There are moments on television that stay with you forever. They become part of who you are. They burrow away into your psyche and subtly change you forever.
The five series of Inside No.9 have been amply packed with these sorts of moments, though, in not wanting to rob anyone of the joy of viewing, I cannot share them in detail.
What I can share with you is my joy at the constancy of the writing. Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton have always dabbled in the darker side of things, with great success. Alongside Mark Gatiss and Jeremy Dyson, they penned the disturbingly hilarious “The League of Gentlemen,” which came to our screens back in 1999. People, of a certain age at least, still wander the corridors of factories and offices, growling the phrase “Hello Dave!” or the equally terrifying “Are you local?”
But it is within the structure of “Inside No.9” that Shearsmith and Pemberton have truly honed the darkness of the humorous threat. The collective series have become a canon approaching televisual perfection. You know something horrific is coming, but you just don’t know what…or when.
Series Five contains six wonderful episodes. It starts with “The Referee’s a Wanker!” which I felt was the strongest episode of the run. Similar to all previous episodes, such as the first-ever, “Sardines,” the writers use a single changing room to heighten the sense of claustrophobia. Humans, like any animals, do strange things when caged up together. However, the final, magnificent reveal showed much that was pertinent to the outcome had happened away from our disbelieving eyes.
“Death Be Not Proud” is an episode that seems to have spawned something of a star. David Sowerbutts, wonderfully portrayed by Steve Pemberton, seems to have generated a cult following, out in internetland. Basin haircuts a plenty are bound to ensue. The episode had me recalling the Series One offering, “Tom & Gerri,” though this was perhaps a shade darker.
“Love’s Great Adventure” was another remarkable episode. I especially enjoyed it because the episode reveal was so subtle and delicious. Again, the small house where the action unfolded, added to the tightness of the interaction. You had to work a bit as a viewer here, particularly in terms of chronology, but the eventual pay-off was quite delightful.
“Misdirection” was a slice of the macabre that also had me recalling previous episodes. As the action unfolded, in a darkened magician’s studio, I was reminded of the academic study, where the “Riddle of the Sphinx” played out. Revenge is a dish best served cold, and this instance was perfect in its tortuous delivery.
“Thinking Out Loud” was fantastic if only for the delicious parody of the social media influencer. I wondered just how Shearsmith and Pemberton would bring the diverse elements together, yet they did, with skill and trademark panache.
The run ended with another excellent episode. It began with the less than promising set-up of a quiet night for two officers sitting in a police patrol car. It started with a piece of flag posting that had me smugly waiting for the inevitable, only to find myself hoisted on my own intellectual petard; by an ending that I defy anyone to have seen coming.
From the series, there will be many moments that will stay with me. They will join other “Inside No.9” inspired mind burrows, such as the haunting “12 Days of Christine,” or the startling “Devil of Christmas” with all of its Krampus inspired depravity.
I think it will be the first and last episodes that will have the most influence. I shall have to be careful to spot where they pop up in my own fiction.
Please, if you have never watched any of these series, go away and do so now. You will thank me that you did!