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''Inside No. 9'' is a
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
black comedy Black comedy, also known as dark comedy, morbid humor, or gallows humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally considered serious or painful to discus ...
anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...
television programme that first aired in 2014. It is written by
Reece Shearsmith Reeson Wayne "Reece" Shearsmith (born 27 August 1969) is an English actor, writer and comedian. He is best known for being a member of ''The League of Gentlemen'', alongside Steve Pemberton, Mark Gatiss, and Jeremy Dyson. With Pemberton, he lat ...
and
Steve Pemberton Steven James Pemberton (born 1 September 1967) is a British actor, comedian, director and writer. He is best known as a member of ''The League of Gentlemen'' with Reece Shearsmith, Mark Gatiss, and Jeremy Dyson. Pemberton and Shearsmith also co- ...
and produced by the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
. Each 30-minute episode is a self-contained story with new characters and a new setting, and all star Pemberton or Shearsmith (usually both). Aside from the writers, each episode has a new cast, allowing ''Inside No. 9'' to attract a number of well-known actors. The stories are linked only by the number 9 in some way, typically taking the form of a door marked with the number 9, and a brass hare statue that is in the background of all episodes. Pemberton and Shearsmith took inspiration for ''Inside No. 9'' from an episode of ''
Psychoville ''Psychoville'' is a British psychological horror- thriller black comedy mystery television series created and written by and starring ''The League of Gentlemen'' members Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton for the BBC. It debuted on BBC Two o ...
'', a previous project, which was filmed in a single room - this in turn was inspired by
Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...
's ''
Rope A rope is a group of yarns, plies, fibres, or strands that are twisted or braided together into a larger and stronger form. Ropes have tensile strength and so can be used for dragging and lifting. Rope is thicker and stronger than similarly ...
''. Themes and tone vary from episode to episode, but all have elements of comedy and horror or perverse humour, in addition to a
plot twist A plot twist is a literary technique that introduces a radical change in the direction or expected outcome of the plot in a work of fiction. When it happens near the end of a story, it is known as a twist or surprise ending. It may change the aud ...
. The first series was shown in 2014 and featured six regular episodes and a special online-only episode. The second series, again consisting of six episodes, was shown in 2015. Series three began with a Christmas special in December 2016, followed by five more episodes starting February 2017. The fourth series followed in 2018. There was a one-off Halloween special in 2018, and the fifth series was shown in 2020. The sixth series aired in 2021, followed by the seventh series which premiered on 20 April 2022. After the finale, the BBC announced that they had commissioned two further series of the show, bringing it to nine series with series 9 set to be the show's final series. A Christmas special was released in 2022. ''Inside No. 9'' as a whole has been very well received by critics, who have praised the humour and creativity of the scripts, as well as the talent of the featured actors. Commentators have described it as "never less-than-captivating" and "consistently compelling", offering particularly strong praise for "The 12 Days of Christine", "The Riddle of the Sphinx" and "Dead Line". ''Inside No. 9'' won the Sketch and Comedy prize at the 35th annual
Banff World Media Festival Rockie Awards The Banff World Media Festival (formerly known as the Banff World Television Festival) is an international media event held in the Canadian Rockies at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel in Banff, Alberta, Canada. The festival is dedicated to world ...
, and won the comedy prize at the 2016
Rose d'Or The Rose d'Or ('Golden Rose') is an international awards festival in entertainment broadcasting and programming. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) first acquired the Rose d’Or in 1961, when it was created by Swiss Television in the lakesi ...
ceremony. It was nominated for the Best TV Sitcom prize at the 2014
Freesat Freesat is a British free-to-air satellite television service, first formed as a joint venture between the BBC and ITV plc and now owned by Digital UK. The service was formed as a memorandum in 2007 and has been marketed since 6 May 2008. Free ...
Awards, the Broadcast Award for Best Original Programme, and at the 2014
British Comedy Awards The National Comedy Awards (known as the British Comedy Awards from 1990 to 2014) is an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom, celebrating notable comedians and entertainment performances of the previous year. The British Comedy Awards (1 ...
for both the Best New Comedy Programme and the Best Comedy Drama. In the Comedy.co.uk Awards it was voted "Best TV Comedy Drama" in 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017, and was named "Comedy of the Year" in 2017 and 2018. The series has received three nominations at the
British Academy Television Awards The BAFTA TV Awards, or British Academy Television Awards are presented in an annual award show hosted by the BAFTA. They have been awarded annually since 1955. Background The first-ever Awards, given in 1955, consisted of six categories. Until ...
. In 2019, Pemberton won Best Male Comedy Performance. In 2021, Shearsmith was nominated for the same award and the show won Best Scripted Comedy. The scripts of the first three series were released by
Hodder & Stoughton Hodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint (trade name), imprint of Hachette (publisher), Hachette. History Early history The firm has its origins in the 1840s, with Matthew Hodder's employment, aged 14, with Messrs ...
in 2020. A book detailing the production history of Series 1 to 5, ''The Insider's Guide To Inside No. 9'' by Mark Salisbury, was released in 2021.


Format

''Inside No. 9'' is an
anthology series An anthology series is a radio, television, video game or film series that spans different genres and presents a different story and a different set of characters in each different episode, season, segment, or short. These usually have a differ ...
, with each episode featuring a new story, with a new setting and new characters. Episodes run roughly thirty minutes each, with the self-contained story reaching a conclusion. The stories are linked primarily by the fact that each has an element of the story linked to the number 9, be that a mansion, a dressing room or even a shoe, size 9. Every episode stars
Reece Shearsmith Reeson Wayne "Reece" Shearsmith (born 27 August 1969) is an English actor, writer and comedian. He is best known for being a member of ''The League of Gentlemen'', alongside Steve Pemberton, Mark Gatiss, and Jeremy Dyson. With Pemberton, he lat ...
or
Steve Pemberton Steven James Pemberton (born 1 September 1967) is a British actor, comedian, director and writer. He is best known as a member of ''The League of Gentlemen'' with Reece Shearsmith, Mark Gatiss, and Jeremy Dyson. Pemberton and Shearsmith also co- ...
, and regularly both. Each episode is effectively a short play. Some episodes take place in real-time, following half an hour in the lives of the characters. Every episode of ''Inside No. 9'' features an ornamental hare somewhere on-screen. According to Pemberton, "Because each episode is so wildly different there was nothing really linking them other than the fact they were all inside a Number Nine, I just thought it would be nice to have an object that you could hide and just have there on every set." There is, however, no particular significance to the hare itself. As is typical of Shearsmith and Pemberton's work, the scripts address dark topics, with, for instance, the first episode touching upon incest, child sexual abuse and murder. The plotlines make use of twists and surprises of various sorts, though in some cases the surprise is the lack of twist. In an interview, Pemberton said that "there is always a desire to wrong-foot the viewer. That's what you strive to do". The tone varies episode-by-episode. For example, while
gothic horror Gothic fiction, sometimes called Gothic horror in the 20th century, is a loose literary aesthetic of fear and haunting. The name is a reference to Gothic architecture of the European Middle Ages, which was characteristic of the settings of ea ...
was a major component in one case, other times
slapstick comedy Slapstick is a style of humor involving exaggerated physical activity that exceeds the boundaries of normal physical comedy. Slapstick may involve both intentional violence and violence by mishap, often resulting from inept use of props such a ...
was used extensively; the humour, however, is typically
dark Darkness, the direct opposite of lightness, is defined as a lack of illumination, an absence of visible light, or a surface that absorbs light, such as black or brown. Human vision is unable to distinguish colors in conditions of very low lu ...
and
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
. The episodes generally begin with scenes of "utter banality", before the darker elements are revealed. Despite the various episodes featuring unrelated plots and characters, one reviewer said that they are all linked "by a mercurial synthesis of morbid comedy, wicked social commentary and a genuine creepiness". ''Inside No. 9'' is somewhat more grounded and realistic than the writers' previous work, such as ''
Psychoville ''Psychoville'' is a British psychological horror- thriller black comedy mystery television series created and written by and starring ''The League of Gentlemen'' members Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton for the BBC. It debuted on BBC Two o ...
'' and ''
The League of Gentlemen ''The League of Gentlemen'' is a surreal British comedy horror sitcom that premiered on BBC Two in 1999. The programme is set in Royston Vasey, a fictional town in northern England, originally based on Alston, Cumbria, and follows the lives o ...
''. Pemberton said that he and Shearsmith decided not to mix the worlds of ''Inside No. 9'' and their previous projects, but nonetheless include the occasional reference; for example, a character called "Ollie" is mentioned in one ''Inside No. 9'' episode, and the writers imagined that this was Ollie Plimsoles of Legz Akimbo, a character from ''The League of Gentlemen''. Similarly, ''Inside No. 9'' was referenced in the 2017 reunion specials of ''The League of Gentlemen''. Tubbs and Edward are seen living in flat number 9, and the ''Inside No. 9'' hare is visible on their shop counter. In the 2018 Halloween special, in which Pemberton and Shearsmith play versions of themselves, both the League of Gentlemen and its third writer,
Mark Gatiss Mark Gatiss (; born 17 October 1966) is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter, director, producer and novelist. His work includes writing for and acting in the television series ''Doctor Who'', '' Sherlock'', and '' Dracula''. Together with ...
, are directly referred to in the dialogue. The 2020 episode "Death Be Not Proud" directly referenced ''Psychoville'' by featuring various characters from the series in that particular episode.


