‘I absolutely had to rest after that!’ Your most nerve-wracking television episodes ever
Spooks – I Spy Apocalypse from 2003
This installment starts with the Spooks team confined while undergoing a drill about a potential terror incident, overseen by two Home Office officials. As the situation develops, it appears that there really has been an attack and a chemical weapon has been unleashed. The suspense builds as incoming communications show a catastrophe taking place outside, and gets worse as the boss appears to be infected, and the government agents endeavor to depart, pushing the protagonist portrayed by Matthew Macfadyen to decide between shooting them or permitting their exit and potentially infecting the secure MI5 headquarters. As this is Spooks, it is unsurprising which one he chooses.
Threads from 1984
The production was inexpensive but arguably the most terrifying series I have ever watched owing to its grim authenticity and dismal official figures. Saw it not long ago having watched the original; I used to visit the pub in Sheffield featured in the show which emphasised the reality and the casual, straightforward government details that aired. Remaining completely frightening decades on.
Severance – The We We Are (2022)
The season one finale of Severance has to be right up there in terms of gripping installments. I was throughout the episode quite literally on the edge of my seat, pushing alongside Dylan to hold the switches that allowed the Innies to remain active, while yelling at the Innies to disclose their facts. The final climactic moment – “she’s alive!” – resembled a outburst.
Industry – White Mischief (2024)
Episode five of the third series of Industry had my heart racing. I was compelled to halt and rise and exit the space repeatedly owing to the vast degree of the wanton self-destruction I saw. Rishi Ramdani is in major difficulty at work and home – overwhelmed by debt to loan sharks because of his compulsive gambling, taking such risks with a bet on sterling which could lose his company millions. Inevitably, he starts a gaming binge, uses copious drugs and alcohol and alternates between success and failure, is brutally attacked. Each instance you believe it can’t get any worse, it worsens. There is a chance for salvation at the end of the episode yet he wastes the chance, resulting in dreadful effects in the concluding part of the season. Definitely needed a lie-down after that!
Peep Show – Holiday from 2007
The series Peep Show isn’t typically anxiety-inducing. Yet the installment Holiday contains such levels of cringe that it can cause you to stand for the full show, filled with nervousness. The tension escalates as Jeremy and Mark discover being compelled to falsify about the canine they by chance collide with and subsequent attempts to dispose of it. You then occupy the remainder of the episode questioning whether it truly can be worse than incineration, and it turns out to be!
The 2001 The West Wing episode The Two Cathedrals
Nothing I’ve watched has been more intense as when I first saw the season two finale to The West Wing. The episode starts with the aftermath of the passing (in a road incident) of the president’s private assistant and builds to a peak involving a Haitian emergency, and the fallout from the non-disclosure about the president’s MS condition, along with affirmation of his plan to pursue re-election. Excellent TV. Never bettered.
The 2018 Bodyguard premiere episode
The opening of the British series Bodyguard, with the protagonist on a train with his young son, is personally a top tense installment. He spots a Muslim woman heading to the toilet and senses something is wrong. The bomb diffuser experts are called, get on the train, and endeavor to coax the woman to take off her suicide vest. Suspense rises to a nearly intolerable level, until, indeed, the vest is disarmed.
The 2001 Buffy episode The Body
Buffy comes into her home to discover her mother has died from natural reasons, which is the rarest form of demise in this mystical program. The show features no musical score, a somber mood, and we view the installment through the lens of Buffy’s shock of discovering her mother.
The Sopranos – Made in America (2007)
The ultimate sequence of the series finale of the program was incredibly anxious. And for those who saw it during its initial broadcast, you – at first – weren’t sure why. Tony’s enemies, real and imagined, had all been defeated. Surely this has the feel of the season one ending? “Think about the small elements.” Yet the atmosphere is strangely foreboding. Approaching Twin Peaks-esque horror. The family gathers in a diner. Meadow parks. Tony sorrowfully notifies Carmela difficulties are arising with yet another of his crew working with the government. Meadow secures a parking space. Strange people enter the restaurant. Stare at Tony(?) Meadow parks. Tony puts a record on the jukebox. Meadow parks. The door chimes, a person comes in. It cannot be Meadow, she is still parking. Tony looks up. Continue. It stops. My heart dropped from my mouth about 20 minutes later.
The 2016 The Walking Dead episode The Last Day on Earth
I remained awake to view this installment during the night. It was extremely gripping after the buildup of bad guy Negan discovering the characters, savagely teasing his prey and then leaving the victim unknown (concluded with a suspenseful moment). The point-of-view shot from the victim and the subdued noises – ugh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season
