Explain Why Taskmaster Is Wonderful. Your Time Starts Now.

All the information is in the piece.

Ultimately, it is a TV show. A TV show so successful that it has become an entertainment brand with a multiverse that stretches from Scandinavia to Australasia. A TV show, nonetheless.

To hold any sort of emotional attachment to Taskmaster, therefore, is probably somewhat frowned upon. The extremely cynical may suggest doing so steps into the sphere of questionable parasocial relationships with its creators and cast. A healthy handful probably just think it’s a bit weird, a bit unhealthy, to give a TV show such high status.

For me, however, Taskmaster has so frequently allowed me to escape horrible feelings of mental ill health and loneliness in a way that few other things have been able to achieve that I have no shame or discomfort in expressing the value I place on it.

For those not exposed to Taskmaster, this piece probably isn’t for you. But as a brief overview, Taskmaster is a TV show created by (Little) Alex Horne that sees five comedy performers attempt to win the respect of Greg Davies, the imposing and unforgiving Taskmaster, by completing creative, comical and bizarre tasks over the course of 10 episodes. Horne acts as the Taskmaster’s Assistant, overseeing the tasks in a deadpan, officious and somewhat nerdy comedic character that draws frustration from contestants and the ridicule of Davies. Points are awarded for each task, and the winner takes home a golden bust that sort of resembles the Taskmaster’s head a bit.

It is a format that makes for wonderful viewing. Five extremely funny and creative people asked to do extremely funny and creative things, often opening themselves up to embarrassment, facilitated by two extraordinary comedians so perfect in their personas for their individual roles. Throw in some wonderful camera work and editing, along with the bonds that are built between the cast over the course of 10 episodes split between reviewing pre-recorded tasks and completing live studio tasks, and you have yourself a piece of magic.

It's no wonder that a concept first devised by Horne as a bit of silliness for his comedy friends to engage with before and during the Edinburgh Fringe Festival is now in its 19^th series (with three Champion of Champions episodes, four New Year specials involving non-comedians and a Junior Taskmaster), having first aired on Dave in 2015 before making its way to Channel 4 in 2020, and been adopted successfully (apart from in the US, who tried and failed miserably) all over the world.

So, a very successful TV show that’s grown from humble beginnings to a centrepiece of UK comedy and with worldwide acclaim. You can also throw in the Live Experience, Taskmaster Education, books, games, a podcast, and Alex Horne turning up at a care home. At the end of the day, it’s still just a TV show with sides and some dessert.

There’s plenty of those, but none quite like Taskmaster.

There have been multiple occasions when a Thursday at 9pm has approached where the thought of smiling, let alone laughter, has felt impossible, and watching something that’s designed to cause that has felt inappropriate. As recently as this Thursday. Depression, anxiety, loneliness – all a bit too much at 8:59pm.

By 10:01pm, there is adrenalin running through my veins. I have howled with laughter, taken such wonderful joy out of seeing the fun the cast are having individually and together, and celebrated the success of the wonderful Stevie Martin, who finally won an episode at the eighth attempt despite being much-loved by the thriving Taskmaster community on Reddit. For one hour, the ills of the world and the ills of my mind have no relevance when they have previously felt unescapable.

This ongoing series (not season, Jason), Series 19, has been outstanding. One of the best with moments and quotes that will enter the Taskmaster hall of fame appearing on multiple occasions per episode. It’s an extensive hall of fame, because it’s not unfamiliar for a series to have multiple incredible moments per episode.

But it is the cast that has made this current series, and has made the majority of the previous series, such a delightful escapism. Fatiha El-Ghorri, Jason Mantzoukas, Mathew Baynton, Rosie Ramsey and Stevie Martin have been so easy to warm to, so easy to connect to, and evidently have warmed and connected with each other both on and off camera. You feel a part of those relationships, you feel you’re sharing the fun (and sometimes embarrassment) they’re having, and a very lonely person suddenly feels a little less lonely.

You see comedians, or comedy personas, step out of their characters and be themselves. The casting is almost always perfect in that you get five different personas, five quite unique individuals, who complete the tasks in their own comedic ways but all bond together so incredibly well. The debate for who is the people’s champion in this series, let alone across all 19, is extremely competitive because it brings the best out of those who take part (getting Greg’s golden head matters, and sometimes it is the funniest rather than the most competitive that also collects the most points, but the winner is celebrated and remembered no more than any other contestant).

It’s added value for some time was that it was something I could enjoy with my dad, religiously watching it together. We live apart now, but we still message each other during new episodes, and with quotes from the past. It is as regular a topic of conversation as Charlton’s struggles or successes.

The value has increased further over the past eight or nine months, with a side project born out of Taskmaster becoming my main form of escapism, and the task that has helped me to improve my overall wellbeing as much as anything in that period.

Having locked myself inside for an extensive period of time, I now attend comedy shows multiple times a week. The task is to see every Taskmaster contestant live, and I’m doing really quite well. Some I’d seen previously, but the majority I’ve seen since the autumn of last year.

It’s a similar story to the Taskmaster impact. I’ll feel unbearably miserable, not able to go out, but I’ll force myself to head out and find myself in another world almost immediately. Although I do wish I had connections with others watching, I do feel such a strong connection to the performer that really does allow me to escape the overwhelming sense of loneliness I experience for a short while.

Then there’s the dip I’ve taken into Taskmaster New Zealand, which is equally as wonderful as the UK original. Catching those New Zealand comedians live has been something I’ve been particularly motivated to achieve, and inspired me to make arrangements to attend the Edinburgh Fringe Festival this year – something that would have been impossible not so long ago. I’ve stayed behind and asked for autographs from the handful of Kiwis I’ve seen so far, and they are so appreciative of the international following.

I’ll also use this moment to make note of the medal I received for winning the Taskmaster Live Experience in the winter. The winning doesn’t count though, of course. Although I’d rather have the medal than not.

My only complaint is that, aside from my dad, the incredible Reddit community and someone I can have passing conversations with at work, I have no one to talk to Taskmaster about. Certainly no one I can watch it with or attend gigs with. I would much rather be talking about it than having conversations about football, for example.

But you attend comedy gigs where Taskmaster contestants are performing, and you see so many others who have an equally strong Taskmaster addiction. You see them there and you read similar stories to this one on Reddit. Eventually, I’ll find the bollocks/manage the anxiety to an extent I can talk and connect with these people.

For now, my connection with Taskmaster and its contestants is something that has done so much good for me and provides such a delightful distraction.