‘I absolutely had to rest after that!’ The most intense television episodes of all time
The 2003 Spooks episode I Spy Apocalypse
The episode begins with the intelligence unit 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 agent deployed. The suspense builds as incoming communications show a disaster happening externally, and intensifies as the superior shows signs of exposure, with the two officials trying to exit, pushing the protagonist portrayed by Matthew Macfadyen to decide between shooting them or letting them go and potentially infecting the secure MI5 headquarters. Given it’s Spooks, his decision is predictable.
Threads (1984)
Threads had minimal funding but one of the most frightening programmes I’ve ever seen because of the stark reality and dismal official figures. Saw it not long ago after seeing the first airing; I often attended the bar in Sheffield from the programme which underscored the actuality and the glib matter-of-fact official information that aired. Still absolutely terrifying decades on.
Severance – The We We Are from 2022
The concluding episode of Severance’s debut season ranks highly among intense episodes. I was throughout the episode quite literally on the edge of my seat, exerting with Dylan to keep his hands on the levers that allowed the Innies to remain active, while screaming at the Innies to get their truths out there. The ultimate peak – “she’s alive!” – resembled a outburst.
The 2024 Industry episode White Mischief
Installment five in Industry’s third series made my pulse quicken. I was compelled to halt and rise and depart the area multiple times owing to the vast degree of the reckless self-harm I saw. Rishi Ramdani faces serious trouble professionally and personally – up to his eyeballs in debt from unscrupulous lenders due to his addictive betting, assuming hazardous chances with a gamble on the pound which could lose his company millions. So of course, he goes on a gambling spree, uses copious drugs and alcohol and experiences wins and losses, gets beaten to a pulp. Whenever you assume things cannot decline more, it does. Redemption seems possible at the end of the episode yet he wastes the chance, resulting in dreadful effects in the concluding part of the season. Definitely needed a lie-down after that!
The 2007 Peep Show episode Holiday
Peep Show is not inherently a tense series. Yet the installment Holiday contains such levels of cringe that it can cause you to stand throughout the entire episode, filled with nervousness. It all ramps up when Jeremy and Mark realize having to lie about the dog they by chance collide with and later efforts to get rid of it. You subsequently use the rest of the installment questioning whether it truly can be worse than incineration, and it can be!
The West Wing – The Two Cathedrals (2001)
Nothing I have seen has been as tense compared to my initial viewing the second season finale of The West Wing. The installment begins with the consequences of the demise (in a car crash) of the president’s personal secretary and reaches a crescendo involving a Haitian emergency, and the repercussions of the secrecy about the president’s MS condition, with confirmation of his intention to run for another term. Excellent TV. Unequaled.
Bodyguard – episode one from 2018
The opening of the British series Bodyguard, with the protagonist on a train accompanied by his small son, is for me one of the most intense episodes ever. He notices a Muslim female entering the restroom and senses something is wrong. The bomb diffuser experts are called, enter the train, and attempt to convince the woman to discard her bomb jacket. Tension escalates to an almost unbearable degree, 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 least common kind of passing in this paranormal series. The episode has no background music, a sullen tone, and we see the episode through the experience of Buffy’s astonishment upon finding her mother.
The Sopranos – Made in America (2007)
The concluding moment of the last installment of the show was pants-wettingly tense. And if you viewed it when it first premiered, you – at first – weren’t sure why. Tony’s enemies, real and imagined, were all overcome. Doesn’t this resemble the season one conclusion? “Think about the small elements.” But the mood is bizarrely ominous. Nearly Twin Peaks-like fear. The family gathers in a diner. Meadow parks. Tony sadly tells Carmela there’s trouble afoot with another member of his team cooperating with the officials. Meadow parks. Strange people enter the restaurant. Look at Tony(?) Meadow is parking. Tony plays a track on the music machine. Meadow parks. The bell rings, someone enters the restaurant. It isn’t Meadow, she remains parking. Tony raises his gaze. Keep going. It halts. My heart dropped from my mouth around 20 minutes subsequently.
The Walking Dead – The Last Day on Earth from 2016
I remained awake to view this installment in the early morning. It was incredibly tense after the buildup of bad guy Negan discovering the characters, savagely teasing his prey and then leaving the victim unknown (finished with an unresolved situation). The point-of-view shot from the victim and the muted audio – argh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season
