La Couchette

"La Couchette"
Inside No. 9 episode
A poster for "La Couchette", with the tagline "In deuxième classe, everyone can hear you scream..."
Episode no.	Series 2 Episode 1
Directed by	Guillem Morales
Written by	Steve Pemberton Reece Shearsmith
Produced by	Adam Tandy (producer) Jon Plowman (executive producer)
Original air date	26 March 2015 (2015-03-26)
Guest appearances
Julie Hesmondhalgh as Kath Mark Benton as Les Jessica Gunning as Shona Jack Whitehall as Hugo George Glaves as Yves
Episode chronology
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"La Couchette" is the first episode of the second series of British dark comedy anthology Inside No. 9. Written by Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith and directed by Guillem Morales, the episode is set in a sleeper carriage on a French train. English doctor Maxwell, who is traveling to an important job interview, climbs into bed. He is disturbed first by drunk, flatulent German Jorg, and then by English couple Kath and Les. Later, while the others sleep, Australian backpacker Shona brings posh English backpacker Hugo back to the cabin, but the pair make a surprising discovery. The episode stars Pemberton, Shearsmith, Julie Hesmondhalgh, Mark Benton, Jessica Gunning, Jack Whitehall and George Glaves.

The story was inspired by the intimacy of sleeper carriages, in which people aim to sleep in close proximity to strangers. "La Couchette" draws upon the literary tropes associated with stories, such as Murder on the Orient Express and Strangers on a Train, following characters unknown to one another while travelling. The various characters—played by actors somewhat typecast—correspond to British comedy archetypes, and much of the episode's story and humour derives from the characters' unlikability. Critics responded positively to "La Couchette", commending the cast and script, but noted that Inside No. 9 is something of an acquired taste. On its first showing, the episode was watched by 1.1 million viewers (6.1% of the audience).