‘I truly required a break after that!’ The most intense television episodes of all time

The 2003 Spooks episode I Spy Apocalypse

The episode begins with the Spooks team restricted while undergoing a drill concerning a fictional terrorist event, supervised by two Home Office agents. As events unfold, it seems an actual attack has occurred and a chemical weapon has been unleashed. The suspense builds as incoming communications show a catastrophe taking place outside, and escalates when the leader seems contaminated, with the two officials trying to exit, compelling the character played by Matthew Macfadyen to decide between shooting them or letting them go and risking contaminating the sealed MI5 offices. As this is Spooks, the outcome is expected.

Threads (1984)

The production was inexpensive but one of the most frightening programmes I have ever watched owing to its grim authenticity and dismal official figures. Saw it not long ago following the initial broadcast; I often attended the bar in Sheffield shown in the series that highlighted the truth and the casual, straightforward government details that were transmitted. Continuing to be utterly horrifying decades on.

Severance – The We We Are from 2022

The season one finale of Severance deserves a top spot in terms of gripping installments. I remained for the whole show quite literally on the edge of my seat, pushing alongside Dylan to maintain his grip on the controls that allowed the Innies to remain active, while yelling at the Innies to disclose their facts. The ultimate peak – “she survives!” – felt like an explosion.

The 2024 Industry episode White Mischief

Installment five in Industry’s third series caused my heart to pound. I needed to stop and stand and exit the space repeatedly because of the sheer scale of the deliberate ruin I observed. Rishi Ramdani faces serious trouble at work and home – up to his eyeballs in debt to loan sharks owing to his uncontrollable gaming, engaging in dangerous ventures with a gamble on the pound which may result in huge losses for his employer. Naturally, he embarks on a betting frenzy, consumes excessive substances and alcohol and experiences wins and losses, is brutally attacked. Every time you think things cannot decline more, it worsens. Redemption seems possible as the installment closes but he misses the opening, resulting in dreadful effects in the concluding part of the season. Certainly required a rest afterward!

The 2007 Peep Show episode Holiday

Peep Show is not inherently a tense series. Yet the installment Holiday includes such amounts of embarrassment that it will make you rise for the full show, riddled with anxiety. 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 can be!

The West Wing – The Two Cathedrals from 2001

No other viewing has been as gripping as when I first saw the second season finale of The West Wing. The episode starts with the aftermath of the death (in a traffic accident) of the president’s private assistant and builds to a peak involving a Haitian emergency, and the fallout from the non-disclosure regarding the president’s multiple sclerosis diagnosis, along with affirmation of his plan to seek re-election. Excellent TV. Unsurpassed.

The 2018 Bodyguard premiere episode

The start of the British program Bodyguard, with the hero aboard a train accompanied by his small son, is for me one of the most intense episodes ever. He spots a Muslim woman heading to the toilet and senses something is wrong. The bomb squad is alerted, enter the train, and endeavor to coax the woman to discard her bomb jacket. Suspense rises to an almost unbearable degree, until, finally, the vest is neutralized.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer – The Body (2001)

Buffy enters her house to discover her mother has died from natural reasons, which is the least common kind of passing in this mystical program. The show features no musical score, a somber mood, and we witness the episode via the perspective of Buffy’s dismay upon uncovering her mother.

The Sopranos – Made in America from 2007

The ultimate sequence of the series finale of the show was pants-wettingly tense. And if you watched it when it originally aired, you – initially – were uncertain of the reason. Tony’s adversaries, actual and perceived, were all overcome. This seems similar to the first season’s finale, right? “Think about the small elements.” However, the vibe is oddly threatening. Approaching Twin Peaks-esque horror. The family sit in a restaurant. Meadow parks. Tony gloomily informs Carmela there’s trouble afoot with an additional associate collaborating with the authorities. Meadow secures a parking space. Unfamiliar individuals come into the diner. Gaze at Tony(?) Meadow is parking. Tony selects a song on the jukebox. Meadow finds a spot. The bell rings, someone enters the restaurant. It cannot be Meadow, she is still parking. Tony raises his gaze. Continue. It ceases. My spirit fell around 20 minutes subsequently.

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

I kept late hours to see this show in the early morning. It was incredibly tense after the buildup of bad guy Negan locating the survivors, 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 – argh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season