Séance Time
"Séance Time" | |
---|---|
Inside No. 9 episode | |
Episode no. | Series 2 Episode 6 |
Directed by | Dan Zeff |
Written by | Steve Pemberton Reece Shearsmith |
Produced by | Adam Tandy (producer) Jon Plowman (executive producer) |
Editing by | Joe Randall-Cutler |
Original air date | 29 April 2015 |
Guest appearances | |
| |
"Séance Time" is the sixth and final episode of the second series of the
Like "The Harrowing", the final episode of the first series of Inside No. 9, "Séance Time" is somewhat more horrific than is typical for the programme, though humour remains. In writing the episode, Pemberton and Shearsmith began with the idea of a séance, and developed the plot from there. The theme was one that they had wanted to address for some time, though they wanted to approach it in an original way. The writers aimed to begin "Séance Time" with minimal humour, presenting it as straight horror, before introducing the first twist.
The episode explores both the norms of horror films and the unpleasantness of actors and the television industry. Critics responded positively to "Séance Time", praising the horror—several considered the episode genuinely frightening—the humour, and the writing. Steadman's performance was singled out as strong, with critics commending her character as a highlight.
Production
Inspiration and writing
The second series of
Casting and characters
As each episode of Inside No. 9 features new characters, the writers were able to attract actors who might have been unwilling to commit to an entire series.[7] "Séance Time" starred Sophie McShera as Tina—though Tina was played by an uncredited extra in the opening shot of a house's exterior[8]—Shearsmith as "Hives"/Terry, Alison Steadman as "Madam Talbot"/Anne, Dan Starkey as "Blue Demon Dwarf"/Clive,[note 1] Cariad Lloyd as Gemma, Alice Lowe as Amanda, Pemberton as Pete and Caden-Ellis Wall as William.[note 2][10] The writers felt the episode featured a number of good roles for women.[11] Members of Inside No. 9's crew, include the episode's third assistant director Saloum N'Jie, appeared as uncredited extras playing members of a television crew.[12] Though there were only a small production crew seen in the episode, this mirrors real crews of the kind featured.[13]
Shearsmith had previously worked with Steadman on Agatha Christie's Marple, while she and Pemberton had met, though the pair had not worked together.[14] She was ill upon arrival for filming, which led to Pemberton worrying that production would have to be suspended. As a result of Steadman's illness, her character's croaking voice was mostly her own.[15] One journalist commented on the appropriateness of the casting, given the influence of Abigail's Party—in which Steadman starred—on "Nana's Party", the previous week's episode.[16] The actor was one of a number (the others being Jane Horrocks and Claire Skinner) who appeared in Inside No. 9's second series who had also starred in Life Is Sweet.[17] During filming, Steadman expressed happiness to be working with Pemberton and Shearsmith. She explained that they are excellent writers as they are "off the wall".[18]
Pemberton knew McShera through his friend Siobhan Finneran, who co-starred with McShera in Downton Abbey. He felt that McShera would be able to bring a "mousey quality" to the role of Tina. Shearsmith felt that her performance was funny while retaining realism.[19] The writers found the role of "Blue Demon Dwarf" difficult to cast, but were very happy with the performance of Starkey,[20] who kept some of his character's props.[21] The writers also praised Lowe, who they felt was able to make a lot of a comparatively small part. The character of Amanda, they said, was to seem bored and aloof, attempting to get away with doing as little work as possible, while also favouring people seen as more important.[22]
The name Hives, used by Shearsmith's character, was taken from
Style
Shearsmith said that he and Pemberton sometimes aim to produce episodes with genuinely scary scenes, comparing "Séance Time" to "The Harrowing", the sixth episode of Inside No. 9's first series, which was also particularly horrific. He said that the writers and crew had similar aims in terms of atmosphere in "Séance Time" as they had in "The Harrowing".[5] The episodes also shared similar openings, with a lone woman walking towards a large house.[8] Thematically, Shearsmith felt that the episode served to tie together a number of ideas with which he had been "obsessed" for years, including horror, ghosts and magic.[5] The episode's director, Dan Zeff, got behind the idea of genuine horror, and Shearsmith was happy with how the initial séance was portrayed. A large number of horror clichés were used, but the reason that these clichés are present is subsequently revealed.[28]
Props utilised to heighten the horror included a trick candle—swapped back-and-forth with a real one—which could shoot a large flame. This was operated by a technician hiding under the table on which it was placed.
