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Spooks – I Spy Apocalypse from 2003

The show kicks off with the Spooks team locked down while undergoing a drill about a potential terror incident, supervised by two Home Office agents. As events unfold, it becomes clear a real incident has taken place and a chemical agent deployed. The anxiety increases as messages indicate a crisis unfolding beyond their walls, and escalates when the leader seems contaminated, and the two Home Office officials attempt to leave, compelling the character played by Matthew Macfadyen to opt for either shooting them or letting them go and potentially infecting the secure MI5 headquarters. As this is Spooks, the outcome is expected.

The 1984 production Threads

Threads had minimal funding yet among the scariest shows I have ever watched because of the stark reality and bleak government data. Watched it about a month ago after seeing the first airing; I frequently went to the Sheffield pub featured in the show which emphasised the reality and the offhand factual official statements that aired. Continuing to be utterly horrifying decades on.

Severance – The We We Are (2022)

The concluding episode of Severance’s debut season deserves a top spot in terms of gripping installments. I remained for the whole show quite literally on the edge of my seat, exerting with Dylan to hold the switches that allowed the Innies to remain active, while yelling at the Innies to reveal their realities. The concluding高潮 – “she’s alive!” – felt like an explosion.

Industry – White Mischief (2024)

Installment five in Industry’s third series caused my heart to pound. I was compelled to halt and rise and exit the space repeatedly because of the sheer scale of the reckless self-harm I was witnessing. Rishi Ramdani is in major difficulty in his job and domestic life – overwhelmed by debt to loan sharks because of his compulsive gambling, taking such risks with a gamble on the pound that might cost his firm millions. So of course, he goes on a gambling spree, uses copious drugs and alcohol and experiences wins and losses, is brutally attacked. Each instance you believe things cannot decline more, it deteriorates. Redemption seems possible as the installment closes but he squanders the opportunity, resulting in dreadful effects in the season finale. Definitely needed a lie-down after that!

Peep Show – Holiday (2007)

Peep Show is not inherently a tense series. However, the Holiday episode contains such levels of cringe that it can cause you to stand throughout the entire episode, permeated with worry. It all ramps up when Jeremy and Mark realize needing to deceive regarding the dog they accidentally run over and following tries to eliminate 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 2001 The West Wing episode The Two Cathedrals

Nothing I have seen has been as tense than the first time I watched the second season finale of The West Wing. The show opens with the fallout of the death (in a traffic accident) of the president’s private assistant and builds to a peak involving a Haitian emergency, and the repercussions of the secrecy regarding the president’s multiple sclerosis diagnosis, along with affirmation of his plan to run for another term. Excellent TV. Never bettered.

The 2018 Bodyguard premiere episode

The beginning of the UK show Bodyguard, featuring the main character on a train with his young son, ranks among the most gripping episodes I’ve seen. He notices a Muslim female entering the restroom and senses something is wrong. The bomb squad is alerted, get on the train, and attempt to convince the woman to discard her bomb jacket. Tension escalates to a practically unendurable point, until yes, the vest is diffused.

The 2001 Buffy episode The Body

Buffy arrives at her residence to discover her mother has died from natural reasons, which is the most unusual type of death in this mystical program. The show features no musical score, a sullen tone, and we witness the episode via the perspective of Buffy’s dismay upon uncovering her mother.

The 2007 The Sopranos finale Made in America

The ultimate sequence of the series finale of the series was extremely nerve-wracking. And if you watched it when it originally aired, you – at first – weren’t sure why. Tony’s adversaries, actual and perceived, had all been defeated. This seems similar to the first season’s finale, right? “Think about the small elements.” But the mood is bizarrely ominous. Almost Twin Peaks levels of terror. The family gathers in a diner. Meadow finds a parking spot. Tony sorrowfully notifies Carmela difficulties are arising with an additional associate working with the government. Meadow secures a parking space. Unfamiliar individuals come into the diner. Gaze at Tony(?) Meadow parks. Tony puts a record on the jukebox. Meadow parks. The bell rings, someone enters the restaurant. It isn’t Meadow, she remains parking. Tony glances upward. Continue. It stops. My heart dropped from my mouth roughly 20 minutes after.

The Walking Dead – The Last Day on Earth (2016)

I remained awake to view this installment at 2am. It was so intense following the introduction of villain Negan locating the survivors, cruelly taunting his victims and then keeping the death a mystery (ended on a cliffhanger). The first-person perspective of the victim and the subdued noises – argh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season