Taskmaster (TV Series)
''Taskmaster'' (abbreviated as ''TM'') is a British comedy panel game show created by comedian and musician Alex Horne and presented by both Horne and Greg Davies. In the programme a group of five celebritiesmainly comediansattempt to complete a series of challenges, with Horne acting as umpire in each challenge and Davies, the titular "Taskmaster", judging the work and awarding points based on contestants' performances. The concept for the programme was first created by Horne for the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2010; he later secured a deal with Dave to adapt it for television with the first episode premiering in 2015. After the ninth series in 2019, the programme was acquired by Channel 4. The programme has completed sixteen series as well as three ''Champion of Champions'' specials and four ''New Year's Treat'' one-offs by January 2024, and is set to continue for at least five more series until 2026. ''Taskmaster'' proved a success on British television, spawning internatio ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Comedy
Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term originated in ancient Greece: in Athenian democracy, the public opinion of voters was influenced by political satire performed by comic poets in theaters. The theatrical genre of Greek comedy can be described as a dramatic performance pitting two groups, ages, genders, or societies against each other in an amusing '' agon'' or conflict. Northrop Frye depicted these two opposing sides as a "Society of Youth" and a "Society of the Old". A revised view characterizes the essential agon of comedy as a struggle between a relatively powerless youth and the societal conventions posing obstacles to his hopes. In this struggle, the youth then becomes constrained by his lack of social authority, and is left with little choice but to resort to ruses w ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Taskmaster (New Zealand TV Series)
''Taskmaster NZ'' is a New Zealand comedy panel game show, first broadcast in 2020 on TVNZ 2. The format for the show was created by British comedian Alex Horne during the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2010, and was subsequently developed into a successful UK television show in 2015. Following the format of the original British version, the show consists of five contestants who compete in a series of strange and unusual tasks to gain points from the Taskmaster, Jeremy Wells, and adjudicated by his assistant, comedian Paul Williams. ''Taskmaster NZ'' is produced for TVNZ, with support from NZ On Air. The first series was broadcast in summer 2020, while the second series was broadcast in the winter of 2021, and the third in winter 2022. Funding for a fourth series was confirmed in December 2022. Episodes Series 1 (2020) The filming of the tasks was completed in March 2020, just before the COVID-19 pandemic caused a nationwide lockdown. The contestants were Angella Dravid, Bry ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Mike Wozniak
Michael James Wozniak is a British comedian, writer and actor. He portrays Brian in the Channel 4 sitcom '' Man Down'' and is a member of the team that makes ''Small Scenes'' for BBC Radio 4. Early life Wozniak was born in Oxford, was raised in Portsmouth, and has a twin sister. He has Polish and Welsh ancestry. Education Wozniak was educated at Portsmouth Grammar School. He studied Medicine at St George's, University of London and worked as a doctor for several years before pursuing comedy. Career Wozniak worked doing live sketch comedy starting in the late 1990s, and began stand-up comedy in 2007. He won the Amused Moose Laugh-Off contest at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2008. He was nominated for the comedy newcomer award the same year. Wozniak performed at the Adelaide Fringe in 2009. Wozniak was nominated for the Edinburgh Best Comedy Show in 2013 but lost to Bridget Christie. Television Wozniak's first major role in television came when he was cast in the s ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Mark Watson
Mark Andrew Watson (born 13 February 1980) is a British comedian and novelist. Early life Watson was born in Bristol to a Welsh mother and English father. He has younger twin sisters and a brother, Paul. He attended Bristol Grammar School, where he won a "Gabbler of the Year" award. He went on to study English at Queens' College, Cambridge, graduating with first class honours. At university he was a member of the Footlights and contemporary of Stefan Golaszewski, Tim Key and Dan Stevens. He was part of the revue which was nominated for the Best Newcomer category in the Perrier Comedy Awards at the 2001 Edinburgh Festival Fringe and also co-directed a revue with Key. Career Comedy Although not brought up in Wales, Watson used to deliver his act with a common Welsh accent which is not quite his own. He adopted it when he started stand-up comedy saying that it made him "more comfortable to be talking in a voice that I didn't quite recognise as my own". He has since reverted t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Joe Wilkinson
Joseph Roland Wilkinson (born 2 May 1975) is an English comedian, actor and screenwriter. He began his comedy career in 2004 and has supported Alan Carr and Russell Howard on tour. He has also made numerous appearances on television programmes such as '' Live at the Apollo'' and ''Live at the Electric'' and has been touring solo since 2011. He began appearing on ''8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown'' in 2012, initially as Rachel Riley's assistant. He has since gone on to become a frequent panellist or guest team captain. He is also in the comedy duo Two Episodes of Mash, alongside Diane Morgan. In 2019 Wilkinson won a celebrity special version of ''The Great British Bake Off'' (for Stand Up to Cancer UK). In 2006, Wilkinson won the Hackney Empire New Act of the Year. Early life Wilkinson was born to Stella (née Dunster) and Brian Rodney Wilkinson and grew up in Kemsing, Kent. He has a brother Robert Brian Wilkinson. He was named after his grandfather, Roland Joseph.''England & ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Edinburgh Comedy Awards
