‘I absolutely had to rest after that!’ The most gripping television episodes ever
The 2003 Spooks episode I Spy Apocalypse
The show kicks off with the MI5 agents locked down as part of a simulation concerning a fictional terrorist event, monitored by two government representatives. As events unfold, it appears that there really has been an attack and a chemical agent deployed. The suspense builds as incoming communications show a catastrophe taking place outside, and escalates as the superior shows signs of exposure, with the two officials trying to exit, pushing the protagonist portrayed by Matthew Macfadyen to choose between firing at them or permitting their exit and potentially infecting the secure MI5 headquarters. Given it’s Spooks, it is unsurprising which one he chooses.
The 1984 production Threads
The production was inexpensive but one of the most frightening programmes I’ve ever seen owing to its grim authenticity and grim official statistics. Viewed it recently after seeing the first airing; I frequently went to the Sheffield pub featured in the show which emphasised the reality and the offhand factual official statements which was broadcast. Remaining completely frightening decades on.
Severance – The We We Are from 2022
The first season finale of Severance has to be right up there among intense episodes. I remained for the whole show literally perched nervously, exerting with Dylan to maintain his grip on the controls that sustained the Innies’ extended time, while shouting to the Innies to disclose their facts. The ultimate peak – “she survives!” – resembled a outburst.
Industry – White Mischief (2024)
The fifth episode of Industry’s third season caused my heart to pound. I needed to stop and stand and exit the space repeatedly because of the sheer scale of the reckless self-harm I saw. Rishi Ramdani is in deep shit at work and home – up to his eyeballs in debt to loan sharks due to his addictive betting, taking such risks with a gamble on the pound which may result in huge losses for his employer. Inevitably, he starts a gaming binge, consumes excessive substances and alcohol and experiences wins and losses, gets beaten to a pulp. Every time you think it can’t get any worse, it does. There’s hope of redemption as the installment closes but he misses the opening, resulting in dreadful effects in the season finale. Definitely needed a lie-down after that!
Peep Show – Holiday from 2007
The series Peep Show isn’t typically anxiety-inducing. However, the Holiday episode features such degrees of awkwardness that it’ll have you standing up for the full show, permeated with worry. The tension escalates once Jeremy and Mark find themselves needing to deceive regarding the dog they accidentally run over and following tries to eliminate it. You then spend the rest of the episode questioning whether it truly can be worse than incineration, and it is possible!
The West Wing – The Two Cathedrals (2001)
Nothing I’ve watched has been more intense than the first time I watched the second season finale of The West Wing. The show opens with the fallout of the passing (in a road incident) of the president’s personal secretary and reaches a crescendo with a crisis in Haiti, and the fallout from the non-disclosure regarding the president’s multiple sclerosis diagnosis, coupled with verification of his aim to run for another term. Excellent TV. Never bettered.
Bodyguard – episode one (2018)
The start of the British program Bodyguard, featuring the main character on a train with his young son, is personally a top tense installment. He spots a Muslim woman going into the loo and knows something is off. The bomb squad is alerted, board the train, and try to persuade the woman to take off her suicide vest. Tension escalates to an almost unbearable degree, until yes, the vest is diffused.
The 2001 Buffy episode The Body
Buffy enters her house to discover her mother has died from natural reasons, which is the rarest form of demise in this paranormal series. The episode has no background music, a somber mood, and we see the episode through the experience of Buffy’s shock of discovering her mother.
The Sopranos – Made in America (2007)
The concluding moment of the last installment of the show was pants-wettingly tense. And for those who saw it during its initial broadcast, you – at the start – didn’t understand the cause. Tony’s adversaries, actual and perceived, were all overcome. This seems similar to the first season’s finale, right? “Recall the minor details.” Yet the atmosphere is strangely foreboding. Almost Twin Peaks levels of terror. The family sit in a restaurant. Meadow parks. Tony gloomily informs Carmela there’s trouble afoot with yet another of his crew working with the government. Meadow parks. Strange people enter the restaurant. Stare at Tony(?) Meadow is parking. Tony puts a record on the jukebox. Meadow finds a spot. The bell sounds, an individual enters. Can’t be Meadow, she’s still parking. Tony glances upward. Don’t stop. It ceases. My spirit fell about 20 minutes later.
The 2016 The Walking Dead episode The Last Day on Earth
I remained awake to view this installment in the early morning. It was incredibly tense after the buildup of bad guy Negan locating the survivors, cruelly taunting his victims then not knowing who he killed (ended on a cliffhanger). The point-of-view shot from the victim and the subdued noises – oh no! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season
