It wasn’t subtle or drooled over by metropolitan TV critics, but ITV’s long-running double-entendre-laden sitcom Benidorm, set in a fictional package holiday resort in sunny Spain, was a minor classic of what is today a dying genre.
British television comedy has always embraced the surreal, from Michael Bentine through to Monty Python, The Young Ones and beyond. But has any other show been quite so off-the-wall weird as The League of Gentlemen, which emerged in January 1999 to ambush unsuspecting BBC Two audiences?
Was it a sketch show or a sitcom? Why was there so much cross-dressing? Did any of this matter? The League of Gentlemen’s startling originality and outrageous quirkiness quickly found an audience and the series developed a cult following.
In a packed cinema in London’s Leicester Square, devoted fans gathered to bid an emotional farewell to one of the most original and inventive British comedies of recent years.
After nine stellar series, the RTS-award winning Inside No. 9 went out in style, as RTS London hosted a screening of the finale alongside creators Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith.
But when the duo Zoomed in from a press day in New York — testament to its trans-Atlantic, if not global appeal — there were no signs of a mutiny. The long-suffering sidekick still knew his place.
Read on to hear the true source of Horne’s boundless inspiration for task devising, and a disgruntled Davies ruing his breakfast order.
You’re 17 series in, how has your relationship evolved over the series?
Greg Davies and Alex Horne: Hmm…
Prepare once again for your dad’s favourite comedian to become your favourite comedian. This time round, Steve Pemberton (Inside No. 9) will step up to the plate, alongside Sophie Willan (Alma's Not Normal) and Nick Mohammed (Ted Lasso). Joining them are John Robins (Live at the Apollo) and Joanne McNally (Republic of Telly).
RTS North West hosted an exclusive screening of Inside No 9, and a Q&A with creators Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton, and director Ian Bevitt.
Thank you to everyone who attended the live session. Make sure to subscribe so you don't miss out on future events, updates and engaging TV content.
Death. Dancing. Denial. Depression. Dishes best served cold. Who doesn’t love a dark, twisty tale from the BBC Two television phenomenon that is Inside No. 9?
Not many, judging by the capacity audience last month at the Vue Manchester’s Screen 18 (18 is twice nine, after all), there to see an exclusive preview of the series 8 finale, The Last Weekend.
Shearsmith and Pemberton have written five more standalone episodes that blend horror, thriller, drama and comedy with their signature: blindsiding twists.
The six-part BBC Two series will feature stand-alone stories every episode and will explore Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton’s world of the extraordinary and macabre.
This series will feature Daniel Mays (Line of Duty), Jason Isaacs (The OA), Sophie Okonedo (Britannia), Jessica Hynes (There She Goes), Diane Morgan (Mandy), Daisy Haggard (Back To Life), Annette Badland (EastEnders), Siobhan Redmond (The Replacement) and Ron Cook (The Salisbury Poisonings).
So, if ever the fans of a TV series might have pleaded for a podcast that deconstructs each episode, Inside Inside No. 9 answers that call.
Becoming even more granular than the series itself, the two creators and stars, Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton, dissect each episode after it has aired.
Every week, the masters of misdirection are joined by a different member of the Inside No. 9 team to talk about the making of the programmes.
