From Ken Loach to Big Brother: the twisted minds behind Inside No 9 on their influences

As a new series of the dark comedy begins, creators Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith reveal what inspired eight classic instalments

Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith are back with a sixth season of TV's most devilishly imaginative comedy, Inside No 9 - a show that uses its anthology format not only to tell a different story in each episode but to flit constantly from genre to genre. With the only premise being that every No 9 takes place within a space carrying the number 9 (normally a room or a house, although the series has also located itself in a train compartment, a numbered police car and an office cubicle) it can be a silent comedy one week and a psychological thriller the next. As writers, actors and occasionally directors, the pair have shown that they can switch from bleak domestic drama to Shakespearean light comedy to full-on horror without dropping a stitch.

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