British black comedy anthology television series Inside No. 9 will return for a second holiday special episode, described as a ‘disturbingly spooky Christmas story set in a mysterious church’.
Series creators Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith (two of the minds behind The League of Gentleman) will star in the episode, titled The Bones of St Nicholas, as well as Doctor Who’s Shobna Gulati and Shakespeare in Love’s Simon Callow.
The BBC’s official synopsis for the episode reads as follows:
Dr. Jasper Parkway (Pemberton) has booked an overnight stay in a reputedly haunted church on Christmas Eve. However, much to his dismay, he is soon joined by unwanted guests Pierce (Shearsmith) and Posy (Gulati), who have even brought their own sleeping bags. Together with the eccentric warden Dick (Callow), it doesn’t look like Jasper is going to be lonely this Christmas. Even though sherry, biscuits and Yuletide phantoms are on offer, why is Jasper so keen to be left to his own devices?
According to the Radio Times, Shearsmith described the upcoming episode as "…a real treat for Christmas. I think it will be great to settle down and watch on a late December night and have your spine tingled."
While themes and tones vary between episodes, Inside No. 9 has had no shortage of terrifying moments, and has cemented itself as a must-see for fans of horror television. 2016’s Christmas special The Devil of Christmas was described as ‘the most depraved half-hour of television ever to grace the festive schedules’.
The Bones of St Nicholas will air on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer in December (although no exact date has been revealed yet), with the show’s companion podcast Inside... Inside No. 9 also returning on December 24th as Shearsmith and Pemberton discuss the inspiration behind the festive story.
