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Spooks – I Spy Apocalypse (2003)

This installment starts with the MI5 agents confined as part of a simulation about a potential terror incident, supervised by two Home Office agents. As the situation develops, it appears that there really has been an attack with a chemical weapon released. The tension ratchets up as incoming communications show a crisis unfolding beyond their walls, and intensifies as the superior shows signs of exposure, and the government agents endeavor to depart, forcing Matthew Macfadyen’s character to opt for either shooting them or permitting their exit and potentially infecting the secure MI5 headquarters. This being Spooks, it is unsurprising which one he chooses.

Threads from 1984

The production was inexpensive but one of the most frightening programmes I have viewed because of the stark reality and grim official statistics. Saw it not long ago after seeing the first airing; I frequently went to the Sheffield pub featured in the show which underscored the actuality and the glib matter-of-fact official information which was broadcast. Still absolutely terrifying 35 years later.

Severance – The We We Are (2022)

The first season finale of Severance deserves a top spot in terms of gripping installments. I spent the entire episode literally perched nervously, pushing alongside Dylan to hold the switches that sustained the Innies’ extended time, while screaming at the Innies to get their truths out there. The ultimate peak – “she’s alive!” – resembled a outburst.

Industry – White Mischief from 2024

Installment five in Industry’s third series had my heart racing. I had to pause and get up and leave the room several times because of the sheer scale of the deliberate ruin I saw. Rishi Ramdani is in deep shit in his job and domestic life – overwhelmed by debt to loan sharks because of his compulsive gambling, assuming hazardous chances with a gamble on the pound that might cost his firm millions. Naturally, he embarks on a betting frenzy, uses copious drugs and alcohol and alternates between success and failure, is severely assaulted. Each instance you believe the situation cannot deteriorate further, it does. Redemption seems possible at the end of the episode but he squanders the opportunity, resulting in dreadful effects in the season finale. Absolutely had to relax following that!

The 2007 Peep Show episode Holiday

Peep Show is not inherently a tense series. Yet the installment Holiday features such degrees of awkwardness that it’ll have you standing up for the full show, filled with nervousness. It all ramps up when Jeremy and Mark realize having to lie about the dog they by chance collide with and later efforts to get rid of it. You then spend the rest of the episode wondering if it might be more awful than cremation, and it is possible!

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 death (in a traffic accident) of the president’s personal secretary and escalates to a高潮 with a crisis in Haiti, and the fallout from the non-disclosure of the president’s MS diagnosis, along with affirmation of his plan to run for another term. Superb programming. Never bettered.

Bodyguard – episode one from 2018

The beginning of the UK show Bodyguard, featuring the main character on a train accompanied by his small son, is for me one of the most intense episodes ever. He observes a woman in Islamic attire going into the loo and knows something is off. The bomb diffuser experts are called, enter the train, and endeavor to coax the woman to take off her suicide vest. Suspense rises to a practically unendurable point, until yes, the vest is diffused.

The 2001 Buffy episode The Body

Buffy comes into her home to realize her mom has deceased of natural causes, which is the least common kind of passing in this mystical program. The show features no musical score, a gloomy atmosphere, and we witness the episode via the perspective of Buffy’s shock of discovering her mother.

The Sopranos – Made in America from 2007

The concluding moment of the last installment of the program was incredibly anxious. And if you viewed it when it first premiered, you – initially – were uncertain of the reason. Tony’s enemies, real and imagined, had all been defeated. Doesn’t this resemble the season one conclusion? “Think about the small elements.” But the mood is bizarrely ominous. Approaching Twin Peaks-esque horror. The family gathers in a diner. Meadow stops the car. Tony sadly tells Carmela difficulties are arising with yet another of his crew collaborating with the authorities. Meadow secures a parking space. Odd persons arrive at the eatery. Stare at Tony(?) Meadow continues to park. Tony selects a song on the jukebox. Meadow parks her car. The bell sounds, an individual enters. Can’t be Meadow, she’s still parking. Tony glances upward. Continue. It stops. My heart dropped from my mouth 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 extremely gripping after the establishment of antagonist Negan locating the survivors, savagely teasing his prey and then keeping the death a mystery (concluded with a suspenseful moment). The victim’s POV shot and the muted audio – argh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season