Production and development

In 2012, after finishing their previous show, ''Psychoville'', writers Pemberton and Shearsmith were commissioned to produce two series for the BBC by controllers
Janice Hadlow Janice Vivienne Hadlow (born November 1957) in Lewisham is a former BBC television executive. She was the controller of the BBC television channel BBC Two, taking over this position in November 2008 having previously been controller of BBC Four. At ...
and
Cheryl Taylor Cheryl Francis Taylor (born March 1964) is the Controller of CBBC (TV channel), CBBC in City of Salford, Salford. Early life She was brought up in Liverpool in a family of Quakers. She went to the independent boarding school The Mount School, Yor ...
, partially in response to
Sky The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from outer space. In the field of astronomy, ...
beginning to produce comedy. At the time, it was unclear whether this would be two series of ''Inside No. 9'', then known by the
working title A working title, which may be abbreviated and styled in trade publications after a putative title as (wt), also called a production title or a tentative title, is the temporary title of a product or project used during its development, usually ...
''Happy Endings'', or a series of ''Inside No. 9'' and a series of some other programme. ''Inside No. 9'' was to be produced by a BBC team, which was later revealed to be David Kerr (director),
Jon Plowman Phillip Jon Plowman (born 1953 in Welwyn Garden City, England) is a British television and film producer. He has been a producer at the BBC since 1980, when he produced Russell Harty's chat show ''Harty''. He moved on to executive producing at ...
(executive producer) and Adam Tandy (producer). Pemberton and Shearsmith took inspiration for ''Inside No. 9'' from "David and Maureen", episode 4 of the first series of ''Psychoville'', which was in turn inspired by
Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...
's ''
Rope A rope is a group of yarns, plies, fibres, or strands that are twisted or braided together into a larger and stronger form. Ropes have tensile strength and so can be used for dragging and lifting. Rope is thicker and stronger than similarly ...
''. This episode took place entirely in a single room, and was filmed in only two shots. The writers were keen to explore other stories in this bottle episode or
TV play A television play is a television programming genre which is a drama performance broadcast from a multiple-camera setup, multi-camera television studio, usually live in the early days of television but later recorded to tape. This is in contra ...
format, and ''Inside No. 9'' allowed them to do this.Pemberton, Steve; Shearsmith, Reece (17 March 2014). "Inside Inside No. 9". ''Inside No. 9'' Series 1 DVD. BBC. At the same time, the concept of ''Inside No. 9'' was a "reaction" to ''Psychoville'', with Shearsmith saying that the two of them had "been so involved with labyrinthine over-arcing, we thought it would be nice to do six different stories with a complete new house of people each week. That's appealing, because as a viewer you might not like this story, but you've got a different one next week." Elsewhere, Shearsmith explained that the pair returned to writing
macabre In works of art, the adjective macabre ( or ; ) means "having the quality of having a grim or ghastly atmosphere". The macabre works to emphasize the details and symbols of death. The term also refers to works particularly gruesome in natu ...
stories as they "always feel slightly unfulfilled if
hey Hey or Hey! may refer to: Music * Hey (band), a Polish rock band Albums * ''Hey'' (Andreas Bourani album) or the title song (see below), 2014 * ''Hey!'' (Julio Iglesias album) or the title song, 1980 * ''Hey!'' (Jullie album) or the title s ...
write something that's purely comedic, sit just feels too frivolous and light". The first story that the pair wrote specifically for ''Inside No. 9'' was about a birthday party. BBC producers felt that this story would work as the opening episode of a sitcom, but, given the script's events, Pemberton and Shearsmith were not happy to develop the idea into its own programme. The script was consequently shelved and revisited during the planning process for the second series, becoming " Nana's Party", the fifth episode of the series and eleventh overall. During the filming ''Inside No. 9'', Shearsmith professed excitement to be working on the programme, saying that " ing in the middle of filming a third series of ''Psychoville'' would be utterly depressing". Pemberton and Shearsmith aimed for a simpler experience with ''Inside No. 9'' than they had experienced with ''Psychoville'', describing "Sardines", ''Inside No. 9'''s first episode, by saying that it was "just about some good actors in a wardrobe with a good story." At the time of ''Inside No. 9'' production, the
anthology series An anthology series is a radio, television, video game or film series that spans different genres and presents a different story and a different set of characters in each different episode, season, segment, or short. These usually have a differ ...
was a rare genre for British television programmes. Previous horror anthologies include '' Tales of the Unexpected'', ''
The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology television series created by Rod Serling. The episodes are in various genres, including fantasy, science fiction, absurdism, dystopian fiction, suspense, horror, su ...
'' and ''
Alfred Hitchcock Presents ''Alfred Hitchcock Presents'' is an American television anthology series created, hosted and produced by Alfred Hitchcock, aired on CBS and NBC between 1955 and 1965. It features dramas, thrillers and mysteries. Between 1962 and 1965 it was ren ...
''; while these would sometimes use comedic elements, they are more prominent in ''Inside No. 9''. ''
Murder Most Horrid ''Murder Most Horrid'' is a British black comedy anthology series starring Dawn French. It was broadcast on BBC Two for four series runs, in 1991, 1994, 1996 and 1999. Created by Paul Smith (television writer), Paul Smith, who also co-created '' ...
'' followed a similar format, but was far more comedic than horrific. Other anthology-like series on British television include ''
Seven of One ''Seven of One'' was a British comedy series that aired on BBC2 in 1973. Starring Ronnie Barker, ''Seven of One'' was a series of seven separate comedies that would serve as possible pilots for sitcoms. Originally it was to be called ''Six o ...
'' and ''
Comedy Playhouse ''Comedy Playhouse'' is a long-running British anthology series of one-off unrelated sitcoms that aired for 120 episodes from 1961 to 1975. Many episodes later graduated to their own series, including ''Steptoe and Son'', '' Meet the Wife'', ...
'', though these programmes lacked horror elements, and, unlike ''Inside No. 9'', served as
pilots An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...
for potential series. However, the British anthology show ''
Black Mirror ''Black Mirror'' is a British anthology television series created by Charlie Brooker. Individual episodes explore a diversity of genres, but most are set in near-future dystopias with science fiction technology—a type of speculative fictio ...
'', which also features elements of comedy and horror, was very popular around the time of ''Inside No. 9''. For Pemberton, the 1970s and 1980s were "full of" anthology shows; other examples included ''
