Inside No. 9; Secrets & Spies: A Nuclear Game

“Last night’s series nine opener did what Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton’s dark comedy does best: chuck some of Britain’s best television actors together in a surprisingly simple scene and let the pacey script work its magic.”
Emily Baker, The i

“Set inside a Merseyrail train carriage, it did what Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith do brilliantly: establish characters in double-quick time while delivering a twisty, macabre plot, denouement and excellent comedic dialogue, all in 29 minutes.”
Carol Midgely, The Times

“It plays out like a cock-eyed Agatha Christie, because we’re trying to work out whodunit without knowing what it is they’ve done. The twist is decent enough – I won’t spoil it for you if you’re yet to watch – although for my money it goes a step too far down the silly sci-fi route. Not a top-tier Inside No 9 episode, but a neat scenario and a welcome opportunity to see some of our best character actors having fun.”
Anita Singh, The Telegraph

“The Orwellian twist teetered on the edge of gauche student preachiness. This jejune flavour was heightened by the fact that none of the characters seemed to have a life outside the railway carriage — there was no mention of anybody’s children, or a spouse waiting at home. Still, when you’ve got Matthew Kelly beaming in a performance from Planet WooWoo, who cares? And Charlie Cooper’s pitifully polite beggar was so convincing, I wanted to give him a quid myself.”
Christopher Stevens, Daily Mail

“It’s all a bit silly, obviously, and to be honest, not up there with the very best efforts by the Inside No. 9 team, but it’s a nice satire on our contemporary taste for conspiracy theories and paranoia. The claustrophobic fear engendered by being isolated with a scattering of oddballs on the last Tube home is well captured – we barely set foot out of the carriage. And the distinguished cast give us a gallery of diverse grotesques, all by turns weird and pitiable.”
Sean O’Grady, The Independent

“Unlike other episodes, which are often littered with handbrake turns, this time we end up sitting tight for the big reveal. And it’s completely unguessable – that violent shift in perspective executed with aplomb. Unfortunately, though (and it pains me to say this considering how absorbing the rest of the episode is) the actual twist falls a bit flat. However, an episode of Inside No 9 that leaves you slightly nonplussed is still a hundred times more inventive and affecting than 99% of what is pumped through our screens.”
Rachel Aroesti, The Guardian

“Russian spies on British soil are still very much in the news. But there is also a potent nostalgia in watching a series such as this, now that so much espionage is conducted in cyberspace. Aside from the spycraft, the archive news reports transport us back to a time when politicians – and even political journalists – seemed to have so much more gumption and personality than they have today.”
Anita Singh, The Telegraph

“Spies are always mesmerising and this is a nuggety, pacey series.”
Carol Midgely, The Times