Rebecca and Jeremy are having their engagement party at their father Andrew's large country house where, as children Rebecca and her brother Carl, played sardines, hiding in a huge wardrobe. The company revive the game with Rebecca finding Jeremy's nerdy work colleague Ian the first in the cupboard. They are joined by the uptight Carl and his saucy boyfriend Stu, Jeremy's ex-girlfriend Rachel with toy boy Lee and ex-nanny Geraldine, now deluded and believing she is a guest, not a hired hand. Married guests Mark and Elizabeth go for sex on the bed before being surprised and beckoned into the wardrobe though everybody is reluctant to admit 'stinky' John for obvious reasons. Andrew then joins the group and Geraldine reminds him of a shameful family secret from years ago when he was alleged to have wronged a young boy. There is only one sardine left to enter the wardrobe. Is there perhaps a link with this incident the family hoped was forgotten?
This episode contains examples of:
- Abusive Parents: Andrew, specifically to Carl (who he abused), but then also probably to Rebecca as a side-effect, because she seems to know about the abuse and tries to comfort Carl multiple times.
- Actor Allusion: Ian mentions that the wardrobe is similar to the TARDIS. Steve Pemberton and Anne Reid had previously guest-starred in Doctor Who episodes.
- Asshole Victim: Played with; none of the people we meet are that nice, but it's debatable how much of what happens many of them deserve. The sole exception is the paedophile Andrew, who definitely deserves it.
- Bolivian Army Ending: At the end of the episode, every character is locked in the wardrobe other than Ian/Pip, who's just doused it in lighter fluid after it's revealed he was abused by Andrew. The episode ends with him igniting his lighter.
- Camp Gay: Stuart.
- Cannot Spit It Out: Justified. Carl could've evaded much of the horror of the episode if he'd been able to tell Stuart about the abuse Andrew inflicted on him, as he nearly derails the game (and Pip/Ian's plans) several times when he reveals it.
- Chekhov's Party: Geraldine mentions the last time Andrew's bedroom was open was when they had a scout jamboree twenty years ago. It's gradually revealed that this is where Andrew molested Pip, which is why Pip (in the guise of boring bank manager Ian) has returned in present day to get revenge on them.
- Closet Shuffle: The family made this into a game.
- Cruel Twist Ending: Of all the people in the wardrobe, only Andrew can be said to deserve what's about to happen. Carl and Stinky John are as much his victims as Pip.
- Curtain Camouflage: Stinky John tries to hide behind the curtain but is found out by Andrew.
- Daddy's Girl: Rebecca.
- Deadpan Snarker: A lot of people have their moments but Carl and Stuart in particular stand out.
- Dirty Old Man: Andrew. The worst kind.
- The Ditz: Rachel
- Disproportionate Retribution: Pretty much everyone in the wardrobe has their failings and none of them can be said to be particularly pleasant people, but no one apart from Andrew deserved to suffer Pip's intended revenge.
- The Dreaded: Stinky John is terrified of Andrew, to the point that he can't even look at him. Presumably because he witnessed Andrew's abuse of Pip and possibly Carl, and/or was molested himself. This is also why John stopped bathing.
- Dull Surprise: Stuart doesn't react to the revelation that Andrew abused his son.
- "Everybody Dies" Ending: Every character apart from Ian/Pip is about to be burned alive at the end of the episode.
- The Friend No One Likes: Ian is incredibly socially awkward and described as boring by everyone who knows him; it's not clear why he was invited to the party at all. Then again, the very dull "Ian" we meet is an imposter. Maybe the real one isn't quite so bad.
- "Stinky" John also counts; although it's mentioned he is an old friend of the family, his horrible BO means that no one really likes having him around. Carl's the only person who really cuts him some slack because he knows why John is the way he is.
- Foreshadowing: All over the place, once you know the twist.
- When Ian and Rebecca are waiting for the other guests to find them, Ian remarks that it 'could be a long game.' As someone who’s clearly planned everything in advance, and waited until adulthood to get revenge for what was done to him as a child, Pip is certainly ‘playing the long game’
- Ian also chose the hiding place (as the first person does in Sardines). He deliberately close the place where he, Carl, and John were molested.
- Also his offhand remark that his initials spell out 'R.I.P.', considering the fate he ultimately inflicts on the rest of the group...
- Watch Ian during the first exposition about Stinky John. Specifically the moment someone suggests "tracing the problem back".