Play for Today ''Play for Today'' is a British television anthology drama series, produced by the BBC and transmitted on BBC1 from 1970 to 1984. During the run, more than three hundred programmes, featuring original television plays, and adaptations of stage ...
'', ''
Beasts Beast most often refers to: * Non-human animal * Monster Beast or Beasts may also refer to: Bible * the Beast (Revelation), Beast (Revelation), two beasts described in the Book of Revelation Computing and gaming * Beast (card game), English n ...
'' and ''
Armchair Thriller ''Armchair Thriller'' is a British television drama series broadcast on ITV in 1978 and 1980 in two seasons. Taking the form of a sequence of unconnected serials, scripts for ''Armchair Thriller'' were adaptations of published novels and stories ...
''. More recently, anthologies have become less popular with television executives, but the writers hope that they may be able to contribute to a "renaissance" for the genre. According to journalist and broadcaster
Mark Lawson Mark Gerard Lawson is an English journalist, broadcaster and author. Specialising in culture and the arts, he is best known for presenting the flagship BBC Radio 4 arts programme ''Front Row (radio programme), Front Row'' between 1998 and 2014. ...
, this is because anthologies can fail to motivate viewers to stay with a series, and, further, new sets and casts must be paid for each episode, meaning that a six-part anthology series will generally be more expensive than a six-part series in a more standard format. For Lawson, ''Inside No. 9'' was able to overcome these problems through the "pleasing coherence" offered by the fact each episode was set in a number 9, and "the wit and inventiveness" of the opening episodes, which could sufficiently engage viewers. Pemberton and Shearsmith had originally considered alternative ways to link the stories, such as all the settings having a shared post man, but then decided that such a strong relationship between stories was not needed. Inspiration and production varied from instalment to instalment, and each was filmed separately, taking less than a week per episode. After Shearsmith and Pemberton had decided that each episode would be about confinement, and having written some of the later episodes, they were inspired by a wardrobe in their working space for "Sardines". The writers were keen to see how confined they could make the characters, aiming to induce feelings of
claustrophobia Claustrophobia is the fear of confined spaces. It can be triggered by many situations or stimuli, including elevators, especially when crowded to capacity, windowless rooms, and hotel rooms with closed doors and sealed windows. Even bedrooms with ...
in viewers. The anthology format allowed Pemberton and Shearsmith to revisit prior ideas, which is what they did with "A Quiet Night In" and "Tom & Gerri". The former was inspired by the writers' efforts to include a long segment without dialogue in an episode of ''Psychoville''. Both episodes followed break-ins. The Pinteresque "Tom & Gerri" was based upon a play written by Pemberton and Shearsmith while the pair were living together and job seeking. The setting was based upon their own flat, while the character Tom's development evoked the experience of job-hunting. "Last Gasp" was inspired by a person Pemberton had seen on ''
Multi-Coloured Swap Shop ''Multi-Coloured Swap Shop'', more commonly known simply as ''Swap Shop'', is a British children's television series that aired on BBC1 from 2 October 1976 to 27 March 1982. It was ground-breaking in many ways: by broadcasting on Saturday mornin ...
'' who collected jars of air, as well as the
death of Michael Jackson On June 25, 2009, American singer Michael Jackson died of acute propofol and benzodiazepine intoxication at his home on North Carolwood Drive in the Holmby Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. His physician, Conrad Murray, said that ...
and the death of Amy Winehouse. "The Understudy", the plot of which is partially based upon and concerns ''
Macbeth ''Macbeth'' (, full title ''The Tragedie of Macbeth'') is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It is thought to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those w ...
'', took longer to write than any other episode; the writers rewrote the script several times, as they were unsure of whether the characters should be amateur or professional actors. "The Harrowing" was the writers' attempt to produce a gothic horror episode. They made use of more horror tropes than previous episodes, but the setting allowed them to include modern elements. The BBC ordered a second series of ''Inside No. 9'' before the first episode had aired. The second series was written in 2014, and then filmed from the end of 2014 into early 2015. The writers were permitted two sets for the second series, and so a fake train compartment and a fake flat (for "
La Couchette "La Couchette" is the first episode of the second series of British dark comedy anthology series, anthology ''Inside No. 9''. Written by Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith and directed by Guillem Morales, the episode is set in a sleeper carri ...
" and "
The 12 Days of Christine "The 12 Days of Christine" is the second episode of the second series of British black comedy anthology series '' Inside No. 9''. It first aired on 2 April 2015 on BBC Two. It was written by Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith, and directed ...
" respectively) were built at
Twickenham Studios Twickenham Studios (formerly known as Twickenham Film Studios) is a film studio in St Margarets, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, that is used by various motion picture and television companies. It was established in 1913 by Ralph ...
. The other episodes were filmed on location; for example, "
The Trial of Elizabeth Gadge "The Trial of Elizabeth Gadge" is the third episode of the second series of the British dark comedy anthology television programme ''Inside No. 9''. It was written by Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton, and directed by Dan Zeff. It first ai ...
" was filmed in a barn at the Chiltern Open Air Museum. David Kerr was unable to stay on as director for the second series.
Guillem Morales Guillem Morales (born September 1973) is a Spanish film and television director from Barcelona. Filmography * ''Back Room'' (1999) *''The Uninvited Guest (2004 film), The Uninvited Guest'' (Spanish: ''El Habitante Incierto'') (2004), for which Mo ...
and
Dan Zeff Dan Zeff is a BAFTA Award-winning United Kingdom, British TV director and writer currently living and working in the UK. He works across Drama (modern genre), drama and comedy television, comedy. Recent work includes the highly acclaimed ''Inside ...
each took on directorial duties for two episodes, and Pemberton and Shearsmith, in addition to continuing to write and star in the episodes, jointly directed the other two. The writers had hoped to direct for some time, and this represented a good opportunity to make their directorial debut. While writing for the series, the pair did not know which episodes they would be directing; in an interview, Shearsmith said that the pair had considered directing episodes in which they did not appear much, but scheduling concerns left them with " Cold Comfort" and "Nana's Party"; the episodes feature the writers quite heavily. The six episodes of the second series derived inspiration from a variety of sources. "La Couchette" aimed to explore the intimacy of
