Taskmaster Retrospective: UK Series 09

Series 9- maybe the perfect cast

Taskmaster:  UK Series 9

Year:  2019

Channel:  Dave

Contestants:  

David Baddiel

Ed Gamble

Jo Brand

Katy Wix

Rose Matefeo

Number of Episodes:  10

Notes:

I love, love, LOVE the cast for season 9.

You have two funny, clever people who are really trying to win the tasks and it shows (Ed Gamble and Rose Matefeo).  Bonus points because Ed is a longtime friend of Greg Davies and the back-and-forth between New Zealander Matefeo and the Taskmaster.  Ed later hosts the official Taskmaster Podcast and Rose takes the Taskmaster title for Taskmaster Junior; you can tell they are both having a blast on the show.

You have a quiet, weird, creative contestant in Katy Wix.  The tasks that involve her building something are where she really shines.

You have an older comedienne in Jo Brand, delivering snark and with an attitude of not wanting to deal with this nonsense.  

And you have one contestant who appears absolutely hopeless at every task and seems to just be the series scapegoat in David Baddiel.  It's neck-and-neck with Nish Kumar in the "so bad it's good" terms of performance.  But where Nish was utterly enthusiastic, David just seems confused by the whole game. 

Portrait Decor:  

Series 9 went with a Mannerism artistic theme, and the Portrait of the Taskmaster is inspired by Giuseppe Arcimboldo, with his face made out vegetables

Best task of the season:

"Complete the seven tasks. When you touch a task in any way, you must complete it before looking inside another task."  There are a bunch of great tasks this series- everything from doing a preposterous thing with a chickpea, to inventing an egg timer (showing off Katy Wix's sadistic side), to making the most dramatic entrance.  The task I've chosen (the last task in the house for the series) is clever and backfires in so many ways that it wins out, but there are many great tasks this year.

Worst task of the season:

"Make either a knee and an elbow, a knee and a knee or an elbow or an elbow look like a famous couple. You must only use your knees and elbows."  It's not that amusing, or creative, and Katy is the only one with any artistic sense.

Trivia:

* The location tasks were at Living Props

Contestant Rankings:

1. Mel Giedroyc (Season 4)
2. Rhod Gilbert (Season 7)
3. Ed Gamble (Season 9)
4. James Acaster (Season 7)
5. Rose Matefeo (Season 9)
6. Bob Mortimer (Season 5)
7. Hugh Dennis (Season 4)
8. Noel Fielding (Season 4)
9. Katy Wix (Season 9)
10. Lou Sanders (Season 8)

Season Ranking:

1. Season 9
2. Season 7
3. Season 4
4. Season 5
5. Season 8
6. Season 6
7. Season 2
8. Season 1
9. Season 3

NBA Lottery Booking 2026

I don't believe the NBA Lottery is rigged.  There's too much money involved and there's no way the other owners would allow it.

But if it did...

2026 is supposed to be a great draft.  The experts think there might be 3-4 franchise-level players, and the draft is supposed to be deep with quality players.

AJ Dybantsa- the #1 pick... maybe?

And there's a couple of major themes leading up to this draft.

* The level of tanking in the NBA has gotten to a ridiculous level, with teams being fined for tanking games in February.  The NBA is working on new tanking rules.  But the problem is... tanking works.  If you have a bad team, and you are not a 'major media market' that can attract free agents, then the best way to get talented players is through the draft.  

* There have been a lot of trades that could affect the draft- OKC gets the Clippers pick; Atlanta gets New Orleans pick.  Washington and Utah could have lost their picks, and Indiana might if they don't get a top 4 pick

* The past two decades have had the lottery favor the Western Conference.  When a top franchise player is in the draft, they have ended up in the West.  Victor Wembanyama ended in San Antonio; Cooper Flagg in Dallas;  Edwards in Minnesota, Anthony Davis in New Orleans.  When the East gets the #1 pick, the quality of the player hasn't been so high.  It's one reason the Western Conference is perceived as the better conference.

With that said...

Tanking works:  Washington, Indiana, Brooklyn, Utah

We'll go chalk here- the four worst teams get the top four picks.  Three of the franchises have been bad for well over a decade; Indiana fell apart after making the Finals when Tyrese Haliburton was injured.