- It's subtle, but Ian also makes a point of stating that he could do with a break from the cupboard when Rachel flees due to claustrophobia. Given his past, being in there can't have been very pleasant for him either...
- Plus, John doesn't bathe and sounds as if he’s about to puke at the smell of carbolic soap, having been molested by Andrew under the guise of being shown how to wash himself.
- Stu's bawdy joke of "if there's grass on the wicket, let play commence" about Lee seems to set off Carl especially, even when considering his general aversion to intimacy throughout the episode. Once it's revealed that Carl was one of Andrew's victims, his reaction proves to be a lot more understandable.
- Gold Digger: Jeremy is a rare male example. It's implied that he is only marrying Rebecca for her money, as he's still in love with Rachel.
- Interrupted Intimacy: At one point Mark and Liz start trying to have sex in the bedroom, forcing the people hidden inside the wardrobe to "subtly" make their presence known.
- Ironic Nursery Tune: A baby sardine saw his first submarine...
- Karmic Death: For Andrew, at least. Whether any of the other characters deserved their fate is debatable, to say the least.
- Kick the Dog:
- Andrew insisting on singing the sardine song over Carl's objections retroactively becomes one about a minute later due to the implications that he sang it while abusing Carl.
- Stuart's response to learning his boyfriend's Paralyzing Fear of Sexuality was caused by his father molesting him is to make a quip about calling Jeremy Kyle rather than show any sympathy.
- Love Triangle: Rebecca is engaged to and loves Jeremy, who is still in love with his ex-girlfriend, Rachel. It's never explicitly confirmed that they are still having an affair but Rachel is very invested in knowing whether Jeremy still talks about her.
- Missing Mom: Rebecca's mother is notably absent from her daughter's engagement party. She's never mentioned in the episode, but has apparently been gone for a long time (since Geraldine, the housekeeper, took care of Rebecca and Carl when they were children.)
- Mistaken for Servant: Played with. Geraldine was asked to be a waitress at Rebecca's engagement party, but thinks she was invited as a guest; and Rebecca is too polite to correct the misunderstanding. As such, Geraldine doesn't understand why people keep asking her for drinks.
- Nasty Party: Somewhat subverted. All the guests do die, but it's not because they were invited there — it's because Pip/Ian gatecrashes it and kills them all.
- No Social Skills: Ian.
- Open Secret: Invoked. Rebecca, Carl, and John all know that Andrew is a pedophile. Rachel and Lee are newcomers to the party and family. Hardly anyone else seems to care very much about Andrew's true nature, because he's so wealthy and connected. The only person who genuinely believes that Andrew is innocent is Geraldine.
- Paralyzing Fear of Sexuality: Carl, apparently because his father abused him.
- Parental Incest: Andrew is strongly implied (it's more or less stated) to have molested his son, Carl. According to
Word of God it's why his daughter Caroline, who has young sons, didn't attend the party. - Rape and Revenge: Ian is actually Phillip, formerly a boy molested by Andrew. He's come back to kill Andrew and everyone else, including two other victims.
- Screw the Rules, I Have Connections!: Mark and Liz are at the party because they want to charm Andrew into introducing them to a wealthy business contact. Andrew takes delight in smugly informing them he knows what they want and can't help, since he hasn't spoken to this contact in years.
- Screw the Rules, I Have Money!: Andrew molested Pip and, after Pip accused him, paid off his parents so they'd leave the country.
- Setting as a Character: Common with Inside No. 9, but Stuart constantly references "being in the closet" when they're hiding in the, well, closet. Employed more clearly in that the wardrobe itself is in Andrew's bedroom, where he probably abused Carl, John, and Pip. Being in there drives a lot of the plot.
- The Stateroom Sketch: The closet getting packed with more and more characters.
- Stepford Smiler: Rebecca shows strong hints of this throughout. Also crosses over with...
- Stiff Upper Lip: Deconstructed. Carl and Rebecca are both straight examples, but it's implied to be because of the trauma of their denial. Ian/Pip has this in order to make sure his plot can succeed. While every other character shows it in varying degrees, it's mostly because of the British Stuffiness that the characters don't react to the knowledge of Andrew's abuse.
- Straight Gay: Carl.
- Upper-Class Twit: Rachel. Maybe Jeremy.
- Upper-Class Wit: Carl.
- Wham Line: "No, that's not Ian..."
