What's inside No 9 this year?

Creators give some clues

Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton have revealed details of the stories in the third series of Inside No 9.

The show will return to BBC Two this autumn, and again features unrelated stories set in various locations linked only by the number 9.

And while it may already have a reputation for sometimes jet-black humour, Pemberton confessed: 'We've done quite a dark series this time around.'

Speaking to film website Empire Online, he added: 'There's two or three episodes where we've pushed the horror element.'

One story in the new third series involves a cryptic crossword, another features a group of strangers stuck in a peculair art gallery and a third another is set in a karaoke booth, and

And they say their favourite is entitled The Devil At Christmas. Set in an Alpine cabin, it features the Krampus, the half-goat, half-demon creature of Austrian folklore.

'It looks shit, but it's brilliant', says Shearsmith of the episode's unconventional filming style,

Guest stars for the new series will include Keeley Hawes, Jessica Raine, Tamzin Outhwaite, Felicity Kendal, Mathew Baynton, Philip Glenister and Morgana Robinson.

Sheersmith yesterday tweeted this message, with an image of sinister looking mannequins.