sleeper carriage The sleeping car or sleeper (often ) is a railway passenger car that can accommodate all passengers in beds of one kind or another, for the purpose of sleeping. George Pullman was the American innovator of the sleeper car. The first such cars ...
s; specifically, the unusual problems associated with sleeping in close proximity to strangers. "The 12 Days of Christine" follows a woman over the course of 12 years, with scenes displaying key moments in her life. "The Trial of Elizabeth Gadge" was inspired by genuine witch trials, some transcripts of which Pemberton and Shearsmith had read as part of the writing process. "Cold Comfort" began with the idea of a call centre, and was filmed in the style of a
CCTV Closed-circuit television (CCTV), also known as video surveillance, is the use of video cameras to transmit a signal to a specific place, on a limited set of monitors. It differs from broadcast television in that the signal is not openly t ...
feed. With "Nana's Party", the writers aimed for a feeling of suburban darkness, reminiscent of the work of
Alan Ayckbourn Sir Alan Ayckbourn (born 12 April 1939) is a prolific British playwright and director. He has written and produced as of 2021, more than eighty full-length plays in Scarborough and London and was, between 1972 and 2009, the artistic director of ...
. " Séance Time" began with the idea of a
séance A séance or seance (; ) is an attempt to communicate with spirits. The word ''séance'' comes from the French word for "session", from the Old French ''seoir'', "to sit". In French, the word's meaning is quite general: one may, for example, spe ...
, an idea the writers had wanted to explore for some time. A third series began broadcasting in February 2017, with a Christmas special, "
The Devil of Christmas "The Devil of Christmas" is a Christmas special of the British dark comedy anthology television programme ''Inside No. 9'', and the first episode of the third series. It was first aired on 27 December 2016 on BBC Two. The episode was directed ...
", airing on 27 December 2016. Settings for the third series include an art gallery, a restaurant and an alpine cabin, while guest stars include
Keeley Hawes Claire Julia Hawes (born 10 February 1976), known professionally as Keeley Hawes, is an English actress. After beginning her career in a number of literary adaptations, including ''Our Mutual Friend'' (1998) and ''Tipping the Velvet'' (2002), Haw ...
,
Jessica Raine Jessica Raine (born Jessica Helen Lloyd; 20 May 1982) is an English actress. She is best known for her roles as Jenny Lee in the television series ''Call the Midwife'' (2012–2014) and Verity Lambert in the television film '' An Adventure in ...
,
Felicity Kendal Felicity Ann Kendal (born 25 September 1946) is an English actress, working principally in television and theatre. She has appeared in numerous stage and screen roles over a more than 70-year career, but the role that brought attention to her ...
,
Tamzin Outhwaite Tamzin Maria Outhwaite (; born 5 November 1970) is an English actress, presenter and narrator. Since playing the role of Mel Owen in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', she has starred in a number of theatre and television productions, includi ...
,
Fiona Shaw Fiona Shaw (born Fiona Mary Wilson; 10 July 1958) is an Irish film and theatre actress. She is known for her roles as Petunia Dursley in the ''Harry Potter'' film series (2001–2010), Marnie Stonebrook in the fourth season of the HBO serie ...
,
Jason Watkins Jason Watkins (born 28 October 1962) is an English stage, film and television actor. He played the lead role in the two-part drama ''The Lost Honour of Christopher Jefferies'', for which he won the BAFTA TV Award for Best Actor. He has also ...
,
Mathew Baynton Mathew John Baynton (born 18 November 1980) is an English actor, writer, comedian, singer, and musician best known as a member of the British Horrible Histories troupe in which he starred in the TV series ''Horrible Histories''; as well as an a ...
,
Rula Lenska Rula Lenska (born Róża Maria Leopoldyna Łubieńska, 30 September 1947) is a British actress. She mainly appears in British stage and television productions and is known in the United States for a series of television advertisements in the 19 ...
,
Philip Glenister Philip Haywood Glenister (born 10 February 1963) is an English actor. He is best known for his role as DCI Gene Hunt in the BBC series ''Life on Mars'' (2006–2007) and its sequel '' Ashes to Ashes'' (2008–2010). He also played DCI William ...
, Sarah Hadland,
Javone Prince Javone Prince is a British comedian and actor. He has appeared in many British comedy television shows, such as ''Horrible Histories'', ''Sorry, I've Got No Head'' and ''Little Miss Jocelyn.'' He also Featured in The Dumping Ground as the chara ...
,
Montserrat Lombard Montserrat Lombard (born 1 August 1982) is an English actress best known for playing WPC (later DC) Sharon 'Shaz' Granger in the BBC drama series '' Ashes to Ashes''. Early life Lombard was born in London and is of Spanish and Italian desce ...
,
Morgana Robinson Morgana Robinson (born 7 May 1982) is an Australian-born English impressionist, comedian, writer and actress, who is best known for her comedy sketch programme ''The Morgana Show'', ''Morgana Robinson's The Agency'', appearances on ''The TNT Sho ...
, and
Alexandra Roach Alexandra Elizabeth Roach (born 20 August 1987) is a Welsh actress best known for her roles as Becky in ''Utopia'' and DS Joy Freers in ''No Offence''. She has also made appearances in series including '' Being Human'', ''Inside No. 9'', ''Blac ...
. A fourth series was confirmed after the airing of "The Devil of Christmas", and began broadcast in 2018. Pemberton has said that he would be interested in an online spin-off, perhaps called ''No. 9A'', with less experienced comedy writers. In an interview, he said "The format has so many opportunities and can incorporate so many styles, as long as you stick to the small cast, single location constraint. I think it's really important to bring through fresh voices." The show's fifth series was commissioned in February 2018, and aired in 2020. A 2018
live Live may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Live!'' (2007 film), 2007 American film * ''Live'' (2014 film), a 2014 Japanese film *'' ''Live'' (Apocalyptica DVD) Music *Live (band), American alternative rock band * List of albums ...
special received particular praise for its unusual and creative format. The episode, described as "astonishingly bold and ambitious" by reviewer Sean O'Grady, appeared to suffer technical difficulties within its first 9 minutes of broadcast. The difficulties, including the
continuity announcer In broadcasting, continuity or presentation (or station break in the U.S. and Canada) is announcements, messages and graphics played by the broadcaster between specific programmes. It typically includes programme schedules, announcement of the ...
's voiceover, were in-fact part of the programme's plot, which centred on the premise that the studios in which the episode were being filmed were haunted. Around 20% of the audience reportedly switched off before the deception became apparent. The plot included a number of features playing with the live format, including Shearsmith and Pemberton watching the live broadcast, and Shearsmith sending a Tweet during the show. In December 2022, it was revealed that ''Inside No. 9'' would pause after the ninth series airs. Pemberton said: "We feel it is a good time to pause Inside No. 9 after we finish filming season 9 next year ..We're not saying it's over for good ..but we won't be looking to make any more episodes for the time being."


