the experience of Buffy’s astonishment upon finding her mother.

The Sopranos – Made in America (2007)

The concluding moment of the last installment of the show was pants-wettingly tense. 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 vanquished. This seems similar to the first season’s finale, right? “Think about the small elements.” Yet the atmosphere is strangely foreboding. Almost Twin Peaks levels of terror. The family gathers in a diner. Meadow stops the car. Tony gloomily informs Carmela difficulties are arising with yet another of his crew cooperating with the officials. Meadow secures a parking space. Unfamiliar individuals come into the diner. Stare at Tony(?) Meadow continues to park. Tony selects a song on the jukebox. Meadow finds a spot. The door chimes, a person comes in. It cannot be Meadow, she is 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 during the night. It was incredibly tense after the buildup of bad guy Negan finding the group, mercilessly mocking his targets then not knowing who he killed (concluded with a suspenseful moment). The victim’s POV shot and the subdued noises – ugh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season