Endings are hard. Weve always known endings are hard, says Steve Pemberton in new BBC Two documentary Inside No. 9: The Partys Over. Hes not just talking about devising the perfect conclusion, with the right balance of surprise and satisfaction, for an Inside No. 9 story; hes talking about concluding the whole show.The new hour-long doc goes behind the scenes on the ninth and final series of Inside No. 9, when he and co-creator Reece Shearsmith capped their extraordinary 55-film achievement with Plodding On, a guest star and Easter egg-packed finale that paid due homage to everything thats gone before. As the documentary goes behind the camera on the creation of the shows final six episodes, it revealed some fun Inside No. 9 trivia for fansWorking Titles Included No. 5 and Behind Closed DoorsLooking through Steve Pembertons old notebooks from when the show was being developed, a couple of alternative titles are listed: No. 5 and Behind Closed Doors. If theyd gone with the former, then they might have stopped after the fifth series instead of the ninth, and deprived us of several great instalments. And Behind Closed Doors feels more like the title of a DVD Extra than the creepy, genre-hopping Inside No. 9.The Musical Sting Was a Last-Minute ImprovAccording to Inside No. 9 composer Christian Henson, the shows theme music was originally supposed to have been a fuller piece performed by a whole group of musicians, but when that composition didnt get the thumbs-up, he took less than two minutes to improvise this eight-second pizzicato sting, and submitted it as an alternative. His sister told him that hed be the jammiest person in the world if they went for it, and clearly, he is.Prop SouvenirsIts traditional for creators to take home a prop or two from a wrapped show, and the ones chosen by Reece Shearsmith include: the straw doll that was used in his sacrifice scene in The Wicker Man-inspired Mr King, the leather portfolio used by Pembertons character in Christmas special The Bones of St. Nicholas, the Scaramouche mask he wears in commedia dellarte episode Wuthering Heist, and the model of his own decapitated head created for Halloween special Dead Line.Natalie Dormers No. 9 Claim to FameOf the many, many death scenes filmed for Inside No. 9 (burned to death in wardrobe, drowned in bath, stabbed, guillotined, shot, bitten by vampire) the final one you see in the entire run is Natalie Dormers character falling from the balcony in classical music period piece The Curse of the Ninth.Read more Real-Life Episode InspirationsDonna Prestons character Bev in series six episode Hurry Up and Wait was inspired by a real experience the creators had while filming The League of Gentlemen. Told to wait between scenes in a residential house that they thought was empty, they came across the house owner wearing a dressing gown and telling them, Im having a glass of champagne. Its my birthday today. It went straight in the script. Series three episode The Bill was inspired by Pemberton and Shearsmith witnessing a fight over who got to pay the bill at Stellas Room Caf in Muswell Hill.A Horror Poster PedigreeGraham Humphreys, who designed nine of the shows excellent episode posters (for Sardines, The Harrowing, The Devil of Christmas, The Riddle of the Sphinx, Tempting Fate, Private View, Nine Lives Kat, The Bones of St. Nicholas, and CTRL, ALT, ESC) is a celebrated artist who also designed original posters for Sam Raimis Evil Dead film series.Past Projects RevisitedIn fan-favourite episode Bernie Cliftons Dressing Room, the punk dummy and professorial ventriloquist outfits were inspired by an old photograph of Pemberton and Shearsmith wearing those same outfits on stage in their own pre-TV comedy double act. And series one episode Tom & Gerri was adapted from a play the pair had written very early in their careers called The Dole Boy.The End of the End?The final shot Pemberton and Shearsmith filmed together for Inside No. 9 is actually the final scene of the series (its not always the case). In series nine finale Plodding On, the pair reconcile in the toilets at the wrap party bash and Pemberton (playing himself) asks what they should do next. Shearsmith (playing himself) says There is a third option, which cues up the punchline montage of scenes from an On the Buses-inspired, 1970s-styled sitcom Hold on Tight.Its not quite the end yet though. The Inside No. 9 live show Stage/Fright, starring Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith, produced by Richard Osman and directed by Simon Evans, arrives in January 2025 at the Wyndham Theatre. More information here.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!Inside No. 9 series one to nine are available to stream now on BBC iPlayer.