The writers hoped to fool viewers into thinking that they were doing a straightforward séance episode, and so there is little humour prior to the episode's first twist.
Filming and release
Inside No. 9's second series was filmed from the end of 2014 into early 2015.[1][2] "Séance Time" was the second episode of the second series to be filmed, and the filming was completed shortly before production ceased for a Christmas break. The episode was filmed at Langleybury, a country house in Abbots Langley, Hertfordshire. The same house was used for "The Harrowing", as well as in Shearsmith and Pemberton's pre-Inside No. 9 television series Psychoville.[33]
On its first showing on BBC Two, "Séance Time" was moved from Inside No. 9's usual slot on a Thursday evening.[36] It was instead shown on Wednesday 29 April; this showing was at 10pm in most of the UK, and at 11.20pm in Northern Ireland.[37] The freelance journalist Dan Owen suggested that this, combined with their refusal to release the series on Blu-ray, suggested that the BBC had little faith in Inside No. 9. He nonetheless called for a third series,[16] a request echoed by other commentators.[38][39][40] In their commentary on the episode, Pemberton said that he and Shearsmith had plans for a potential third series, and hoped to be able to get on with producing it.[41] "Séance Time", along with the other episodes from the second series, was released on DVD on 5 May 2016,[42] and a third series was announced in October of that year.[43]
Plot
External videos | |
---|---|
"Madam Talbot" Hives (Shearsmith) presents Madam Talbot (Steadman) to Tina (McShera) |
Tina (McShera) arrives at a Victorian villa for a
Scaredy Cam production crew, including the director Gemma (Lloyd) and the make-up artist Amanda (Lowe), enter to prepare for the next prank. "Talbot" is being played by the demanding stage actress Anne, but the other crew are unable to remember the name of the
Pete (Pemberton), a new mark, enters, but the prank does not work as well as with Tina. Among other problems, Pete swears too much and does not seem affected by the atmosphere, while
Analysis
"Séance Time" draws inspiration from
Though the episode begins with horror, similar to "The Harrowing", it quickly moves into the more
Phoebe-Jane Boyd, writing for the entertainment website Den of Geek, compared the television crew to individuals pulled out of the "Summerland"[note 3] of cancelled television. Terry is "parasitic and dead of heart", an example of a particular brand of "washed-up middle-aged television presenters". Amanda is "so deadened to the bitchery of the entertainment industry" that she is unfazed at the thought of retrieving props from a corpse. Anne behaves in a "bitter and narcissistic" way. The "heartless asides" concerning the previous misjudged prank are mirrored by the distaste directed towards Clive.[38]
Reception
Critics responded positively to "Séance Time", with a number of them characterising it as genuinely scary. Vicki Power, writing for
Bennion commended the writing, saying that Pemberton and Shearsmith were able to subvert expectations of séances several times; "just as you're smugly congratulating yourself for working out every twist and turn, they pull it from your grasp".[39] Owen praised the writing and subversion of expectations, and, though he found some of the twists predictable and felt that the ending needed more groundwork, felt that the final sequence "was worth it for another brown-trouser moment".[16] Bennion felt that the "genius" of the episode was the way that tension was "undercut" with humour, but felt that the humour actually served to raise the tension. He highlighted the joke involving blue paint as particularly funny.[39] Patrick Mulkern, of Radio Times, also praised the mix of humour and horror.[48]
Raeside and Segal felt that Steadman's performance was the highlight of the episode,[44] and it was also praised in the Liverpool Echo.[47] Bennion said that Steadman "[hammed] it up beautifully" and "[nailed] each [joke] with aplomb", also commending the "comic turns" from Lowe and Lloyd.[39] Mulkern described Steadman's Madam Talbot as "hilariously theatrical",[48] and Boyd said that Steadman's Anne provided "some of the best fun of the episode".[38]
Notes
- ^ The name Clive is not revealed in the episode, and nor was it originally included in the episode's credits. Much of the humour in "Séance Time" revolves around other characters not knowing Clive's name, and so any mention of it was removed.[9]
- ^ Wall's character's name is not revealed in the episode, but it appears in the cast list.[10]
- ^ Summerland is the name used by Madam Talbot for the astral plane.