The Dave (TV channel), Dave's Edinburgh Comedy Awards (formerly the Perrier Comedy Awards, and also briefly known by other names for sponsorship reasons) are presented to the comedy shows deemed to have been the best at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in Scotland. Established in 1981, they are the most prestigious comedy prize in the United Kingdom. The awards have been directed and produced by Nica Burns since 1984. Format The main prize, which was for many years the only prize, and is now known as the Best Comedy Show, is awarded "for the funniest, most outstanding, up-and-coming comic / comedy show / act" at the Fringe. The winner receives a cash prize of £10,000. The Best Newcomer Award category was introduced in 1992 for Harry Hill, and is given to the best "performer or act who is performing their first full-length show (50 minutes or more)". The prize is £5,000. Newcomers are eligible for the Best Comedy Show Award, but no act is allowed to appear on both shortlists in ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tim Key
Timothy David Key (born September 1976) is an English poet, comedian, actor, screenwriter and radio personality. He is best known for playing Alan Partridge's sidekick Simon in '' Mid Morning Matters'', '' Alpha Papa'', and '' This Time'', as well as his work as a member of the comedy group Cowards and his extensive list of performances at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. In 2009, he won the Edinburgh Comedy Award and was nominated for the Malcolm Hardee Award for Comic Originality. Early life Timothy David Key was born in September 1976, in Cambridgeshire. He was educated in the intertwined villages of Histon and Impington before moving on to Hills Road Sixth Form College in Cambridge and then the University of Sheffield, where he studied Russian. Following graduation, he returned to Cambridge and joined the Cambridge Footlights, despite not being a student of Cambridge University. There he met Tom Basden, Stefan Golaszewski, and Lloyd Woolf, with whom he formed the sketch gr ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Big Brother (UK TV Series)
''Big Brother'' is the British version of the international reality television franchise '' Big Brother'' created by producer John de Mol in 1997. Broadcast yearly from 2000 to 2018, and due to return in 2023, the show follows the format of other national editions, in which a group of contestants, known as "housemates", live together in a specially constructed house that is isolated from the outside world. They are continuously monitored by live television cameras and personal audio microphones. Throughout the competition, housemates are "evicted" from the house by public televoting. The last remaining housemate wins the competition and a cash prize. The series takes its name from the oppressive character known by that name in George Orwell's 1949 novel ''Nineteen Eighty-Four''. The series premiered in 2000 on Channel 4 and immediately became a ratings hit. It featured a 24-hour live feed in which fans could view inside the house at any time. ''Big Brother'' aired for eleven s ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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The Crystal Maze
''The Crystal Maze'' is a British game show devised by Jacques Antoine, based upon his format for the French game show '' Fort Boyard'', and produced for Channel 4. The programme focuses on teams of contestants, a mixed group of men and women, attempting a range of challenges to earn time required to help them complete one final challenge, which if completed successfully earns them a prize. The premise of the show is themed around challenges set to different periods of human history within a fictional labyrinth of time and space (the titular "Crystal Maze"), and is notable for the use of golf ball-sized Swarovski glass crystals (referred to as "time crystals") as a reward for each challenge successfully completed by contestants, and lock-in conditions for contestants that ran out of time or broke a three-strikes rule on a challenge. ''The Crystal Maze'' originally consisted of six series, including five Christmas specials involving teams of children, which aired between 15 Febru ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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COVID-19 Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified in an outbreak in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December 2019. Attempts to contain it there failed, allowing the virus to spread to other areas of Asia and later worldwide. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern on 30 January 2020, and a pandemic on 11 March 2020. As of , the pandemic had caused more than cases and confirmed deaths, making it one of the deadliest in history. COVID-19 symptoms range from undetectable to deadly, but most commonly include fever, dry cough, and fatigue. Severe illness is more likely in elderly patients and those with certain underlying medical conditions. COVID-19 transmits when people breathe in air contaminated by droplets and ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Deadline Hollywood
''Deadline Hollywood'', commonly known as ''Deadline'' and also referred to as ''Deadline.com'', is an online news site founded as the news blog ''Deadline Hollywood Daily'' by Nikki Finke in 2006. The site is updated several times a day, with entertainment industry news as its focus. It has been a brand of Penske Media Corporation since 2009. History ''Deadline'' was founded by Nikki Finke, who began writing an '' LA Weekly'' column series called ''Deadline Hollywood'' in June 2002. She began the ''Deadline Hollywood Daily'' (DHD) blog in March 2006 as an online version of her column. She officially launched it as an entertainment trade website in 2006. The site became one of Hollywood's most followed websites by 2009. In 2009, Finke sold ''Deadline'' to Penske Media Corporation (then Mail.com Media) for a low-seven-figure sum. Finke was also given a five-year-plus employment contract reported by the ''Los Angeles Times'' as being worth "millions of dollars", as well as part ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Edinburgh Festival Fringe
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as The Fringe, Edinburgh Fringe, or Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest arts and media festival, which in 2019 spanned 25 days and featured more than 59,600 performances of 3,841 different shows in 322 venues. Established in 1947 as an alternative to (and on the fringe of) the Edinburgh International Festival, it takes place in Edinburgh every August. The Edinburgh Festival Fringe has become a world-leading celebration of arts and culture, surpassed only by the Olympics and the World Cup in terms of global ticketed events. As an event it "has done more to place Edinburgh in the forefront of world cities than anything else" according to historian and former chairman of the board, Michael Dale. It is an open access (or "unjuried") performing arts festival, meaning there is no selection committee, and anyone may participate, with any type of performance. The official Fringe Programme categorises shows into sections for ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |