Defuse the robot was a task featured on Series 18 of Taskmaster, as the fourth task in A dance as old as time itself. The task was won by Andy Zaltzman.
Setup[]
| Location | Taskmaster House |
|---|---|
| Equipment | Robert the robot, safety equipment, pliers, colour wheel, danger sign, clipboard, red wine, phone, safe, kiwi, rugby ball, "SAFE" sign, paint cannon |
| Timing | 10 minutes |
| Measurement | Fastest to defuse the robot |
Summary[]
The task was presented on top of the robot, under the wires. The contestants had to defuse the robot by cutting all but the Danger (Blue) wire, or risk disqualification by it spewing paint cannons out of its antennae.
The wires in order from the antennae to button and timer were: Grey, Yellow, Blue, Brown, Red, Green and Black. Among the clues were:
- "The Safe List" on the clipboard (Names who are not crossed out have Brown surnames)
- A man on board of HMS Danger on the Blue moon
- A bottle of Red wine with numerical letters 19-1-6-5 (Safe)
- A colour wheel with the word "Safe" replacing Yellow
- A phone stuck on the dome with a voice message from Greg saying, "Whatever you do, do not make the danger wire sound like my name," then, "Actually, maybe the danger wire should sound like my name. I'm a pretty dangerous guy after all," referring to the phrase Grey area
- The phone had the code 0000 written on it, which opened the Black safe containing a kiwi and a rugby ball referring to the New Zealand Rugby Team (All Blacks)
- A Green sign with "Safe" written on it outside the dome
- The safety equipment, strobe light and pliers were coloured Blue and labelled Danger
Performance[]
Andy Zaltzman: Andy figured out "The Safe List" surnames, the wine, and the safe code in that order. When he checked the HMS Danger, he figured that the Blue wire meant danger, so he was able to defuse the robot with under 2 minutes remaining, receiving 5 points.
Babátúndé Aléshé: Baba got confused with the clues, thinking the arrows on the colour wheel meant that Yellow was dangerous and he immediately cut the Blue wire. Because he cut the Blue wire, he was disqualified.
Emma Sidi: Emma guessed that Gordon on "The Safe List" meant Green, drank the wine and guessed that Dan on the list meant Blue. Because she cut the Blue wire, she was disqualified.
Jack Dee: Jack figured out "The Safe List" surnames and the colour wheel, but spent about 7 minutes figuring out the meaning of the phone call. He eventually spotted his pliers sign and was able to defuse the robot with under 4 seconds remaining, receiving 4 points.
Rosie Jones: Due to Rosie's cerebral palsy, Alex had to cut the wires for her. She figured out "The Safe List" surnames, the wine, the colour wheel, the safe code, and the sign outside, in that order. But when she asked Alex to cut the Grey wire, she ran out of time and blamed Alex for cutting the last wire too slow. Because she had cracked the code, Greg allowed Rosie to have 3 points.
Trivia[]
- The robot in this task is Robert, as seen in the previous episode's Direct the robot to its charging station task.