Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith are back with another six stories blending horror, hilarity and suspense for Inside No. 9‘s seventh season, which predictably packs another star-studded guest cast.
The opening chapter will be particularly special to longtime admirers of the duo’s work, as it represents a reunion with their League of Gentlemen collaborator Mark Gatiss.
He steps in, along with Mandy star Diane Morgan, for ‘Merrily Merrily’, a story about three university friends having an uncomfortable reunion in a remote lakeside setting.
Related: Inside No. 9 first-look clip sees Mark Gatiss join “awkward” reunion
You can get to know the cast of Inside No. 9 season 7’s premiere below, and rest assured we’ll be updating this page weekly as more details about later episodes become available.
Episode 1: Merrily Merrily
Reece Shearsmith plays Lawrence
Who is Lawrence? Lawrence is the organiser of an unconventional university reunion with two men who were once his closest friends. He plans for them to hop on a boat and have a long catch-up after so much time away, but his plan is thrown off-course by an unexpected third guest.
What else has Reece Shearsmith been in? Outside of his collaborations with Steve Pemberton, Shearsmith has also appeared in Spaced, Peter Kay’s Car Share, Good Omens and Apple TV+ drama Foundation. He competed in The Great Celebrity Bake Off for Stand Up to Cancer in 2021, winning the coveted title of Star Baker in his episode. Also last year, Marvel fans may have spotted him as an ill-fated priest in Venom: Let There Be Carnage.
Steve Pemberton plays Darren
Who is Darren? Darren is an old friend of Lawrence and Callum. He has a boisterous personality and isn’t afraid to say exactly what he’s thinking.
What else has Steve Pemberton been in? Pemberton is well-known for his previous collaborations with Reece Shearsmith on The League of Gentlemen and Psychoville. He also played Mick Garvey on the ITV sitcom Benidorm and Edward Buchan on the police procedural Whitechapel (referenced in Inside No. 9’s fifth season). Other recent projects include Good Omens, Worzel Gummidge, Death in Paradise and Killing Eve.
Mark Gatiss plays Callum
Who is Callum? Callum is an old friend of Lawrence and Darren, but has been absent from their lives for some time. Due to his dislike of social media, he hasn’t seen either of them in more than a decade.
What else has Mark Gatiss been in? Gatiss rose to prominence with Shearsmith, Pemberton and Jeremy Dyson on The League of Gentlemen, which he co-created with them. He bagged more comedic roles in Julia Davis sitcoms Nighty Night and Sally4Ever, as well as appearing in high-profile dramas Doctor Who, Game of Thrones, Wolf Hall and Gunpowder. As a writer, he has co-created BBC dramas Sherlock and Dracula, both in collaboration with Steven Moffat. Meanwhile, on the big screen, he has featured in Christopher Robin, The Favourite, The Father and, most recently, Operation Mincemeat.
Diane Morgan plays Donna
Who is Donna? Donna is Darren’s current girlfriend. She is a complete stranger to both Callum and Lawrence, which is frustrating to the latter, who had hoped for an undisturbed reunion of old friends.
What else has Diane Morgan been in? Morgan shot to stardom as Philomena Cunk, a fictional pundit who first appeared in Charlie Brooker’s various Wipe programmes and proved popular enough to warrant her very own spin-off. She reunited with Brooker on Netflix for his topical review of the year Death to 2020 and its sequel released the following year. Morgan is also known for her roles on the popular sitcoms Motherland, Intelligence, After Life and Mandy, the last of which she co-created.
Check back next week for the cast of episode 2: ‘Mr King’.
Inside No. 9 premieres Wednesday 20th April 2022 at 10pm on BBC Two. Check out more of our Comedy coverage or visit our TV Guide to see what’s on tonight.
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