The NBA's dream scenario:  Chicago, Milwaukee, Golden State, Atlanta

Chicago is a major market undergoing a rebuild, and could use a top pick.  Milwaukee and Golden State have aging stars that could be rejuvenated with a rookie.  Atlanta is a major city with a young team and one more player might put them as contenders

That was a mistake:  Atlanta, OKC, Sacramento, Washington

The top two picks in a deep draft go to playoff teams due to trades.  The Paul George trade hurts the Clippers on last time, and New Orleans lives out a nightmare.  As a bonus, Indiana's pick at #5 goes to the Los Angeles Clippers.

Life in unfair:  Dallas, Golden State, Utah, Brooklyn

Dallas gets their second #1 pick in a row.  Golden State revives the end of Curry's career.  Utah is rewarded for their blatant tanking.  And the West get the top 3 picks

Taskmaster Retrospective: UK Series 08

Series 8- some good points, but too low key to be great.

Taskmaster:  UK Series 8

Year:  2019

Channel:  Dave

Contestants:  

Iain Stirling

Joe Thomas

Lou Sanders

Paul Sinha

Sian Gibson

Number of Episodes:  10

Notes:

Series 7 was brilliant.  Series 8 was a step back.

In part, it was due to circumstances out of their control.  Paul Sinha had surgery right before he filmed his tasks, and in retrospect he was not at full strength.  And Joe Thomas seemed very low key during the series, though he seemed to 'get' the energy of the show by the final episode.  Between the two, the energy was brought down compared to the previous series.

The other three contestants are well-suited for Taskmaster.  Sian Thompson is adorable and weird.  Iain Stirling is obsessed with winning and (like James Acaster) full of madcap energy.  And Lou Sanders is absolutely ruthless and just as obsessed with winning as Iain.  

The task themselves weren't bad- but this series (like series 6) is missing the overall chaos that elevates Taskmaster to a great season.  

 

Portrait Decor:  

Series 8 went with a Japanese theme (look for the 'TM' logo on the wax seal), with a portrait of the Taskmaster in an anime style

Best task of the season:

"Completely erase this eraser."  A simple task that had the contestants coming up with a variety of solutions.  The reason this qualifies is that it's the one task that the contestants really showed fire and argued with each other.  

Taskmaster doesn't require the contestants to be feuding or actively disliking each other (that would hurt the series)- but it works best when the contestants show fire and are trying hard to win and willing to argue for points. 

Worst task of the season:

"Put something on your face that looks like a moustache from a long distance away, but when you get up close, you realise it's something completely different to what you thought."  Blech.  It's more disgusting than clever or funny.

Trivia:

* The location tasks were at Buckinghamshire Railway Centre

* Some themes throughout the season:  Sand, Pink

* Iain Sterling showed up on the final episode wearing pajamas; I think this is the first instance of someone wearing a special outfit for the finale.

Contestant Rankings:

1. Mel Giedroyc (Season 4)
2. Rhod Gilbert (Season 7)
3. James Acaster (Season 7)
4. Bob Mortimer (Season 5)
5. Hugh Dennis (Season 4)
6. Noel Fielding (Season 4)
7. Lou Sanders (Season 8)
8. Richard Osman (Season 2)
9. Kerry Godliman (Season 7)
10. Nish Kumar (Season 5)

Season Ranking:

1. Season 7
2. Season 4
3. Season 5
4. Season 8
5. Season 6
6. Season 2
7. Season 1
8. Season 3

Taskmaster Retrospective: UK Series 07

“I know it’s early days but are we the stupidest so far?”- James Acaster, series 7, episode 1.  

No, James, you're not.  The most chaotic, on the other hand...

Taskmaster:  UK Series 7

Year:  2018

Channel:  Dave

Contestants:  

James Acaster

Jessica Knappett

Kerry Godliman

Phil Wang

Rhod Gilbert

Number of Episodes:  10

Notes:

Series 6 was missing a chaos agent to put the show in overdrive.  Series 7 does NOT have this problem.  

Like Series 6, Series 7 had one smart, practical player (Liza Tarbuck in series 6; Kerry Godliman in series 7).  After that, Series 7 has a great cast of chaotic characters, including:

- The wildly incompetent one (Phil Wang)

- The contestant who is too eager to win (James Acaster).

- The wildly unpredictable person (Jessica Knappett)

- The one who is constantly bending if not breaking the rules and is a master of non-linear thinking (Rhod Gilbert).  As a bonus, Gilbert (a longtime friend of Greg Davies) makes it his personal goal to embarass and/or break the Taskmaster (and Alex Horne) throughout the show.  It's not a great way to win points, but it's a fantastic way to steal the show.

