‘I absolutely had to rest after that!’ Your most gripping episodes of TV of all time
Spooks – I Spy Apocalypse (2003)
The episode begins with the MI5 agents confined as part of a simulation about a potential terror incident, overseen by two Home Office officials. As things progress, it appears that there really has been an attack and a chemical weapon has been unleashed. The suspense builds as incoming communications show a crisis unfolding beyond their walls, and intensifies as the boss appears to be infected, and the two Home Office officials attempt to leave, compelling the character played by Matthew Macfadyen to decide between shooting them or letting them go and risking contaminating the sealed MI5 offices. This being Spooks, the outcome is expected.
The 1984 production Threads
The production was inexpensive but one of the most frightening programmes I’ve ever seen due to its harsh realism and grim official statistics. Watched it about a month ago after seeing the first airing; I often attended the bar in Sheffield shown in the series which emphasised the reality and the casual, straightforward government details that aired. Continuing to be utterly horrifying decades on.
Severance – The We We Are (2022)
The concluding episode of Severance’s debut season has to be right up there as a tense chapter. I was throughout the episode actually sitting tensely, exerting with Dylan to keep his hands on the levers that sustained the Innies’ extended time, while yelling at the Innies to disclose their facts. The concluding高潮 – “she’s alive!” – felt like an explosion.
The 2024 Industry episode White Mischief
Episode five of the third series of Industry caused my heart to pound. I was compelled to halt and rise and leave the room several times because of the sheer scale of the reckless self-harm I observed. Rishi Ramdani is in major difficulty professionally and personally – overwhelmed by debt from unscrupulous lenders due to his addictive betting, engaging in dangerous ventures with a gamble on the pound which may result in huge losses for his employer. Inevitably, he starts a gaming binge, does tons of drugs and drink and alternates between success and failure, gets beaten to a pulp. Whenever you assume it can’t get any worse, it deteriorates. There’s hope of redemption as the installment closes but he squanders the opportunity, leading to terrible outcomes 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. However, the Holiday episode includes such amounts of embarrassment that it’ll have you standing up throughout the entire episode, riddled with anxiety. It all ramps up once Jeremy and Mark find themselves having to lie about the dog they accidentally run over and following tries to eliminate it. You then occupy the remainder of the episode questioning whether it truly can be worse than incineration, and it turns out to be!
The West Wing – The Two Cathedrals from 2001
Nothing I have seen has been as tense as when I first saw the season two finale to The West Wing. The episode starts with the aftermath of the death (in a traffic accident) of the president’s confidential aide and builds to a peak with a situation in Haiti, and the repercussions of the secrecy of the president’s MS diagnosis, with confirmation of his intention to pursue re-election. Excellent TV. Never bettered.
The 2018 Bodyguard premiere episode
The opening of the British series Bodyguard, featuring the main character on a train alongside his juvenile boy, is for me one of the most intense episodes ever. He notices a Muslim female heading to the toilet and senses something is wrong. The explosive disposal specialists are summoned, board the train, and try to persuade the woman to remove her explosive vest. Suspense rises to a nearly intolerable level, until yes, the vest is diffused.
The 2001 Buffy episode The Body
Buffy comes into her home to find her mum has passed away due to natural factors, which is the most unusual type of death in this supernatural show. The installment lacks any soundtrack, a somber mood, and we see the episode through the experience of Buffy’s shock of discovering her mother.
The 2007 The Sopranos finale Made in America
The concluding moment of the last installment of the series was extremely nerve-wracking. And if you viewed it when it first premiered, you – at the start – didn’t understand the cause. Tony’s enemies, real and imagined, were all vanquished. This seems similar to the first season’s finale, right? “Remember the little things.” But the mood is bizarrely ominous. Approaching Twin Peaks-esque horror. The family sit in a restaurant. Meadow finds a parking spot. Tony sorrowfully notifies Carmela there’s trouble afoot with another member of his team working with the government. Meadow parks. Odd persons arrive at the eatery. Look at Tony(?) Meadow continues to park. Tony selects a song on the jukebox. Meadow parks. The door chimes, a person comes in. It isn’t Meadow, she remains parking. Tony looks up. Continue. It halts. My spirit fell roughly 20 minutes after.
The Walking Dead – The Last Day on Earth (2016)
I stayed up to watch this episode at 2am. It was so intense after the establishment of antagonist Negan locating the survivors, mercilessly mocking his targets then not knowing who he killed (finished with an unresolved situation). The point-of-view shot from the victim and the subdued noises – ugh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season
