Taskmaster season 17 line-up, release date and everything we know

Greg Davies and Alex Horne are flanked by the cast of Taskmaster season 17 in an Edwardian themed promo image
(Image credit: Channel 4)

Taskmaster season 17 will see Taskmaster "Lord" Greg Davies and his fawning assistant, "Little" Alex Horne (the show's creator) again hosting the hugely successful series.

The line-up this time is comedians Joanne McNally and John Robins, Intelligence actor Nick Mohammed, Alma’s Not Normal star Sophie Willan and Inside No. 9's Steve Pemberton.

Talking about shooting the new series, Steve Pemberton says: "For some of the filming days, I was also starring in a play ['The Pillowman'] in London’s West End, so I was doing Taskmaster during the day and the play at night, and I was writing the final series of Inside No. 9 as well. But there's something about not being able to prepare that was really nice. I loved the anticipation of finding out what was going to be inside that Taskmaster envelope."

Here's everything we know about the new series…

Taskmaster season 17 

Taskmaster season 17 begins on Channel 4 on Thursday 28 March at 9 pm (see our TV Guide for full listings). You can also watch via its streaming site, channel4.com.

What are the tasks?

We're not entirely sure but one appears to involve a floating gorilla in which it looks like the contestants have to throw a ring around it! Yes, sounds bizarre but this is a bizarre show. Talking about filming the tasks, Steve Pemberton says: "On the first filming day, there was one that involved leaping about — I felt like a big kid again and laughed so much. The tasks that were more creative played into my strengths. If we ever had to make a short film or something, I was in my element."

Steve adds that he had "some disqualifications" in this series, so it will be interesting to see what those are for!

There's also a task involving hugging in the first episode, although again it's not entirely clear what that involves!

Who's in this series?

  • Steve Pemberton, who is famous for Inside No. 9, Whitechapel and Benidorm
  • Sophie Willan, whose credits include Alma’s Not Normal and Still Open All Hours
  • Nick Mohammed, who appeared in Intelligence and Ted Lasso and is also in the new Disney Plus series Renegade Nell
  • John Robins, who has popped up on a huge range of shows including Live at the Apollo and Mock the Week
  • Joanne McNally, who appeared on The Big Fat Quiz of Everything

Is there a trailer?

Yes, there certainly is...

Who won the previous series?

Comedian Sam Campbell won series 16.

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David Hollingsworth
Editor

David is the What To Watch Editor and has over 20 years of experience in television journalism. He is currently writing about the latest television and film news for What To Watch.

Before working for What To Watch, David spent many years working for TV Times magazine, interviewing some of television's most famous stars including Hollywood actor Kiefer Sutherland, singer Lionel Richie and wildlife legend Sir David Attenborough. 

David started out as a writer for TV Times before becoming the title's deputy features editor and then features editor. During his time on TV Times, David also helped run the annual TV Times Awards. David is a huge Death in Paradise fan, although he's still failed to solve a case before the show's detective! He also loves James Bond and controversially thinks that Timothy Dalton was an excellent 007.

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