References
- ^ a b "Steve Pemberton on The Cook, The Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover". British Film Institute. 6 October 2014. Archived from the original on 1 October 2014. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
- ^ a b "Five minutes with Steve Pemberton". Herts & Essex Observer. 12 January 2015. Archived from the original on 9 July 2015. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
- ^ Pemberton, Steve (20 March 2015). "Reopening the doors Inside No. 9". BBC. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
- ^ a b Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 0:50.
- ^ a b c d Shearsmith, Reece (4 May 2015). Behind the Scenes: "Séance Time". Inside No. 9 Series Two DVD. BBC.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 10:20.
- ^ Dean, Will (5 February 2014). "Inside No 9, TV review: A top-drawer cast puts these twisted tales in a league of their own". The Independent. Archived from the original on 26 May 2022. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
- ^ a b Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 0:20.
- ^ a b Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 7:10.
- ^ a b "Seance Time". BBC. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 8:50.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 9:10.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 10:00.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 11:45.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 6:25.
- ^ a b c d e f g Owen, Dan (30 April 2015). "Inside No. 9, 2.6 – 'Séance Time'". Dan's Media Digest. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
- ^ Pemberton, Steve; Shearsmith, Reece (2015). Nana's Party (episode commentary). Steve & Reece IN9 (via SoundCloud). Event occurs at 3:40. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
- ^ a b Steadman, Alison (4 May 2015). Behind the Scenes: "Séance Time". Inside No. 9 Series Two DVD. BBC.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 1:40.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 8:40.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 12:30.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 12:50.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 3:25.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 3:50.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 5:50.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 16:40.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 17:40.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 9:25.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 17:10.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 17:50.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 6:50.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 28:00.
- ^ a b Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 2:50.
- ^ Lloyd, Cariad (4 May 2015). Behind the Scenes: "Séance Time". Inside No. 9 Series Two DVD. BBC.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 14:35.
- ^ Gilbert, Gerard (24 April 2015). "Ten to watch; this week's". i. p. 36.
- ^ a b Power, Vicki (25 April 2015). "What to watch; Wednesday 29 April". Review, The Daily Telegraph. p. 46.
- ^ a b c d Boyd, Phoebe-Jane (30 April 2015). "Inside No. 9 series 2 episode 6 review: The Seance". Den of Geek. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f Bennion, Chris (29 April 2015). "Inside No.9, S2Ep6, Séance Time, TV review: Hide behind your sofas this is horror with a capital AHHH!". The Independent. Archived from the original on 26 May 2022. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
- ^ theguardian.com. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
- ^ Pemberton and Shearsmith, episode commentary, 27:00.
- ^ Brandel, Christine (27 May 2015). "The Beautiful Horror Continues". PopMatters. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- ^ "Inside No. 9 gets a third series". Radio Times. 21 October 2015. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- ^ a b c Segal, Victoria; Raeside, Julia (26 April 2015). "Choice; Wednesday 29 April". Culture, The Sunday Times. pp. 56–7.
- ^ Chater, David (29 April 2015). "Television & radio". T2, The Times. pp. 12–3.
- ^ Scottish Express. p. 39.
- ^ a b "It's been a brilliant series...". Liverpool Echo. 2 May 2015. p. 22.
- ^ a b Mulkern, Patrick. "Inside No 9; Series 2 – 6. Seance Time". Radio Times. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
Cited sources
- Pemberton, Steve; Shearsmith, Reece (2015). Séance Time (episode commentary). Steve & Reece IN9 (via SoundCloud). Retrieved 10 April 2016.
External links
- "Séance Time" at IMDb
- "Séance Time" at BBC Programmes
- "Séance Time" at the British Comedy Guide