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Spooks – I Spy Apocalypse from 2003

The show kicks off with the intelligence unit locked down as part of a simulation relating to a hypothetical terrorist attack, supervised by two Home Office agents. As things progress, it becomes clear a real incident has taken place and a chemical weapon has been unleashed. The anxiety increases as incoming communications show a crisis unfolding beyond their walls, and gets worse as the boss appears to be infected, and the two Home Office officials attempt to leave, pushing the protagonist portrayed by Matthew Macfadyen to decide between shooting them or allowing them to leave and potentially infecting the secure MI5 headquarters. Given it’s Spooks, his decision is predictable.

Threads (1984)

The production was inexpensive but arguably the most terrifying series I have viewed because of the stark reality and grim official statistics. Viewed it recently having watched the original; I frequently went to the Sheffield pub shown in the series that highlighted the truth and the glib matter-of-fact official information that aired. Remaining completely frightening 35 years later.

The 2022 Severance episode The We We Are

The first season finale of Severance deserves a top spot in terms of gripping installments. I spent the entire episode quite literally on the edge of my seat, pushing alongside Dylan to keep his hands on the levers that kept the Innies on overtime, while yelling at the Innies to get their truths out there. The final climactic moment – “she is living!” – felt like an explosion.

The 2024 Industry episode White Mischief

Episode five of the third series of Industry caused my heart to pound. I needed to stop and stand and exit the space repeatedly because of the sheer scale of the wanton self-destruction I was witnessing. Rishi Ramdani is in deep shit at work and home – overwhelmed by debt to loan sharks owing to his uncontrollable gaming, assuming hazardous chances with a bet on sterling that might cost his firm millions. So of course, he goes on a gambling spree, consumes excessive substances and alcohol and experiences wins and losses, is severely assaulted. Whenever you assume it can’t get any worse, it deteriorates. There’s hope of redemption as the installment closes but he misses the opening, with horrifying consequences during the season’s final episode. Definitely needed a lie-down after that!

The 2007 Peep Show episode Holiday

Peep Show is not inherently a tense series. But the episode Holiday features such degrees of awkwardness that it will make you rise for the full show, riddled with anxiety. The tension escalates as Jeremy and Mark discover needing to deceive regarding the dog they accidentally run over and later efforts to get rid of it. You then spend the rest of the episode questioning whether it truly can be worse than incineration, and it is possible!

The 2001 The West Wing episode The Two Cathedrals

No other viewing has been as gripping as when I first saw the season two finale to The West Wing. The installment begins with the consequences of the demise (in a car crash) of the president’s personal secretary and builds to a peak with a crisis in Haiti, and the effects of the withheld information regarding the president’s multiple sclerosis diagnosis, along with affirmation of his plan to pursue re-election. Superb programming. Unequaled.

Bodyguard – episode one (2018)

The opening of the British series Bodyguard, with the protagonist on a train alongside his juvenile boy, is for me one of the most intense episodes ever. He notices a Muslim female entering the restroom and knows something is off. The bomb squad is alerted, enter the train, and try to persuade the woman to take off her suicide vest. Anxiety builds to a practically unendurable point, until yes, the vest is diffused.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer – The Body from 2001

Buffy arrives at her residence to find her mum has passed away from natural reasons, which is the rarest form of demise in this paranormal series. The installment lacks any soundtrack, 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 final scene of the final episode of the program was incredibly anxious. And if you viewed it when it first premiered, you – at the start – didn’t understand the cause. Tony’s enemies, real and imagined, had all been defeated. This seems similar to the first season’s finale, right? “Remember the little things.” However, the vibe is oddly threatening. Nearly Twin Peaks-like fear. The clan sits in an eatery. Meadow parks. Tony sadly tells Carmela problems are brewing with an additional associate cooperating with the officials. Meadow parks. Unfamiliar individuals come into the diner. Gaze at Tony(?) Meadow is parking. Tony puts a record on the jukebox. Meadow finds a spot. The door chimes, a person comes in. It cannot be Meadow, she is still parking. Tony raises his gaze. Keep going. It ceases. My spirit fell roughly 20 minutes after.

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

I kept late hours to see this show in the early morning. It was extremely gripping following the introduction of villain Negan locating the survivors, mercilessly mocking his targets and then leaving the victim unknown (finished with an unresolved situation). The victim’s POV shot and the muffled sounds – argh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season