The individuals are great, and the chemistry between everyone is brilliant.  The contestants are constantly sniping at each other and arguing with both Greg and Alex.  It makes for a fantastic series.

 

Portrait Decor:  

Series 7 went with a portrait inspired by Pablo Picasso

Best task of the season:

"Prize: Most confusing thing."  There's some brilliant tasks here, but this one has everything- Rhod Gilbert taunting the Taskmaster, Phil Wang's 'bartering' system, James Acaster getting pulled aside by Greg Davies for a stern lecture, and Jessica Knappett's brilliant snark.  

There's some great tasks throughout this series, both in terms of brilliant thinking ("Tie yourself up as securely as possible") and amusing utter debacles, ("Make the best extension to the Taskmaster House.")

Worst task of the season:

"Make the best Christmas cracker."  There isn't a really bad task this season.  This one just felt a little flat, partly because Christmas crackers are a staple in England but not in the US.

Trivia:

* The location tasks were at Woodrow High House

* I believe this is the first series where Alex answers a question with "All of the Information is on the Task", during the Ten-Word Story task.

* Phil Wang's outfit is a constant source of laughs

Contestant Rankings:

1. Mel Giedroyc (Season 4)
2. Rhod Gilbert (Season 7)
3. James Acaster (Season 7)
4. Bob Mortimer (Season 5)
5. Hugh Dennis (Season 4)
6. Noel Fielding (Season 4)
7. Richard Osman (Season 2)
8. Kerry Godliman (Season 7)
9. Nish Kumar (Season 5)
10. Tim Vine (Season 6) 

Season Ranking:

1. Season 7
2. Season 4
3. Season 5
4. Season 6
5. Season 2
6. Season 1
7. Season 3

NBA 2025-2026 Playoff Predictions

For the record, here is my predictions from the start of the season.  I know just enough to sound reasonable but not enough to put my own money on any of these predictions.

Eastern Conference:

Play-in Games:

• Charlotte Hornets over Miami Heat
• Philadelphia 76ers over Orlando Magic
• Charlotte Hornets over Orlando Magic

1st Round:

• Detroit Pistons over Charlotte Hornets, 4-2
• Boston Celtics defeats Philadelphia 76ers, 4-1
• New York Knicks defeats Atlanta Hawks, 4-3
• Cleveland Cavaliers over Toronto Raptors, 4-2

2nd Round:

• Cleveland Cavaliers defeats Detroit Pistons, 4-3
• New York Knicks defeats Boston Celtics, 4-3

Conference Finals:

• Cleveland Cavaliers defeats New York Knicks, 4-2

Thoughts:

• I do think there's a gap between the top four teams in the East and everyone else.  So no upsets in the first round- though Charlotte should scare anyone
• From there, matchups matter.  If the Cavaliers have to play the Boston Celtics, I'd probably pick the Celtics.  But the Knicks have a team that give the Celtics fits- while the Cavaliers give the Pistons problems like few other teams.  
• I'm a Cavaliers fan, and very biased.  But I also think if Cleveland plays to their potential, they will win the Eastern Conference.

Western Conference:

Play-in Games:

• Los Angeles Clippers over Golden State Warriors
• Portland Trail Blazers over Phoenix Suns
• Los Angeles Clippers over Phoenix Suns

1st Round:

• Oklahoma City Thunder defeats Los Angeles Clippers, 4-0
• San Antonio Spurs over Portland Trail Blazers, 4-1
• Denver Nuggets defeat Minnesota Timberwolves, 4-3
• Los Angeles Lakers defeats Houston Rockets, 4-3

2nd Round:

• Oklahoma City Thunder defeats Los Angeles Lakers, 4-2
• Denver Nuggets defeats San Antonio Spurs, 4-3

Conference Finals:

• Oklahoma City Thunder defeats Denver Nuggets, 4-3

Thoughts:

• Matchups matter.  OKC is the best team and their two biggest challengers (Denver and San Antonio) have to play each other before the winner faces them.  
• I really like this Denver team- but they have a HARD road- Minnesota is a great playoff team, and San Antonio has been outstanding.  I think Denver wins those two, but I don't know if they can beat OKC after those two series.

