Inside No 9 to hit the West End

Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith to star in Stage/Fright,

Inside No 9 is to become a stage play.

Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith are to star in the new newly written show, titled Inside No.9 Stage/Fright, in a 12-week West End run from January.

In a statement the pair explained: ‘We’ve been asked about doing a live show ever since the series first started on the BBC, probably because each episode is like a mini-play. There are small casts and single locations, and we were definitely inspired by our work in theatre when writing the stories for TV.

‘We are currently writing the script even as it goes on sale, but we are certain there will be plenty of new material and surprises for fans and new-comers alike. There’ll be something old, something new, something butchered and something…

BOO!

‘We want to use the different things a theatre show can offer in terms of comedy - a collective audience behaves very differently to a solitary one, the laughter builds and the shared enjoyment is infectious. So there’ll definitely be some big comic moments, but also something a bit spooky and more dramatic.

‘We have created IN9 Theatre Company with the intention that there could be more stage adaptations in the future.

‘Inside No.9 viewers go into each episode not knowing what to expect and we want this to be the same for the theatre show, with the ability for each audience to experience the performance for the first time and go on that theatrical journey with us.

‘On TV we have done everything from knockabout farce to psychological drama to full on horror. We've chosen the subtitle Stage/Fright, which does suggest something theatrical and something unsettling. But to say any more would spoil the surprises and we would never do that.

‘We want to deliver the perfect West End night at the theatre… we might even crack out a song if you’re lucky!’

The show will start at London’s Wyndham’s Theatre on January 19 with press night on January 29. It ends on April 5 and has been directed by Simon Evans, best known as co-creator, writer, and producer of the BBC lockdown comedy Staged with Michael Sheen and David Tennant .

Tickets will go on sale on insideno9onstage.com at 7pm on Wednesday May 8, the same night the ninth, and final, season of the series begins on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer.

Further casting for the stage show will be announced nearer the time.

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Published: 3 May 2024