Episodes


Series overview


Series 1 (2014)


Webisode (2014)


Series 2 (2015)


Series 3 (2016–17)


Series 4 (2018)


Halloween special (2018)

This episode was a live broadcast, rather than a pre-recorded episode. The music, by
Christian Henson Christian Henson (born 25 December 1971) is a British composer, primarily working on television and film soundtracks. He has also soundtracked video games, and is the co-founder of Spitfire Audio with fellow composer Paul Thomson. Henson has been ...
, was also performed live.


Series 5 (2020)


Series 6 (2021)


Series 7 (2022)


Christmas special (2022)


Cast

As each episode of ''Inside No. 9'' features new characters, the writers were able to attract actors who may have been unwilling or unable to commit to an entire series. The writers' reputation also helped attract actors, with journalist David Chater saying that they "have developed such a track record over the years that many of the finest actors in the country jump at the chance to appear in their dark imaginings". The fact that Pemberton and Shearsmith only played a single character in each story was a change for them; in ''
The League of Gentlemen ''The League of Gentlemen'' is a surreal British comedy horror sitcom that premiered on BBC Two in 1999. The programme is set in Royston Vasey, a fictional town in northern England, originally based on Alston, Cumbria, and follows the lives o ...
'', the pair have played some 30 characters each, while, in ''Psychoville'', they had played around five each. Though Pemberton and Shearsmith generally starred in each episode, they did not necessarily take on the main roles. Shearsmith explained this by saying that they "didn't write this for us to be in. We wrote the stories first then thought, could we be in them?" Pemberton appears in all episodes other than "The Harrowing", while Shearsmith appears in all episodes other than "Last Gasp".


Distribution

The first series of ''Inside No. 9'' was shown in the UK on
BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...
(and
BBC Two HD BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...
) between 5 February and 12 March 2014. It was aired in Australia on
BBC First BBC First is an entertainment subscription television channel featuring comedy, crime, drama and film programming, originating from UK and mostly from the BBC. The channel is wholly owned and operated by BBC Studios. The channel began rolling ou ...
, premiering on 5 January 2015. The second series aired in the UK from 26 March to 29 April 2015, and aired in Australia from 27 July 2015. The first series was released on DVD on 17 March 2014. In addition to the six episodes, the DVD featured the
making of In cinema, behind-the-scenes (BTS), also known as the making-of, the set, or on the set, is a type of documentary film that features the production of a film or television program. This is often referred to as the EPK (electronic press kit) vid ...
feature "Inside Inside No. 9", including unseen interviews with Pemberton, Shearsmith and Kerr, and a photo gallery with previously unreleased photos. Published by
2 Entertain 2 Entertain (stylized as 2 , entertain) is a British video and music publisher founded in September 2004 by the merger of BBC Video and Video Collection International in 2004. Under CEO Richard Green, the company operated as a joint venture b ...
, the DVD was rated 18 by the
British Board of Film Classification The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC, previously the British Board of Film Censors) is a non-governmental organisation founded by the British film industry in 1912 and responsible for the national classification and censorship of f ...
. To publicise the DVD, the writers appeared at the
Oxford Street Oxford Street is a major road in the City of Westminster in the West End of London, running from Tottenham Court Road to Marble Arch via Oxford Circus. It is Europe's busiest shopping street, with around half a million daily visitors, and as ...
, London, branch of
HMV Sunrise Records and Entertainment, trading as HMV (for His Master's Voice), is a British music and entertainment retailer, currently operating exclusively in the United Kingdom. The first HMV-branded store was opened by the Gramophone Company ...
for a signing event on 20 March. The DVD was reviewed by David Upton for webzine
PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...
, who gave the main feature an 8/10 rating, and the extras a 5/10 rating, and Ben Walsh for ''
The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'', who gave the DVD overall 4/5. Phelim O'Neill, reviewing the release for ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', described the boxset as "very lendable", suggesting that it would help ''Inside No. 9'' reach a wider audience. South African newspapers ''
The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...
'' and ''
The Star ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
'' both published positive reviews of the DVD, with ''The Star''s anonymous review saying the DVD "makes a great prezzie for cynics, so if you know any lawyers or journalists...". The second series was released on DVD on 4 May 2015. A review in the ''
Leicester Mercury The ''Leicester Mercury'' is a British regional newspaper for the city of Leicester and the neighbouring counties of Leicestershire and Rutland. The paper began in the 19th century as the ''Leicester Daily Mercury'' and later changed to its pre ...
'' awarded it four out of five stars. The advent of Series 3 saw Series 1&2 released on Blu-ray on 13 February 2017. Series 3 has a 27 March 2017 release on DVD and Blu-ray. The complete series 4 was released on DVD and Blu-ray on 12 February 2018, while series 5 was released only on DVD 23 March 2020, there is no Blu-ray release as of now for series 5.


