Daisy Haggard and Daniel Mays step Inside No. 9 in the fourth episode of season 7, which sees the wife of a wealthy businessman held to ransom by mysterious kidnappers.
This is one of the few episodes where we get to see events unfold from outside No. 9 as well, with an inventive presentation splitting the screen in half to offer different perspectives on the story.
While there is plenty of comic relief, just as fans of Shearsmith and Pemberton have come to expect, there is also a sense of very real danger as Lara (Haggard) struggles to free herself from her captors.
How does it all end? With a twist, of course. Read on for the details, but be warned that full spoilers follow.
Inside No. 9: Kid/Nap ending explained
As was the case with last week’s Nine Lives Kat, the biggest twist in this episode of Inside No. 9 actually comes halfway through the episode.
It is revealed that abducted woman Lara is in cahoots with her lead kidnapper, Clifford (Jason Isaacs), with whom she has been having an affair.
Their plan is to stage a false kidnapping with the intention of extorting money from Lara’s wealthy husband, which they can then use to start a brand new life together abroad.
Alas, things don’t go quite to plan, as dim-witted accomplice Shane (Mays) isn’t in on the act, which means he is seriously spooked to see Lara out of her binds upon his return from an errand.
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In reality, Clifford simply untied her to make her more comfortable, but Lara pretends to be in the midst of an escape attempt to prevent the facade from slipping – before realising it puts their ultimate goal at risk.
However, even after returning to her seat, Shane remains highly cautious and keeps his gun pointed at Lara, provoking Clifford’s temper who attempts to wrestle the weapon away from him.
In the scrap that follows, Shane accidentally fires the gun and Clifford sustains a fatal bullet wound.
Without his handler, Shane’s first instinct is to go ahead with the plan as he understood it, meaning Lara’s faux-abduction has suddenly become terrifyingly real.
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It initially appears that her frantic confession that this whole scenario is a set-up has been ignored by Shane, when two severed ear lobes with Lara’s earrings in them turn up at the lavish office of husband Dominic (Shearsmith).
It provokes drastic action from DI Ellis (Pemberton), who submits to Shane’s demands, sending Dominic into the abandoned property where Lara is being held to transfer the hefty £1.3 million ransom in person.
Once he has done so, Dom realises far too late that it’s a trap! Shane knocks him out with chloroform, while Lara creates a false narrative to trick the police, who are listening in via two-way radios and have a SWAT team waiting outside.
It comes to light that Lara and Shane have formed a pact, with the latter clearly swayed by the former’s promise of a new life abroad, which makes sense as we learned earlier that he has no prospects whatsoever.
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After swapping his clothes with Dom’s, Shane is able to ferry Lara out to the police-approved getaway vehicle and they drive off into the sunset, while the SWAT team move in only to be left puzzled by what they find.
A woozy Dom comes to in his underwear with little understanding of what just happened, while Clifford’s body is discovered without its earlobes, revealing that the threatening message sent earlier had also been a ruse.
This doesn’t appear to have been Lara’s original plan, especially given the contempt she displays for Shane earlier in the episode, but the need to escape her distant and uncaring husband seemingly takes priority over everything.
The last time we see Lara and her new co-conspirator is on their way to the private jet originally intended for herself and Clifford, as she turns to ask: “I told you I had a plan, didn’t I? Do you want to know where we’re flying off to?”
“I’m all ears,” he responds.
Inside No. 9 continues on BBC Two at 10pm on Wednesday 25th May 2022. Check out more of our Comedy coverage or visit our TV Guide to see what’s on tonight.
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