NBA Finals:

• Oklahoma City Thunder defeats Cleveland Cavaliers, 4-3

This was my pick for the finals last year.  I think OKC is the best team in the NBA.  It is hard to repeat- the team plays so many games for two years in a row.  At the start of the year, I had Denver beating OKC- but the playoffs are laid out so Denver has a much tougher path before they play OKC.

I'm a Cavaliers fan, and I'd like to be wrong on this pick.  

Your NBA Champions- the Oklahoma City Thunder!

Thoughts with Whiskey: 2026-04-10

Thoughts with Weller's Reserve on the week I turn 54...

Artemis II- I saw Artemis II and the mission to the moon described as "Competence Porn", and I understand completely.  To see a hopeful, optimistic mission succeed in the world today is a wonderful thing.  I'm torn on the idea of sending people back to the moon; it's a wonderful thing, but is it worth the cost, when there are so many other ways to spend the resources?  But just knowing that we could is a good thing.

The War with Iran- I have thoughts.  But I'd probably break down into incoherent cursing.  Let's just say that if this ends with Iran able to extort $100 million per day  to charges boats to safely travel The Strait of Hormuz, then I think we can all agree that this is a debacle that will take generations to recover.  

Artificial Intelligence- you know, in retrospect it's probably a bad idea to give trillions of dollars to a company who has a CEO that has a consistent pattern of "lying".  The lesson, we are learning once again, is that Character.  Matters.  

Sports- let's move onto lighter topics.  

NBA- the playoffs start soon, and I'll make my predictions once the season officially ends.

LA Clippers- there still hasn't been any resolution on the Aspiration Scandal, where the LA Clippers tried to circumvent the salary cap for Kawhi Leonard.  Some people think the contract will be voided, with the result being that Leonard could sign elsewhere.  I have a much simpler and effective solution- Leonard's contract stays but the Clippers lose $25 million off their salary cap for the next five years.  This hurts the team (and therefore discourages other teams from trying something similar) and punishes Leonard (who stays on the team when they can't improve)

NFL- the draft is in two weeks; I need to find a team to root for next year (I pick a different team to root for each year).  

MLB- According to Sportrac, last year the Dodgers' Tax Bill was higher than the payroll of the Cleveland Guardians and ten other MLB teams.  I am positive MLB is working as intended.

Be well, everyone.  

Taskmaster Retrospective: UK Series 06

The sixth series-  Missing the chaos ingredient.

Taskmaster:  UK Series 6

Year:  2018

Channel:  Dave

Contestants:  

Alice Levine

Asim Chaudhry

Liza Tarbuck

Russell Howard

Tim Vine

Number of Episodes:  10

Notes:

Starting with Series 6, Taskmaster went with ten episodes.  The greater number of episodes gave opportunities for more tasks and could build more storylines into the season.

Series 6 isn't great.  On paper, it's not bad- Liza Tarbuck is an excellent player and very sardonic.  But it's missing a chaos gremlin; a contestant who is completely unpredictable, regardless of their performance.  Tim Vine comes closest, but he comes across with a 'Dad Jokes' vibe.  The other three are funny at times, but never unpredictable.  The series is missing the chaos of the previous series, and it shows.  

 

Portrait Decor:  

Series 6 portrait is based on MC Escher's "Hand with Reflecting Sphere"

Best task of the season:

"Make an outfit of things bought from this stationery shop."  The solo tasks (tasks given to just one person) is a highlight of the season.  They picked the right person for this task- someone just odd enough to embrace it full-force.  And the followup question to the rest of the contestants was exactly right

Worst task of the season:

"Write, illustrate and read out a bedtime story for grown-ups. Your bedtime story for grown-ups may be no more or fewer than 50 words."  There's some creativity here, but it's a task that takes up a lot of time, and too many of the contestants went for gutter humor

Trivia:

* There were two remote locations:  The Black Horse Inn and Girl Guiding Headquarters , both located in Chesham.

Contestant Rankings:

1. Mel Giedroyc (Season 4)
2. Bob Mortimer (Season 5)
3. Hugh Dennis (Season 4)
4. Noel Fielding (Season 4)
5. Richard Osman (Season 2)
6. Nish Kumar (Season 5)
7. Tim Vine (Season 6) 
8. Katherine Ryan (Season 2)
9. Tim Key (Season 1)
10. Liza Tarbuck (Season 6)

Season Ranking:

1. Season 4
2. Season 5
3. Season 6
4. Season 2
5. Season 1
6. Season 3