When teacher Mr Curtis takes up a position in a small, rural Welsh school, he is perplexed by what seems to be a peculiar gap in his pupils’ knowledge. Overshadowed by the popularity of his predecessor, Mr King, things soon take a dark turn when an allegation is made against him.

That’s about as much as I can say about the content of this episode – even revealing the genre it’s working in could tip you off. I picked up on it fairly early, in fact a bit earlier than intended according to the Inside Inside No.9 podcast. I think if you’re familiar with said genre you will too.

That’s not to say it spoiled my enjoyment of what is one of their darker stories, although it did play out somewhat as I expected once I guessed what was likely going on. I don’t think it’s a stretch to say there will be complaints from certain quarters – there’s content here that will raise the odd eyebrow, especially among those who don’t know how TV is actually made (specifically, as the podcast makes clear, that kids aren’t present when adult language and imagery is used and it all has to be cheated). It’s all in context though, and as usual framed in somewhat comedic terms.

The action is confined almost entirely to the classroom, Class 9 inevitably. Which is a little odd since there don’t seem to be any other classes, it’s one of those schools which serve a very tiny community. The children are mostly Welsh so their accents are authentic (more so than Steve Pemberton’s, playing the headmaster, as he admits himself) and they seem to throw themselves into the proceedings. Joining the adult cast is the always enjoyable Annette Badland in the minor but important role of Winnie the cleaner.

Verdict: Unsettling and intriguing for a while, then heads off on a somewhat predictable course I think. Perfectly enjoyable as usual, but if you’re familiar with the obvious source material it brings nothing new to the table and, unusually, you’re unlikely to be thinking about it much afterwards. 7/10

Andy Smith