‘I truly required a break after that!’ Your most gripping episodes of TV of all time

Spooks – I Spy Apocalypse (2003)

This installment starts with the intelligence unit confined during a training exercise about a potential terror incident, overseen by two Home Office officials. As the situation develops, it becomes clear a real incident has taken place and a chemical agent deployed. The suspense builds as reports reveal a crisis unfolding beyond their walls, and gets worse when the leader seems contaminated, and the two Home Office officials attempt to leave, forcing Matthew Macfadyen’s character to opt for either shooting them or letting them go and endangering the sterile MI5 environment. As this is Spooks, his decision is predictable.

Threads from 1984

Threads had minimal funding yet among the scariest shows I have ever watched owing to its grim authenticity and dismal official figures. Viewed it recently having watched the original; I frequently went to the Sheffield pub featured in the show which underscored the actuality and the glib matter-of-fact official information which was broadcast. Continuing to be utterly horrifying 35 years later.

The 2022 Severance episode The We We Are

The first season finale of Severance has to be right up there among intense episodes. I remained for the whole show literally perched nervously, pushing alongside Dylan to hold the switches that allowed the Innies to remain active, while yelling at the Innies to disclose their facts. The ultimate peak – “she’s alive!” – felt like an explosion.

The 2024 Industry episode White Mischief

The fifth episode of Industry’s third season caused my heart to pound. I had to pause and get up and exit the space repeatedly because of the sheer scale of the reckless self-harm I observed. Rishi Ramdani is in deep shit at work and home – overwhelmed by debt from unscrupulous lenders due to his addictive betting, taking such risks with a bet on sterling that might cost his firm millions. Inevitably, he starts a gaming binge, consumes excessive substances and alcohol and wins, loses, wins, is severely assaulted. Whenever you assume the situation cannot deteriorate further, it does. Redemption seems possible at the end of the episode but he squanders the opportunity, with horrifying consequences during the season’s final episode. Definitely needed a lie-down after that!

Peep Show – Holiday from 2007

Peep Show is not inherently a tense series. But the episode Holiday features such degrees of awkwardness that it’ll have you standing up for the full show, filled with nervousness. It all ramps up once Jeremy and Mark find themselves having to lie about the dog they by chance collide with and following tries to eliminate it. You then spend the rest of the episode wondering if it might be more awful than cremation, and it can be!

The West Wing – The Two Cathedrals from 2001

No other viewing has been as gripping compared to my initial viewing the concluding episode of The West Wing’s second season. The installment begins with the consequences of the death (in a traffic accident) 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 pursue re-election. Superb programming. Never bettered.

Bodyguard – episode one (2018)

The opening of the British series Bodyguard, with the hero aboard a train alongside his juvenile boy, ranks among the most gripping episodes I’ve seen. He observes a woman in Islamic attire heading to the toilet and senses something is wrong. The bomb diffuser experts are called, get on the train, and attempt to convince the woman to remove her explosive vest. Anxiety builds to an almost unbearable degree, until yes, the vest is diffused.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer – The Body (2001)

Buffy enters her house to find her mum has passed away due to natural factors, which is the least common kind of passing in this paranormal series. The installment lacks any soundtrack, a sullen tone, 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 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 enemies, real and imagined, were all overcome. Doesn’t this resemble the season one conclusion? “Remember the little things.” Yet the atmosphere is strangely foreboding. Almost Twin Peaks levels of terror. The clan sits in an eatery. Meadow parks. Tony sorrowfully notifies Carmela difficulties are arising with another member of his team collaborating with the authorities. Meadow secures a parking space. Strange people enter the restaurant. Gaze at Tony(?) Meadow is parking. Tony selects a song 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 stops. My spirit fell roughly 20 minutes after.

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

I remained awake to view this installment during the night. It was incredibly tense after the establishment of antagonist Negan locating the survivors, mercilessly mocking his targets and then keeping the death a mystery (concluded with a suspenseful moment). The first-person perspective of the victim and the muted audio – oh no! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season