Inside No. 9 returns tonight for its latest festive special The Bones of St Nicholas, in which a group of champers (church campers) gather on Christmas Eve, only to find themselves haunted by a mysterious presence.
Simon Callow guest stars as eccentric warden Dick, who is preparing to tell his guests a ghost story in this first-look clip, released exclusively for readers of RadioTimes.com.
The episode also stars Inside No. 9 co-creators Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith, with the former playing aloof historian Dr Jasper Parkway and the latter his unwanted visitor, Pierce.
Meanwhile, former Coronation Street favourite Shobna Gulati appears in the role of Posy, wife to Pierce, who shares some of her husband’s distracting habits – much to the chagrin of Dr Parkway.
Check out the clip below for a taste of what’s in store:
The special seems to be homaging the kinds of ghost stories that have become synonymous with Christmas since Victorian times.
This long-standing tradition causes Pierce to yell out: “A ghost story for Christmas? It’s perfect!” although Dr Parkway requires a bit more convincing to join the rest of the cohort.
He eventually does so after Dick’s frightening assurance that the events he is about to recount are absolutely “not made up”, with Callow’s enigmatic line delivery being enough to draw anyone in.
This clip alone will get imaginations whirring, as the show’s avid fanbase attempts to decode what could be going on in this latest episode, which is expected to have another twist ending – as is the typical style of the series.
The Bones of St Nicholas kicks off Inside No. 9 season 8, with a ninth already confirmed to be on the way – but recent reports suggest the show could wind down after that. If so, there’s little doubt it will go out on a high!
Inside No. 9 returns to BBC Two and BBC iPlayer at 9pm tonight, Thursday 22nd December. Check out more of our Comedy coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what’s on.
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