Reception and performance


Critical reception

Many critics responded very positively to ''Inside No. 9''. After the final episode of the first series, the comedic critic
Bruce Dessau Bruce Dessau is a British arts critic who writes for the ''London Evening Standard The ''Evening Standard'', formerly ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), also known as the ''London Evening Standard'', is a local free daily newspaper in Lo ...
said on his website that it had "really set an early benchmark to beat for comedy of the year. It has been consistently compelling as each week we entered an entirely different world." On the same day, David Chater, writing in ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'', said of the series as a whole that " 's hard to know which to admire more – the rich and perverse imaginations of Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith or the extraordinary range of acting talent that has brought this strange and memorable series to life." Chater had previously described "A Quiet Night In", the second episode of ''Inside No. 9'', as "the funniest, cleverest, most imaginative and original television I have seen for as long as I can remember – one of those fabulous programmes where time stands still and the world around you disappears". Mark Jones (''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'') considered the whole series, saying that the ''Inside No. 9'' was "never less-than-captivating", while a review in the ''
Liverpool Echo The ''Liverpool Echo'' is a newspaper published by Trinity Mirror North West & North Wales – a subsidiary company of Reach plc and is based in St Paul's Square, Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It is published Monday to Sunday, and is Liverp ...
'' described every episode as "intriguing and lovingly-crafted", though it was felt that the first three episodes were stronger than the latter three. In December 2014, ''
Metro Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to: Geography * Metro (city), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urba ...
'' television critic Keith Watson named ''Inside No. 9'' the twentieth best television programme of 2014, and in January 2015, ''
Daily Star Sunday The ''Daily Star Sunday'' is a weekly tabloid newspaper published in the United Kingdom. It was launched as a sister title to the ''Daily Star (United Kingdom), Daily Star'' on 15 September 2002. The ''Daily Star Sunday'' is published by Expres ...
'' columnist
Garry Bushell Garry Bushell (born 13 May 1955) is an English newspaper columnist, rock music journalist, television presenter, author, musician and political activist. Bushell also sings in the Cockney Oi! bands GBX and the Gonads. He managed the New York Ci ...
named ''Inside No. 9'' the best comedy TV programme of 2014. Writing before ''Inside No. 9'' was televised, broadcaster and journalist
Mark Lawson Mark Gerard Lawson is an English journalist, broadcaster and author. Specialising in culture and the arts, he is best known for presenting the flagship BBC Radio 4 arts programme ''Front Row (radio programme), Front Row'' between 1998 and 2014. ...
suggested that, among anthology series, the programme possessed "the potential to be remembered as a singular achievement". Commending both the acting and writing of ''Inside No. 9'', ''
New Statesman The ''New Statesman'' is a British political and cultural magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first connected with Sidney and Beatrice Webb and other leading members ...
'' television critic
Rachel Cooke Rachel Cooke (born 1969) is a British journalist and writer. Early life Cooke was born in Sheffield, and is the daughter of a university lecturer. She went to school in Jaffa, Israel, until she was 11, before returning to Sheffield, and atten ...
offered a positive verdict of the programme after seeing the first half of the series. Cooke expressed particular admiration of Pemberton and Shearsmith's ability to squeeze "perfectly formed narratives – characters with proper backstories, scenarios that are complicated and unwind relatively slowly – into just 30 minutes". Also writing mid-series, journalist Gareth Lightfoot called ''Inside No. 9'' "hands down the best, freshest thing on elevisionat the moment" in the '' Evening Gazette'', though he doubted whether it could truly be considered comedy. Donal Lynch, of Irish newspaper the '' Sunday Independent'', suggested that, like the previous work of Pemberton and Shearsmith, ''Inside No. 9'' may be something of "a cult hit/acquired taste". Barry Didcock, of '' The Herald'', expressed a similar sentiment, calling ''Inside No. 9'' "probably the most Marmitey programme on television". ''The Times'' published a response to a complaint received from a viewer, who was unhappy with Chater's positive reviews of ''Inside No. 9'', suggesting that "A Quiet Night In" was more traumatic than humorous. Sam Wollaston, television critic for ''The Guardian'', noted that humour is extremely personal, and though he could appreciate much about ''Inside No. 9'', he had never liked Pemberton and Shearsmith's work: "I'm sure I'll be crucified – probably quite rightly – but I don't love Inside No 9." Some tabloid columnists also expressed dissatisfaction with the programme. Virginia Blackburn, of the ''
Daily Express The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first published as a broadsheet i ...
'', wrote a highly critical review of "Last Gasp". Blackburn considered ''Inside No. 9'' an example of the weakness of contemporary television comedy, saying that the episode is "not funny, it's not clever and is so utterly, irredeemably, naffly silly that it ends up being incredibly irritating and nothing else". Another journalist unimpressed was the ''
Daily Mirror The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily tabloid. Founded in 1903, it is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead was simply ''The Mirror''. It had an average daily print ...
'' columnist Kevin O'Sullivan, who dismissed the programme by saying simply "BBC2's alleged comedy Inside No. 9: didn't even smile". Cooke observed the difficulty in reviewing ''Inside No. 9'' as a whole due to the fact that each episode is different from the last. "Sardines" was commended for its cast and acting, as well as the scripting, but critics had a mixed response to the twist ending. "A Quiet Night In" was a change in approach, relying on
physical comedy Physical comedy is a form of comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any ...
, but it was well received as funny, and inventive. "Tom & Gerri" was less comedic but darker than previous episodes; critics commended the plot, but disagreed about the portrayal of
mental illness A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness or psychiatric disorder, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. Such features may be persistent, relapsing and remitti ...
in the episode. Less horrific than other episodes in the series, "Last Gasp" dealt with themes of
celebrity culture Celebrity culture is a high-volume exposure to celebrities' personal lives on a global scale. It is inherently tied to consumer interests where celebrities transform their fame to become product brands. Whereas a culture can usually be physically ...
and
fandom A fandom is a subculture composed of fans characterized by a feeling of empathy and camaraderie with others who share a common interest. Fans typically are interested in even minor details of the objects of their fandom and spend a significant ...
, and was considered a weaker instalment. Critics called "The Understudy" a "return to form". While it was based upon ''Macbeth'', a knowledge of the play was not necessary for enjoyment, and the plot's divergence from the play was praised. "The Harrowing" was the most horrific episode of the series, and was considered genuinely scary by critics. "La Couchette" was characterised by critics as strong and funny, with praise directed at the cast and script. "The 12 Days of Christine" was hailed as "masterpiece" and "a quiet elegy, terse and polished, in many ways perfect". The emotional script, poignancy of the ending and performance of the cast, especially Smith, was highly praised. "The Trial of Elizabeth Gadge" was compared unfavourably with the previous two episodes by some critics, though the writers were characterised as having displayed their versatility and ability with the atypical setting and language. Critics had a mixed response to the episode's humour, but praised the performance of the cast. "Cold Comfort" was generally praised, though also characterised as weaker than other episodes in the series. The unusual filming style was commended, but there was a mixed response to the episode's ending. "Nana's Party" received high praise for its script and characters, and for the cast's performances. "Séance Time" was praised as well written and genuinely frightening, while Alison Steadman's performance being picked out for commendation by many critics. In a 2018 article for ''
Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments * French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home * Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment Arts and entertainment * Salon (P ...
'', American writer
Mary Elizabeth Williams Mary Elizabeth Williams is an American writer and commentator. She is a staff writer for the online magazine ''Salon''. She has also written for ''The New York Times'', ''The Nation'', and other publications. As a commentator, she has made appeara ...
described the series as "the best show you're not watching" and "brilliant, black-humored, taut format horror for people who enjoy the occasional potty-joke". In 2019, ''Inside No. 9'' was ranked 66th on ''The Guardians list of the 100 best TV shows of the 21st century.


Viewing figures

Despite the generally positive reception among critics and viewers, the viewing figures for the first series were poor. The average viewing figures for the series were 904,000 people, or 4.9% of the
audience An audience is a group of people who participate in a show or encounter a work of art, literature (in which they are called "readers"), theatre, music (in which they are called "listeners"), video games (in which they are called "players"), or ...
, lower than the slot average of 970,000 (5.1% of the audience). The series had a strong start, with 1.1 million viewers, which was 5.6% of the audience, watching "Sardines". The series low was the fifth episode, "The Understudy", which attracted 720,000 viewers (4.1% of the audience).


