Usually, Lee Mack and quiz show is the perfect combo, matched with a Chinese takeaway on a Saturday night – what more do you want?
But on this occasion, the comedian featured in a 2023 episode of Inside No.9 and viewers got a little more than they bargained for when a contestant’s head exploded.
The one-off episode was hosted by the Would I Lie To You panelist as he welcomed mother and daughter team Margaret and Catherine Oakwood in the final round.
Not off to the best start, Margaret found herself locked in a soundproof booth to allow both her and Catherine to answer independently of each other.
After Margaret failed to get the final question correct, the family lost out on the big money prize, and that’s when things went weird.
All of a sudden, the mum trapped in the booth, and began screaming and banging on the glass to be let out, then… her head explodes.
BBC viewers were not expecting to see a head explode (BBC)
No, that’s not a phrase to say she was confused or stressed.
Her head literally exploded off her shoulders, spattering blood all over the glass booth in the process.
It really does make for quite horrifying viewing – but for those not in the know – you’ll be pleased to know it wasn’t actually from a real quiz show, and was in fact an episode of Inside No 9, the marvellously macabre series from Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton.
While fans had been expecting an On The Buses tribute episode titled ‘Hold On Tight’, they instead got ‘3 by 3’, the first episode of Inside No 9 not to feature Shearsmith or Pemberton on camera.
Viewers thought they were tuning in to a standard Lee Mack quiz show (BBC)
As the episode progressed, it became clear that something was ever so slightly off with the Oakwoods, or more specifically Margaret (Gemma Page) and Catherine (Saskia Wakefield).
Cricket-loving dad Stephen (James Tucker) was frozen out early on and never returned.
Catherine seemed to know the answer to every question despite revealing she’d basically no experience with entertainment or much of the outside world.
It’s really to everyone’s credit that Inside No 9 managed to keep up the pretence for so long, while weaving in so many brilliant clues as to what was really going on.
