Review of the first episode of series 9

Inside No 9 may be coming to an end, but Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton show no signs of running out of momentum with the latest episode – even if that’s precisely what happens to the late-night underground train it’s set on.

Not quite all human life is encapsulated within the characters trapped in carriage C9 when the power fails, but quite a lot of it is.

The diverse figures – nine of them, aptly – include the meek and dull middle-class suburbanite Gerry (Shearsmith) and his frustrated wife  Edith (the delightful Siobhan Finneran), Steve Pemberton barely recognisable as a blunt-talking drag queen, Susan Wokoma as his ‘fag hag’ Cleo, and Philippa Dunne, as the kind but mild-mannered nurse Elena.

In a brief blackout, her purse is stolen, which brings out a nasty authoritarian streak in the strict teacher Raymond, played with the barely restrained menace that Catastrophe’s Mark Bonnar (back with the pair who cast him Psychoville) is so good at. He begins interrogating, intimidating even, the other passengers to get to the bottom of what happened, internal rage simmering.

Prime suspect is the homeless Mossy (This Country’s Charlie Cooper in top, shabby form), while twitchy conspiracy theorist Finn (Joel Fry) looks as if he might have something to hide. Meanwhile, Matthew Kelly makes an unforgettable return to the screen as an enigmatic, possibly unhinged, presence to add an otherworldly patina to the mood. 

The claustrophobic setting ramps up the tension, with each of the personalities rubbing up against each other, actively or passively. It’s an impressively intense piece of character work from writers and the star performers to convey all the various fractious relationships in under half an hour without feeling rushed or forced.

Rarely is the cliché ‘expect the unexpected’ truer than when it comes to Inside No 9, and certainly no viewer is likely to predict how Boo To A Goose ends. That abrupt turn might frustrate as many viewers as it delights, but it makes the episode firmly about something, while maintaining the series’ well-deserved reputation for making uniquely odd choices.

• Watch Inside No 9: Boo To A Goose on iPlayer

Review date: 8 May 2024
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett