Reece Shearsmith

Reece Shearsmith's favourite TV anthology episodes

To celebrate the release of Season 2 on DVD (out now), Cult Box asked Reece Shearsmith to select some of his favourite ever TV anthology episodes...

You should be watching: Inside No. 9

Occupying a Tuesday evening timeslot on BBC Two, it was perhaps inevitable that Inside No. 9 didn't received the recognition it deserves. After only two short series, Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton have succeeded in creating one of the most original and well-written British TV series in years.

Radio Times review

There's a star turn from Reece Shearsmith as a demented fishmonger who cadges a lift to work with John and Kayleigh as this curious little observational comedy trundles along.

Shearsmith plays Ray, a colleague of the pair at the superstore but no one wants anything to do with him because he reeks of fish. In any event Kayleigh isn't at her best after a drunken night at a friend's farewell party where she drank a few too many "cheeky Vimtos", which, she tells John, "are all the rage in Basra".

There are signs that John (Peter Kay, who co-wrote and directed) is growing quite keen on his car-sharer, and the pair are developing a sweet and funny relationship forged to the cheesy hits of "Forever FM".

Reece Shearsmith on crafting Inside No. 9

Digital Spy spoke to series co-creator, writer, performer and first-time director Shearsmith about how series two was crafted - and whether a third might be in the works.

Inside No. 9 ended its run with a story that, I kid you not, had me waking up and fretting in the middle of the night.

A timid girl was shown into the house of a renowned medium. No sooner had their consultation began than a series of terrifying events took place. A candle shot into four-foot flames as the voice of a growling demon issued forth from the smoking mouth of the frail lady medium. Then the lights went on and the whole thing was revealed to be a stunt for a particularly cruel type of reality show called Scaredy-Cam.

The ugliness lingered, ghost-like, even when the cameras had gone off. The host, played by Reece Shearsmith, was an arrogant beast, the medium was a self-obsessed prima donna and the production crew were, at best, indifferent.
When a new victim was ushered in, though, there were spooky happenings that no one seemed to have planned. Slowly, without declaring its hand until the final shot, the half-hour tale built into horror (but a moral horror) where the unkind got their desserts.

You could even say that the modern, callous world of reality TV got a roasting from a format truer of a bygone age, something akin to Play For Today or Armchair Theatre.

However you see it, however it unsettles you, this show is a faith-restorer for those who love TV drama.

Series two of Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton's darkly comic anthology comes to a close with a suitably spooky instalment. Tina, an unassuming phone shop employee, enters a looming Victorian villa bearing the titular number, following an instruction to visit the mysterious medium Madam Talbot. Once inside, it soon becomes clear that unseen forces have been preparing for her visit. A fitting end to a second series that has excelled at times. One can but hope a third set of nines is to follow.

Radio Times review

For many, there's only a very fine line between comedy and horror; the two combined are an irresistible cocktail. Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton are masters in this field. For the final episode of this excellent anthology, they ensure we're snorting one minute and shuddering the next.

I shan't say too much about Séance Time, except that it happens inside a spooky house, where the gullible Tina (Sophie McShera, Downton Abbey's Daisy) is greeted by Shearsmith's character Hives (surely a nod to Laurel and Hardy). Before long, Tina is introduced to a black-veiled, hoarse and hilariously theatrical medium (Alison Steadman). The lights are dimmed and that's when the fun starts...

Inside No. 9: Intrigue, unease and emotional intensity

The second series of half-hour stories from Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton has been full of unexpected comedy and deep, dark horror, with nods to everything from Witchfinder General to Alan Ayckbourn.

Inside No 9 review: Nana's Party

The penultimate Inside No. 9 of Series 2 has all of Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith's distinctive brilliance, balancing comedy and drama in perfect symmetry, beautifully nuanced and meticulously crafted with almost breathtaking command.