Starts 10pm Tuesday 4th October, 5 x 60 minute episodes
GREG DAVIES and his loyal assistant ALEX HORNE return to Dave on Tuesday 4th October to preside over five fresh comedians, all champing at the bit to be crowned series 3 Taskmaster champion. Our majestic dictator will judge, pontificate and reprimand with absolute power while ALEX tries to prove once and for all that he knows both how to oversee a task and wear a suit at the same time – each with immaculate precision.
AL MURRAY, DAVE GORMAN, PAUL CHOWDHRY, ROB BECKETT and SARA PASCOE will compete across five weeks to win the respect of the Taskmaster, each other’s actual belongings and the most hallowed prize in comedy – the gilded bonce of The Taskmaster himself. Who will topple series 2 victor KATHERINE RYAN? How does one spread one’s clothes as far and as wide as possible? And what is the best way to surprise ALEX HORNE when he emerges from his shed after an hour cooped up inside? The five rivals will have to use all the creativity, cunning and genius they have to prove their worth to the Taskmaster and his assistant. And bribery.*
An Avalon Television production, series 3 of Taskmaster was commissioned by Hilary Rosen, Deputy Director of Commissioning at UKTV and ordered by Richard Watsham, Director of Commissioning and Dave General Manager, Steve North. Executive Producers for the series are Alex Horne, Richard Allen-Turner, Rob Aslett, James Taylor, Jon Thoday, and Andy Devonshire (The Apprentice and The Great British Bake Off), who also acts as series director, and Hilary Rosen for UKTV. Andy Cartwright is series producer. Taskmaster was nominated for Best Entertainment Programme at the 2016 Broadcast Awards, was 2015’s most watched commission on UKTV’s VOD service, UKTV Play and was UKTV’s highest rating original series of 2016
N.b. For those wondering – this season’s featured vegetable is the humble pea. Small vegetable; colossal series.
Preview episodes are available to view at: http://pressoffice.uktv.co.uk
For more information please contact:
Lottie Robertshaw at Avalon: 020 7598 7222 or email: Lottier@avalonuk.com
Gem Pinkney at UKTV: 0203 752 7669 or email: Gem.Pinkney@UKTV.co.uk
Notes to editors
ALEX HORNE
The creator of Taskmaster, ALEX HORNE was nominated for the 2014 Foster’s Comedy Award with his Edinburgh Festival Fringe show Monsieur Butterfly. Alongside his band The Horne Section, ALEX has hosted Nevermind the Buzzcocks (BBC Two) and three series of the acclaimed Alex Horne Presents: The Horne Section (BBC Radio 4). The band performed on John Bishop’s Christmas Show (BBC One) and regularly appear in dictionary corner on 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown (Channel 4). ALEX’s other television credits include: Dave’s One Night Stand (Dave), Celebrity Mastermind (BBC1) Drunk History (Comedy Central) and The Games That Time Forgot, a documentary ALEX wrote and presented for BBC Four. ALEX has hosted three series of the iTunes chart-topping, Chortle Award nominated podcast ALEX HORNE BREAKS THE NEWS.
GREG DAVIES
GREG DAVIES is an acclaimed stand-up comedian, actor and the writer and star of the hit Channel 4 sitcom Man Down: “scales new heights of brilliance” (The Times), which returned for a third series in July. After playing infamously psychotic Head of Sixth Form ‘Mr Gilbert’ in The Inbetweeners (Channel 4) and its two spin-off feature films, Greg starred in three series of Cuckoo (BBC Three/Two) alongside Andy Samberg and Taylor Lautner, which earned him a BAFTA nomination for Best Male Performance in a Comedy Programme.
Autumn 2017 will see Greg return to the live stage with his first new stand-up show in four years. The new tour will see him play venues up and down the UK, including London’s Hammersmith Apollo. Greg’s debut solo stand up show Firing Cheeseballs At A Dog was nominated for the prestigious Foster’s Edinburgh Comedy Award in 2010, and went on to have a three-time extended sell-out national tour.
WHAT THE PRESS HAS SAID ABOUT TASKMASTER
“inspired…Hands down the funniest series on TV at the moment” The Times
“wildly stupid fun…a winner” The Guardian
“hilarious viewing” Daily Mirror
“you haven’t lived until you’ve seen some of the nation’s finest comedians trying to cram as much watermelon in their mouths as possible” Mail on Sunday
“Greg Davies returns with the comedy game show that offers uncomplicated enjoyment of the kind you only get from seeing a top comedian try to roll three big inflatable balls up a hill in a strong breeze” Radio Times
“hilarious” TV Choice
“ingenious” The Sun
“gleeful silliness” Sunday Times Culture
