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Spooks – I Spy Apocalypse (2003)

The episode begins with the Spooks team confined as part of a simulation about a potential terror incident, overseen by two Home Office officials. As things progress, it becomes clear a real incident has taken place and a chemical weapon has been unleashed. The tension ratchets up as incoming communications show a catastrophe taking place outside, and gets worse when the leader seems contaminated, and the government agents endeavor to depart, forcing Matthew Macfadyen’s character to opt for either shooting them or allowing them to leave and potentially infecting the secure MI5 headquarters. Given it’s Spooks, his decision is predictable.

Threads (1984)

Threads had minimal funding but one of the most frightening programmes I have ever watched due to its harsh realism and bleak government data. Viewed it recently after seeing the first airing; I often attended the bar in Sheffield from the programme which emphasised the reality and the casual, straightforward government details which was broadcast. Remaining completely frightening after three and a half decades.

Severance – The We We Are from 2022

The concluding episode of Severance’s debut season deserves a top spot as a tense chapter. I spent the entire episode quite literally on the edge of my seat, exerting with Dylan to maintain his grip on the controls that allowed the Innies to remain active, while yelling at the Innies to reveal their realities. The concluding高潮 – “she’s alive!” – was like an eruption.

Industry – White Mischief from 2024

The fifth episode of Industry’s third season caused my heart to pound. I needed to stop and stand and leave the room several times due to the immense extent of the wanton self-destruction I saw. Rishi Ramdani is in major difficulty at work and home – buried in financial obligations from unscrupulous lenders owing to his uncontrollable gaming, engaging in dangerous ventures with a bet on sterling which may result in huge losses for his employer. So of course, he goes on a gambling spree, does tons of drugs and drink and alternates between success and failure, is severely assaulted. Whenever you assume it can’t get any worse, it deteriorates. There’s hope of redemption at the end of the episode but he squanders the opportunity, resulting in dreadful effects in the season finale. Certainly required a rest afterward!

Peep Show – Holiday (2007)

Peep Show itself isn’t necessarily a stressful show. But the episode Holiday includes such amounts of embarrassment that it can cause you to stand the whole episode, riddled with anxiety. The situation intensifies when Jeremy and Mark realize needing to deceive regarding the dog they unintentionally hit and subsequent attempts to dispose of it. You then spend the rest of the episode doubting if it can actually be more terrible than burning, and it turns out to be!

The West Wing – The Two Cathedrals (2001)

Nothing I have seen has been as tense than the first time I watched the concluding episode of The West Wing’s second season. 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, coupled with verification of his aim to seek re-election. Superb programming. Never bettered.

Bodyguard – episode one from 2018

The beginning of the UK show Bodyguard, with the hero aboard a train accompanied by his small son, ranks among the most gripping episodes I’ve seen. He observes a woman in Islamic attire entering the restroom and senses something is wrong. The bomb squad is alerted, get on the train, and endeavor to coax the woman to take off her suicide vest. Tension escalates to a nearly intolerable level, until, indeed, the vest is disarmed.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer – The Body (2001)

Buffy arrives at her residence to realize her mom has deceased due to natural factors, which is the rarest form of demise in this mystical program. The show features no musical score, a sullen tone, and we view the installment through the lens of Buffy’s shock of discovering her mother.

The Sopranos – Made in America (2007)

The final scene of the final episode of the series was extremely nerve-wracking. And if you viewed it when it first premiered, you – initially – were uncertain of the reason. Tony’s foes, genuine and fictional, were all vanquished. This seems similar to the first season’s finale, right? “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 gloomily informs Carmela difficulties are arising with an additional associate collaborating with the authorities. Meadow parks. Unfamiliar individuals come into the diner. Gaze at Tony(?) Meadow continues to park. Tony plays a track on the music machine. Meadow finds a spot. The bell rings, someone enters the restaurant. It isn’t Meadow, she remains parking. Tony looks up. Don’t stop. It halts. My heart sank around 20 minutes subsequently.

The Walking Dead – The Last Day on Earth from 2016

I stayed up to watch this episode in the early morning. It was incredibly tense after the buildup of bad guy Negan finding the group, savagely teasing his prey and then leaving the victim unknown (ended on a cliffhanger). The victim’s POV shot and the muffled sounds – argh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season