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Spooks – I Spy Apocalypse (2003)

The show kicks off with the MI5 agents locked down as part of a simulation relating to a hypothetical terrorist attack, overseen by two Home Office officials. As events unfold, it becomes clear a real incident has taken place and a chemical weapon has been unleashed. The tension ratchets up as messages indicate a disaster happening externally, and intensifies 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 allowing them to leave and potentially infecting the secure MI5 headquarters. This being Spooks, his decision is predictable.

The 1984 production Threads

Threads had minimal funding but one of the most frightening programmes I have viewed because of the stark reality and bleak government data. Saw it not long ago following the initial broadcast; I often attended the bar in Sheffield shown in the series which emphasised the reality and the offhand factual official statements which was broadcast. Remaining completely frightening 35 years later.

Severance – The We We Are (2022)

The season one finale of Severance has to be right up there among intense episodes. I remained for the whole show literally perched nervously, pushing alongside Dylan to maintain his grip on the controls that kept the Innies on overtime, while yelling at the Innies to disclose their facts. The final climactic moment – “she survives!” – resembled a outburst.

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 was witnessing. Rishi Ramdani is in deep shit in his job and domestic life – buried in financial obligations to loan sharks due to his addictive betting, assuming hazardous chances 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. Whenever you assume it can’t get any worse, it deteriorates. There is a chance for salvation as the installment closes yet he wastes the chance, resulting in dreadful effects during the season’s final episode. Absolutely had to relax following that!

Peep Show – Holiday (2007)

Peep Show is not inherently a tense series. However, the Holiday episode includes such amounts of embarrassment that it will make you rise the whole episode, riddled with anxiety. It all ramps up as Jeremy and Mark discover needing to deceive regarding the dog they unintentionally hit 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 is possible!

The 2001 The West Wing episode The Two Cathedrals

No other viewing has been as gripping than the first time I watched the season two finale to The West Wing. The show opens with the fallout of the passing (in a road incident) of the president’s personal secretary and builds to a peak with a situation in Haiti, and the repercussions of the secrecy about the president’s MS condition, coupled with verification of his aim to pursue re-election. Excellent TV. Never bettered.

The 2018 Bodyguard premiere episode

The beginning of the UK show Bodyguard, with the hero aboard a train alongside his juvenile boy, is personally a top tense installment. He notices a Muslim female going into the loo and senses something is wrong. The bomb squad is alerted, board the train, and attempt to convince the woman to discard her bomb jacket. Tension escalates to an almost unbearable degree, until, finally, the vest is neutralized.

The 2001 Buffy episode The Body

Buffy enters her house to realize her mom has deceased of natural causes, which is the least common kind of passing in this supernatural show. The installment lacks any soundtrack, 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 ultimate sequence of the series finale 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 adversaries, actual and perceived, were all vanquished. Doesn’t this resemble the season one conclusion? “Recall the minor details.” But the mood is bizarrely ominous. Approaching Twin Peaks-esque horror. The family sit in a restaurant. Meadow finds a parking spot. Tony sorrowfully notifies Carmela problems are brewing with yet another of his crew working with the government. Meadow secures a parking space. Unfamiliar individuals come into the diner. Look at Tony(?) Meadow continues to park. Tony puts a record on the jukebox. Meadow parks her car. The bell sounds, an individual enters. It cannot be Meadow, she is still parking. Tony looks up. Keep going. It halts. My heart dropped from my mouth roughly 20 minutes after.

The Walking Dead – The Last Day on Earth from 2016

I kept late hours to see this show in the early morning. It was so intense after the establishment of antagonist Negan locating the survivors, cruelly taunting his victims and then leaving the victim unknown (concluded with a suspenseful moment). The point-of-view shot from the victim and the muffled sounds – ugh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season