Two More Seasons of Taskmaster for UKTV’s Dave

LONDON: UKTV has ordered second and third seasons of Taskmaster, a popular comedy series led by Greg Davies and Alex Horne, for its entertainment channel Dave.

Taskmaster looks on as Davies assigns a variety of wacky challenges to a group of comedians, with Horne serving as his right-hand man. The first season featured Roisin Conaty, Tim Key, Romesh Ranganathan, Frank Skinner and Josh Widdicombe. The program started out as a live show, which ran at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2010 and 2011. It is created by Horne and produced by Avalon Television.

Hilary Rosen, the deputy director of commissioning at UKTV, said: "Taskmaster has taken the panel show to the next level; it's an outstanding new comedy format and delivers the perfect balance of silliness and intelligence. I'm delighted to continue our working relationship with Alex Horne and Avalon. We look forward to unveiling our new cast of comedians and a fresh lineup of outrageous tasks."

Jon Thoday, the joint managing director of Avalon Television, noted: "It's great to be working with Dave again on such an innovative and funny program."

Horne commented: "This news is both exciting and appropriate; the Taskmaster still has many tasks he needs completing—almost all of which are either far-fetched or still un-concocted—and who better to attempt such challenges than a fresh bunch of ill-equipped and unhealthily competitive comedians."

Steve North, Dave's general manager, added: "We are thrilled to continue this hilarious show on Dave, Taskmaster sits perfectly alongside our other returning original shows like Dave Gorman Modern Life is Goodish and Alan Davies: As Yet Untitled. I'm particularly excited to see what genius tasks the mind of Alex Horne has in store for the next two series."