Awards and nominations


People

Thanks to their work on ''Inside No. 9'', Pemberton and Shearsmith jointly won the 2014/2015
Royal Television Society The Royal Television Society (RTS) is a British-based educational charity for the discussion, and analysis of television in all its forms, past, present, and future. It is the oldest television society in the world. It currently has fourteen r ...
Programme award for best comedy performance. The other nominees were
Harry Enfield Henry Richard Enfield (born 30 May 1961) is an English comedian, actor, writer and director. He is known in particular for his television work, including ''Harry Enfield's Television Programme'' and '' Harry & Paul'', and for the creation and ...
, for his performance in ''
Harry and Paul's Story of the Twos ''Harry & Paul'' (originally titled ''Ruddy Hell! It's Harry & Paul'') is a British sketch comedy show starring Harry Enfield and Paul Whitehouse. It was first broadcast on BBC One on 13 April 2007. Prior to broadcast it was trailed as ''The H ...
'', and Sarah Hadland, for her performance in ''
The Job Lot ''The Job Lot'' is a British sitcom. The series is set in a busy West Midlands Job Centre, and focuses on the relationships between the staff, and the job-seekers. The series was commissioned following a successful pilot, written by Claire Do ...
''. The pair were also jointly nominated for the 2015 British Academy Television Craft Award for comedy writer for their work on ''Inside No. 9'', but lost to
Mackenzie Crook Paul James "Mackenzie" Crook (born 29 September 1971) is an English actor, comedian, director and writer. He played Gareth Keenan in ''The Office'', Ragetti in the ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' films, Orell in the HBO series ''Game of Thrones'', ...
for his work on ''
Detectorists ''Detectorists'' is a British comedy television series first broadcast on BBC Four in October 2014. It is written and directed by Mackenzie Crook, who also stars alongside Toby Jones. The series is set in the fictional small town of Danebury i ...
''. Arthur Matthews and
Matt Berry Matthew Charles Berry (born 2 May 1974) is an English actor, comedian, musician, and writer. He is best known for his roles in comedy series such as '' The IT Crowd'', ''Garth Marenghi's Darkplace'', ''The Mighty Boosh'', ''Snuff Box'', ''What ...
(''
Toast of London ''Toast of…'' is a British television sitcom, known either as ''Toast of London'' (when it was set in London) or ''Toast of Tinseltown'' (with episodes set in America). It was created by Arthur Mathews and Matt Berry and stars Berry as Steve ...
'') and
Mathew Baynton Mathew John Baynton (born 18 November 1980) is an English actor, writer, comedian, singer, and musician best known as a member of the British Horrible Histories troupe in which he starred in the TV series ''Horrible Histories''; as well as an a ...
and James Corden (''
The Wrong Mans ''The Wrong Mans'' is a British BBC Television comedy-drama series, co-produced with the American online television provider Hulu. It premiered on BBC Two on 24 September 2013 and in the United States on 11 November 2013. Considered a crit ...
'') were the other nominees. The following year, Guillem Morales was nominated for the Television Craft Award for Breakthrough Talent for his work on "The 12 Days of Christine", but lost to
Michaela Coel Michaela Ewuraba Boakye-Collinson (born 1 October 1987), known professionally as Michaela Coel, is a British screenwriter and actress. She is best known for creating and starring in the E4 sitcom ''Chewing Gum'' (2015–2017), for which she won ...
, who wrote ''
Chewing Gum Chewing gum is a soft, cohesive substance designed to be chewed without being swallowed. Modern chewing gum is composed of gum base, sweeteners, softeners/plasticizers, flavors, colors, and, typically, a hard or powdered polyol coating. Its te ...
''. The other nominees were
D. C. Moore David "D. C." Moore (born 1980) is a British playwright and television screenwriter. Biography He was raised in Duston, Northamptonshire. Now based in London, he started out as an assistant director and worked with Rupert Goold on production ...
(''
Not Safe for Work Not safe for work (NSFW) is Internet slang or shorthand used to mark links to content, videos, or website pages the viewer may not wish to be seen looking at in a public, formal or controlled environment. The marked content may contain nudity, p ...
'') and Marcus Plowright ('' Muslim Drag Queens''). At the 2013/2014 Royal Television Society Craft and Design Awards, Lisa Cavalli-Green was nominated for the "Make Up Design – Drama" award for her work on ''Inside No. 9'', but lost to Davy Jones, for his work on ''
In the Flesh In the Flesh may refer to: Books * ''In the Flesh'' (2009 graphic novel), a collection of stories by Koren Shadmi Film and TV * ''In the Flesh'' (1998 film), an American gay-themed murder mystery film * ''In the Flesh'' (2003 film), an Indian ...
''. Loz Schiavo (''
Peaky Blinders The Peaky Blinders were a street gang based in Birmingham, England, which operated from the 1880s until the 1910s. The group consisted largely of young criminals from lower- to middle-class backgrounds. They engaged in robbery, violence, racke ...
'') was the other nominee. Due in part to her role in "The Harrowing", Aimee-Ffion Edwards was shortlisted for
WalesOnline Media Wales Ltd. is a publishing company based in Cardiff, Wales. As of 2009 it was owned by Reach plc (formerly known as the Trinity Mirror Group). It was previously known as the Western Mail & Echo Ltd. History The ''Western Mail'' was fo ...
's "Daffta" award for best actress, but lost to
Eve Myles Eve Myles (born 26 July 1978) is a Welsh actress. She is best known for her television roles portraying Ceri Lewis in the long-running BBC Wales drama series '' Belonging'' (2000–2009), Gwen Cooper in the BBC science-fiction series ''Torchw ...
. The Dafftas celebrate Welsh television talent and prizes are awarded based on a public vote. At the 2018 Writers' Guild Awards, administered by the
Writers' Guild of Great Britain The Writers' Guild of Great Britain (WGGB), established in 1959, is a trade union for professional writers. It is affiliated with both the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and the International Affiliation of Writers Guilds (IAWG). History The un ...
, Shearsmith and Pemberton won the Best TV Situation Comedy award for their work on "The Bill". The award was presented by Brenda Gilhooly. The other nominees were
Daisy May Cooper Daisy May Cooper (born 1 August 1986) is an English actress and writer. She won the 2018 BAFTA TV Award for Best Female Comedy Performance for playing Kerry Mucklowe in the BBC Three series ''This Country'', which she co-created and co-wrote wi ...
and Charlie Cooper, the writers of ''
This Country ''This Country'' is a British mockumentary sitcom, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC Three on 8 February 2017. Created by, written by and starring siblings Daisy May Cooper and Charlie Cooper and directed by Tom George, the series f ...
'', and
Simon Blackwell Simon John Blackwell (born 27 May 1966) is an English comedy writer and producer. He is best known for his work on ''The Thick of It'', '' In The Loop'' and ''Veep'', and for his collaborations with Jesse Armstrong and Sam Bain on ''Peep Show'', ...
, for his work on ''
Back The human back, also called the dorsum, is the large posterior area of the human body, rising from the top of the buttocks to the back of the neck. It is the surface of the body opposite from the chest and the abdomen. The vertebral column run ...
''. At the 2019 British Academy Television Awards, Pemberton won for Best Male Comedy Performance, while at the 2019 British Academy Television Craft Awards, Barbara Wiltshare won for Best Director: Multi-Camera. At the 2021 British Academy Television Awards, Shearsmith was nominated for Best Male Comedy Performance.


