For 14 seasons, British audiences have laughed and scratched their heads over a little show that’s become a staple of weekly viewing. Taskmaster is a one-hour comedy game show features not only well-known British comedians but some new faces you may be seeing for the first time.
Each season features five players vying for episode points and an overall series win. The series winner receives not only glory but a golden bust of one of the hosts Greg Davies. There are two hosts. The first is Alex Horne, show creator and foppish designer and implementer of tasks. The show actually started as an idea for his Edinburgh Fringe act. Then there is the in-studio host Greg Davies, the bear-like “show daddy” whose big personality and friendly sarcasm provide a pace and commentary that never let up.
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What’s Taskmaster About?
The concept is simple. Five comedians have convened at the Taskmaster house to accomplish deceptively simple tasks both individually and in smaller groups. It should be noted that all tasks are pre-taped months in advance and the show involves in-studio analysis while participants and a live audience see the results for the first time.
The show also includes one in-studio task in each episode as well as an initial prize task. This is where contestants are asked to bring in an item based on specific criteria like the worst thing received in the post, the strangest thing you have under €20, or even the creepiest thing you own. At the end of each episode, the person with the most points wins all the items.
Every Task is Another Head Scratcher
Tasks can range from the basic, like throwing a potato in the hole without touching the red mat, to the more difficult, like having half an hour to prepare a song and dance to a phone ringtone. There may even be secondary tasks. The catch is that… well… there’s normally a catch. Clues exist everywhere and the more abstractly a contestant can think, the better their chances of winning. It’s about skill, intuition, and being backed into weirdly funny and strange corners.
There is also a fair share of surprises. The hosts may implement prank tasks for just one person without their knowledge. In one case, actor and writer Mark Watson was told to send one “cheeky text” to the host every day for five months, which should’ve totaled 150 texts. But when they finally got to the studio and reviewed his task they realized he’d only done 148. Greg Davies decided, with sheer joy, to award him no points. Watson exasperatedly remarked, “This task has overshadowed five months of my life!” The look of unbridled shock from his fellow contestants is palpable and weirdly hilarious.
The Taskmaster Locations Are Key
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One of the main “cast members” of the show is the Taskmaster house itself. It is a fully functional house, allowing contestants to utilize anything and everything (depending on the task rules). Each season, it is given an updated theme and the occasional upgrade. The small bungalow is located in Chiswick and features a small caravan trailer, outdoor shed, lawn, and even a red phone box. Tasks are carried out everywhere on the property but often begin in the house. The three main rooms are the study, the lab - a small room covered in plastic sheeting - and the kitchen, with stove, sink, fridge, and washing machine.
Though the house is central to the game show, each season has other locations they utilize for specific tasks. This may include barns, train stations, schools, warehouses, and in season 14, the entire south terminal of Gatwick Airport.
Taskmaster Is a Sleeper Hit and Franchise Behemoth
It should be said that Taskmaster has existed for 14 seasons for a reason. To begin with, it was a fun little concept show that found a wider audience during the COVID-19 pandemic. During that time, the show continued, albeit without a studio audience and contestants socially distanced in-studio. Taskmaster has become such a success that it has led to multiple international versions in a variety of countries, including Sweden, Belgium, Spain, Denmark, Finland, Norway, New Zealand, Croatia, Portugal, and Canada.
In fact, the only version that didn’t work was the one created in the United States. This version was cut to a half hour, featured fewer tasks, and replaced Greg Davies with host Reggie Watts. To say it failed would be an understatement. US audiences prefer the British version, although many other versions can be found on YouTube.
Taskmaster is a British show worth watching and can be enjoyed even on an episode-by-episode basis. You don’t need a long history to understand it and due to its revolving cast, there is no carryover between seasons. Tasks are never repeated, and the show is able to maintain a freshness and hilarity that can be summed up in two words: must-watch.
Taskmaster can be seen on Channel 4. Selected episodes and moments can be viewed on the Taskmaster channel on YouTube.
