Inside No. 9

Radio Times review

This was the rarest of comic beasts: half a dozen standalone episodes with jokes that weren't laid out on a plate, but instead jumped out from corners or tripped you up during awkward pauses. It was written by League of Gentlemen alumni Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith, and performed by them in various guises alongside the likes of Timothy West, Helen McCrory and Gemma Arterton. It was dark, of course, but otherwise deliciously unpredictable: the first was about an uncomfortable engagement party; the second was a silent comedy with slapstick from Charlie Chaplin's great-granddaughter, Oona.

Inside No 9: a gutsy dark comedy of misery and mayhem

Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton, makers of The League of Gentlemen, return with a collection of unrelated tales of morality and mortality, and a legion of ghoulish mishaps.

Inside No 9 wins at prestigious Rockie Awards

The silent episode of Inside No. 9 written by and starring Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith picked up its second award in two days at the prestigious BANFF World Media (Rockie) Awards earlier this week.

Inside No. 9 review

Inside No. 9 is my favourite kind of comedy: dark, twisted and thought-provoking.

Steve Pemberton interview

Steve Pemberton talks about Inside No. 9, the lack of ambition on TV and how The League of Gentleman have permeated pop culture.

Inside No. 9 review

It remains unpredictable and surprising throughout, delivering delicious little twists on standard formulas and narratives without settling into any sort of format.

Inside No. 9 was never less than entertaining and frequently inspired, but the series of self-contained creepy comedy dramas saved the best for last.

Guignol doesn't come much grander than The Harrowing, an everyday story of a teenage girl hired to babysit a man possessed by the devil. "He who walks backwards!" explains the girl's employer. "Michael Jackson?" exclaims our heroine's ostensibly dim best mate, supposedly along for the ride but harbouring a hidden agenda all of her own.

Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton's Inside No. 9 (BBC Two) has been a deliciously twisted treat, each tale balancing neatly on a tightrope so you were never quite sure if we were about to make the leap into comedy or tragedy. But the final numerically themed short story was unashamedly macabre.

True, the odd defiantly bad joke ('Do you know Poe?' 'From the Teletubbies?') pierced the darkness as babysitter Katy turned up for work at a house which made the Addams Family homestead look light and airy. Yet this was a briefing for a descent into hell from which there could be no escape.

The twist being - in a series which has specialised in ingenious surprises - that there was no twist. You could call that daring but it actually felt like a bit of a cop-out, as though the dark-hearted Shearsmith and Pemberton were laughing at us: 'Ha! So you thought we'd left you off the hook.' I didn't quite buy the macabre self-indulgence. But the Devil's closing howl of 'mischief!' did give me the willies deep into the night. In that respect, job done.

Inside No. 9 - Why do the British love dark comedy?

Our love for dark, twisted humour is something unique to our national make-up in Britain. Here's 5 reasons we, as a nation, prefer the black stuff...

Review: Inside No. 9, 1.6 - 'The Harrowing'

The Harrowing was a splendid half-hour of creepiness and rich atmosphere, punctured by occasional jokes and silly lines.