Programme

''Inside No. 9'' won the award for "Best TV Comedy Drama" at the Comedy.co.uk Awards in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018, beating '' Cold Feet'', ''
Flowers A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...
'', '' Fresh Meat'', ''
Jonathan Creek ''Jonathan Creek'' is a long-running British mystery crime drama series produced by the BBC and written by David Renwick. It stars Alan Davies as the titular character, who works as a creative consultant to a stage magician while also solvi ...
'' and ''
Stag Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...
'' in 2016, ''Cold Feet'', ''
Doc Martin ''Doc Martin'' is a British medical comedy drama television series starring Martin Clunes as Doctor Martin Ellingham. It was created by Dominic Minghella after the character of Dr Martin Bamford in the 2000 comedy film '' Saving Grace''. The ...
'', ''
Eric, Ernie and Me ''Eric, Ernie and Me'' is a 2017 television film based on the relationship between British television double-act Morecambe and Wise and their writer Eddie Braben. It starred Stephen Tompkinson as Eddie Braben, Mark Bonnar as Eric Morecambe and ...
'', ''
Murder on the Blackpool Express ''Murder on the Blackpool Express'' is a 2017 comedy drama television film created by Jason Cook. Starring Johnny Vegas, Sian Gibson, Sheila Reid, Katy Cavanagh, Una Stubbs (In her final performance), Nina Wadia, Kimberley Nixon , Matthew Cottl ...
'' and ''
No Offence ''No Offence'' is a British television police procedural drama on Channel 4, created by Paul Abbott. It follows a team of detectives from Friday Street police station, a division of the Manchester Metropolitan Police (a fictional version of the ...
'' in 2017, and ''Click & Collect'', ''Dave Allen At Peace'', ''Death on the Tyne'', ''Flowers'' and ''No Offence'' in 2018. In 2017, ''Inside No. 9'' was named the Comedy.co.uk "Comedy of the Year". The show retained the award in 2018. ''Inside No. 9'' won the Sketch and Comedy prize at the 35th annual
Banff World Media Festival Rockie Awards The Banff World Media Festival (formerly known as the Banff World Television Festival) is an international media event held in the Canadian Rockies at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel in Banff, Alberta, Canada. The festival is dedicated to world ...
. The other nominees were ''
Do I Have to Take Care of Everything? ''Do I Have to Take Care of Everything?'' ( fi, Pitääkö mun kaikki hoitaa?) is a 2012 Finnish short film by Selma Vilhunen. It was nominated for the Best Live Action Short Film at the 86th Academy Awards. The film is a comedy about a busy morni ...
'', ''
It's a Date ''It's a Date'' is a 1940 American musical film directed by William A. Seiter and starring Deanna Durbin, Kay Francis, and Walter Pidgeon. Based on a story by Jane Hall, Frederick Kohner, and Ralph Block, the film is about an aspiring actres ...
'', ''
Tiny Plastic Men ''Tiny Plastic Men'' is a Canadian television comedy series, which premiered on Super Channel in 2012. Produced in Edmonton, Alberta, the series stars Mark Meer, Chris Craddock and Matt Alden as three employees in the testing department of the ...
'', ''
Gangsta Granny ''Gangsta Granny'' is a 2011 British children's comedy fiction book, written by David Walliams, illustrated by Tony Ross and published by HarperCollins. A sequel, '' Gangsta Granny Strikes Again'', was released in 2021. Plot Ben, a curious ...
'' and ''
The Revolution Will Be Televised ''The Revolution Will Be Televised'' is a British television satire show starring Heydon Prowse and Jolyon Rubinstein, which was first screened on BBC Three in August 2012. Writing for ''The Guardian'', Sam Wollaston said it's "Sacha Baron Co ...
''. In response to the nomination, Shearsmith
tweeted Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
that he was " rilled", joking that the programme was "in 'Comedy'. I knew it was one". ''Inside No. 9'' was also nominated for Best TV Sitcom at the 2014
Freesat Freesat is a British free-to-air satellite television service, first formed as a joint venture between the BBC and ITV plc and now owned by Digital UK. The service was formed as a memorandum in 2007 and has been marketed since 6 May 2008. Free ...
Awards, which celebrate the best of free British television. The programme lost to BBC2's ''
The Wrong Mans ''The Wrong Mans'' is a British BBC Television comedy-drama series, co-produced with the American online television provider Hulu. It premiered on BBC Two on 24 September 2013 and in the United States on 11 November 2013. Considered a crit ...
'', as determined by a panel made up of television experts and commentators. The other nominees were '' Birds of a Feather'', ''
Mrs. Brown's Boys ''Mrs. Brown's Boys'' is an Irish television sitcom created by and starring Brendan O'Carroll and produced in the United Kingdom by BBC Scotland in partnership with BOC-PIX and Irish broadcaster RTÉ. The series stars O'Carroll as Agnes ...
'' and ''
Toast of London ''Toast of…'' is a British television sitcom, known either as ''Toast of London'' (when it was set in London) or ''Toast of Tinseltown'' (with episodes set in America). It was created by Arthur Mathews and Matt Berry and stars Berry as Steve ...
''. In November 2014, it was announced that ''Inside No. 9'' had been shortlisted for the 2015 ''Broadcast'' Award for Best Original Programme. The other nominees were ''
Crackanory ''Crackanory'' is a storytelling television series aimed at adults and inspired by the popular children's series '' Jackanory''. It is broadcast on the UKTV channel Dave. Each episode features tales narrated by contemporary comedians and actors, ...
'', '' Glasgow Girls'', ''
Release the Hounds ''Release the Hounds'' was a British television game show broadcast on ITV2 from October 2013 to February 2018. The show, hosted first by Reggie Yates and later by Matt Edmondson, culminates in the participants attempting to complete scary gru ...
'', '' Suspects'' and ''
The Island with Bear Grylls ''The Island with Bear Grylls'' is a British reality television programme which premiered on Channel 4 on 5 May 2014 and ran for five series, plus a renamed sixth series and a spin-off series. Narrated by Bear Grylls, participants in the show ...
''. At the award ceremony in London on 4 February 2015, ''Glasgow Girls'' was granted the award, but ''Inside No. 9'' was highly commended. ''Inside No. 9'' won the TV award at the 2015
Chortle Awards The Chortle Awards were set up in 2002 by the comedy website Chortle to honour the best of established stand-up comics currently working in the UK. A panel of reviewers draw up a shortlist, which is presented for public vote at the Chortle websit ...
. The programme was
longlist A short list or shortlist is a list of candidates for a job, prize, award, political position, etc., that has been reduced from a longer list of candidates (sometimes via intermediate lists known as "long lists"). The length of short lists varie ...
ed for the Best Comedy prize in the 2015 ''TV Choice'' Awards. The programme won the 2016 comedy
Rose d'Or The Rose d'Or ('Golden Rose') is an international awards festival in entertainment broadcasting and programming. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) first acquired the Rose d’Or in 1961, when it was created by Swiss Television in the lakesi ...
, beating the Finnish ''
Pyjama Party ''Pyjama Party'' ( fi, Siskonpeti) is a Finnish sketch comedy television series starring Niina Lahtinen, Pirjo Heikkilä, Sanna Stellan, Krisse Salminen, Joonas Nordman and Jarkko Niemi. Pyjama Party is scripted by the director Anna Dahlman wi ...
'' and the German '' Crime Scene Cleaner'' (''Der Tatortreiniger''). At the 2014
British Comedy Awards The National Comedy Awards (known as the British Comedy Awards from 1990 to 2014) is an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom, celebrating notable comedians and entertainment performances of the previous year. The British Comedy Awards (1 ...
, ''Inside No. 9'' was nominated in the Best New Comedy Programme and the Best Comedy Drama categories. In the former category, it lost to ''
Toast of London ''Toast of…'' is a British television sitcom, known either as ''Toast of London'' (when it was set in London) or ''Toast of Tinseltown'' (with episodes set in America). It was created by Arthur Mathews and Matt Berry and stars Berry as Steve ...
''. The other nominees were ''
The Wrong Mans ''The Wrong Mans'' is a British BBC Television comedy-drama series, co-produced with the American online television provider Hulu. It premiered on BBC Two on 24 September 2013 and in the United States on 11 November 2013. Considered a crit ...
'' and '' Man Down''. In the latter category, it lost to '' Rev'', and the other nominees were ''The Wrong Mans'' and ''
Uncle An uncle is usually defined as a male relative who is a sibling of a parent or married to a sibling of a parent. Uncles who are related by birth are second-degree relatives. The female counterpart of an uncle is an aunt, and the reciprocal relat ...
''. For Chater (''The Times''), the comedy drama category was the strongest of the awards, but for Ben Williams ('' Time Out''), ''Inside No. 9'' should have won. Writing in ''The Independent'', journalist Alice Jones said she was "sorry to see the relentlessly innovative ''Inside No 9'' go unrewarded". At the 2021 British Academy Television Awards, the series won Best Scripted Comedy.


Awards and nominations table


Notes


References


External links

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The Inventors
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