Soviet space program omitted reports of failure or trouble". Out of fear of admitting any defeat, reports of cosmonauts' missions leaned towards an exaggerated positive spin rather than factual substance. "The USSR was famously described by Winston Churchill as 'a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma' and nothing signified this more than the search for the truth behind its space program during the Cold War. Although the Space Race was literally played out above our heads, it was often obscured by a figurative 'space curtain' that took much effort to see through" says Dominic Phelan in the book "Cold War Space
The Riddle of the Sphinx (Inside No. 9) thus far of the third series, and even "one of the best" episodes ever. It was praised by Ben Lawrence of Telegraph.co.uk for its "near brilliance", while Dessau characterised it as a "beautiful constructed playlet". At the end of the fourth series, Butler listed "The Riddle of the Sphinx" as the second strongest episode of "Inside No. 9", describing it as "sheer brilliance". He listed "The 12 Days of Christine" as the strongest. The episode was widely noted as both very dark, and very clever. Dessau characterised it as the cleverest episode of "Inside No. 9", and the freelance journalist