‘I absolutely had to rest after that!’ The most gripping television episodes ever

Spooks – I Spy Apocalypse from 2003

The show kicks off with the intelligence unit restricted during a training exercise concerning a fictional terrorist event, supervised by two Home Office agents. As the situation develops, it seems an actual attack has occurred and a chemical weapon has been unleashed. The tension ratchets up as messages indicate a catastrophe taking place outside, and intensifies as the boss appears to be infected, with the two officials trying to exit, pushing the protagonist portrayed by Matthew Macfadyen to decide between shooting them or permitting their exit and potentially infecting the secure MI5 headquarters. Given it’s Spooks, it is unsurprising which one he chooses.

Threads (1984)

Threads was low budget yet among the scariest shows I have viewed because of the stark reality and grim official statistics. Watched it about a month ago following the initial broadcast; I often attended the bar in Sheffield from the programme that highlighted the truth and the offhand factual official statements which was broadcast. Continuing to be utterly horrifying decades on.

The 2022 Severance episode The We We Are

The season one finale of Severance ranks highly among intense episodes. I was throughout the episode actually sitting tensely, pushing alongside Dylan to hold the switches that sustained the Innies’ extended time, while yelling at the Innies to reveal their realities. The concluding高潮 – “she’s alive!” – was like an eruption.

The 2024 Industry episode White Mischief

Installment five in Industry’s third series made my pulse quicken. I had to pause and get up and leave the room several times because of the sheer scale of the deliberate ruin I was witnessing. Rishi Ramdani faces serious trouble professionally and personally – up to his eyeballs in debt to loan sharks because of his compulsive gambling, engaging in dangerous ventures on a wager involving sterling 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, is severely assaulted. Every time you think the situation cannot deteriorate further, it deteriorates. Redemption seems possible at the end of the episode but he misses the opening, resulting in dreadful effects in the concluding part of the season. Definitely needed a lie-down after that!

Peep Show – Holiday (2007)

Peep Show itself isn’t necessarily a stressful show. Yet the installment Holiday includes such amounts of embarrassment that it can cause you to stand for the full show, permeated with worry. The situation intensifies when Jeremy and Mark realize needing to deceive regarding the dog they unintentionally hit and following tries to eliminate it. You then spend the rest of the episode doubting if it can actually be more terrible than burning, and it can be!

The West Wing – The Two Cathedrals from 2001

Nothing I have seen has been as tense than the first time I watched the season two finale to The West Wing. The episode starts with the aftermath of the demise (in a car crash) of the president’s personal secretary and reaches a crescendo with a crisis in Haiti, and the repercussions of the secrecy of the president’s MS diagnosis, with confirmation of his intention to seek re-election. Superb programming. Unsurpassed.

Bodyguard – episode one (2018)

The opening of the British series Bodyguard, with the hero aboard a train alongside his juvenile boy, is for me one of the most intense episodes ever. He observes a woman in Islamic attire going into the loo and knows something is off. The bomb diffuser experts are called, get on the train, and attempt to convince the woman to remove her explosive vest. Tension escalates to a practically unendurable point, until yes, the vest is diffused.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer – The Body (2001)

Buffy enters her house to discover her mother has died of natural causes, which is the most unusual type of death in this paranormal series. The episode has no background music, a gloomy atmosphere, and we witness the episode via the perspective of Buffy’s shock of discovering her mother.

The Sopranos – Made in America (2007)

The final scene of the final episode of the program was incredibly anxious. And if you watched it when it originally aired, you – at the start – didn’t understand the cause. Tony’s adversaries, actual and perceived, were all vanquished. Surely this has the feel of the season one ending? “Think about the small elements.” But the mood is bizarrely ominous. Nearly Twin Peaks-like fear. The family sit in a restaurant. Meadow finds a parking spot. Tony sadly tells Carmela difficulties are arising with yet another of his crew collaborating with the authorities. Meadow secures a parking space. 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 door chimes, a person comes in. Can’t be Meadow, she’s still parking. Tony looks up. Keep going. It ceases. My spirit fell about 20 minutes later.

The Walking Dead – The Last Day on Earth from 2016

I stayed up to watch this episode during the night. It was extremely gripping after the establishment of antagonist Negan locating the survivors, savagely teasing his prey then not knowing who he killed (concluded with a suspenseful moment). The victim’s POV shot and the muffled sounds – argh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season