The Chernobyl mini-series is a modern horror story brought to life

An extremely chilling watch.

33 years ago, the nuclear reactor at Chernobyl exploded. After that, came days of destruction, months of panic, and decades of fallout that saw the entire surrounding area abandoned, thousands die from cancer, and more left living with the after effects of the accident. Chernobyl is a new mini-series that dramatises the incident itself as well as the aftermath of one of, if not the, worst manmade catastrophes the world has ever seen. Starring Jared Harris, Stellan Skarsgård, and Emily Watson, the HBO and Sky Atlantic series begins at the moment that the reactor explodes and follows the locals, government officials, and media as they struggle to comprehend the magnitude of the disaster. The series - just like the event itself - is chilling, nerve-wracking and genuinely difficult to watch. It starts off slow, taking viewers through an hour-by-hour dramatisation of the moment the meltdown begins as the workers desperately try to figure out what happened, while tragically failing to truly understand the ramifications of the event before it's too late. At the time of writing, only three out of the five episodes have aired, but if you're planning on hanging on and waiting until all five are available to binge it, don't. Episode three is a genuinely tough, graphic, and upsetting watch. Enough time has passed for the fallout of the disaster to have fully taken effect, leaving wives without husbands and doctors still without the ability to do very much for those who are slowly dying. You'll need a while to recover after watching it (it is genuinely horrific), so dive in now and give yourself that bit of time before episode four is available. You will need the breathing room. Trust me. Chernobyl returns on Tuesday, May 28 on Sky Atlantic.