The Taskmaster House, referred to as the Task Cottage in Melon buffet., is the primary filming location for the pre-recorded tasks. It is located in Chiswick, London. The house is a former groundskeepers’ cottage inside a golf course.
Design[]
Inside[]
House tour of the Series 18 house, from the official Taskmaster Instagram & Twitter.
- The Lounge, the main room, typically donning a table and chair in the middle. Behind the table is a display featuring many props, and a large portrait of Greg Davies that changes each series.
- The Lab, an all white room, with plastic sheeting covering the walls, ceiling and floor, with a small table in the middle.
- The Kitchen, complete with stove, fridge, sink, washing machine and various kitchenware, usable by contestants in tasks.
- The Hallway, connects each room together. The walls have additional portraits of Greg and Alex, as well as themed photos of past contestants.
- The Toilet, connected to the hallway, contains a toilet and some shelves. When facing the house, the right front window leads into here.
- The Bathroom, a rarely seen room with a sink and bathtub in. When facing the house, the left front window leads into here.
- The Entryway, contains a large portrait of the Taskmaster that remains identical across all series. The panellists' pigeon holes are also found here.
- The Dressing Room, where the contestants reside between tasks.
Other rooms exist in the house, but are reserved for the production crew.
Outside[]
- The Caravan, located in the garden, the caravan has a wooden table, a sink, cabinets and a toilet. It is decorated with various objects such as skulls and lobsters, and is surrounded by a flowers within a short picket fence. Introduced in Series 4 as Alex's domicile.
- The Garden, has a bathtub and many facilities that may be used within tasks. Several inanimate characters have appeared in the garden, including Ollie the Knight (since Series 7) and Linda the Cow (since Series 10).
- The Driveway, extends from the house's main entrance to the large TM gates.
- The Garage, a garage adjacent to the house with a red interior.
- The Shed, often free for the panellists to use and take things from. In Series 16, the shed was moved behind the Caravan.
- The Stage, located next to the hutch at the far back end of the garden. It was introduced in Series 13. Another smaller stage was used for a task in Series 5, however it was never reused.
- The Dome, a large transparent dome to the right of the front door, introduced in the New Years' Treat special and returning in Series 12.
- The Hutch, a cozy small red LandPod found on the yard where the Shed used to be, introduced in Series 16.
Other things in the garden include a statue of Greg Davies, a red phonebox, a bathtub, and a large wooden spiral-decorated target. For
Additionally, behind the garage, accessible with a footpath between the garage and the house, is a storage unit containing the many props and set pieces used throughout the show.
Theme[]
The theme of the Taskmaster House shifts from season to season. The first seven series featured subtle changes: each series was themed after an artist, rather than a broad genre or style, and only the Greg Davies portrait and displayed props would shift between series. However, from Series 8 onwards, themes were much more influential, affecting the music between tasks, and more decor around the house, among other things. Decoration present in the house are more and more significant with each series, notably Series 18 having the outside be influenced by the theme in addition to the interior.
Below is a list of themes across the series.
Main series[]
| Series # | Theme | Portrait | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Series 1 | Andy Warhol |  |
House was mostly undecorated. Props include books and a rock. The portrait is based on Shot Marilyns. |
| Series 2 | Salvador Dalí |  |
The table in the lounge below the portrait is decorated with melting clocks. The portrait itself is based on Le Sommeil (Sleep). |
| Series 3 | Roy Lichtenstein |  |
The portrait is based on Oh, Jeff...I Love You, Too...But.... Props alluding to Lichtenstein paintings include lemons, bananas and grapefruit. |
| Series 4 | Vincent van Gogh |  |
The portrait is based on Self Portrait with a Straw Hat. Van Gogh related props in the main room include sunflowers and a straw hat. A pallet and paint brushes are also placed on, or by, the table. |
| Series 5 | René Magritte |  |
The portrait is based on The Son of Man. Props alluding to Magritte include a giraffe inside a glass container and a cat in a hat. A pineapple and the bowler hat seen in the portrait are on display in front of the portrait as well. |
| Series 6 | M. C. Escher |  |
Portrait references Hand with Reflecting Sphere. Esher references include hands, toy lizards, and an icosahedron. The reflective ball itself is on a plinth. The portrait of Greg isn't shown until episode 4 of the series, BMXing! |
| Series 7 | Pablo Picasso |  |
The portrait is based on Seated Woman, and as such is created in the cubism style Picasso would be known for. Picasso related props in the main room include an acoustic guitar. |
| Series 8 | Japanese |  |
The portrait is an original piece made for the show, which references various anime villain tropes: it is of Greg with Tsurime Eyes, an Eyepatch Of Power, holding a cane with a metal hand. The front windows of the house are also decorated with anime-styled eyes. The music between tasks uses traditional Japanese instruments, such as a shamisen, and the opening for the show ends with a dramatic gong sound effect accompanied by a shakuhachi. Japanese products are scattered throughout the lounge. |
| Series 9 | Baroque |  |
The portrait of Greg made up of vegetables, in the style of the painting Vertumnus by Giuseppe Arcimboldo. The frame is decorated with musical instruments, most notably keyboards on the sides. The theme for the house itself is rather vague and difficult to describe, however the name given to the house's music during transitions was described as baroque on the Taskmaster app. |
| Series 10 | Western |  |
The picture of Greg being styled as a colourised old-timey photograph of him dressed as Wild Bill Hickok. Linda the Cow wears a Stetson hat, and the music features instruments commonly heard in western themes, using recognizable string instruments, among other things. Props of cowboys and natives are sprinkled throughout the lounge. |
| Series 11 | Soviet |  |
The picture of Greg is heavily stylised to resemble communist propaganda. Text on the portrait reads "СОЗДАТЕЛЬ ЗАДАЧИ ЗАДАЧИ НАША ОБЯЗАННОСТЬ", which roughly translates to "CREATOR OF TASKS, TASKS ARE OUR DUTY". Linda the Cow is now wearing an ushanka, and the music between tasks resembles Sergei Prokofiev's Montagues and Capulets orchestration. |
| Series 12 | Steampunk |  |
The Lounge is decorated with cogs and a diving helmet. 19th century technology is seen as well, alongside many metallic props, mainly composed of copper and brass. |
| Series 13 | Día de los Muertos |  |
The walls of the main room are painted blue and yellow. Painted and decorated skulls inhabit the lounge. The series' music between tasks feature instruments associated with mariachi music, such as a guitarrón and trumpets. The portrait depicts Greg wearing calavera makeup. |
| Series 14 | Circus |  |
Greg's portrait shows him as an old ringmaster below the words "cirque de tâches", meaning "circus of tasks". Various paintings of clowns line the walls of the lounge, alongside various festive lights. |
| Series 15 | The 60s |  |
The lounge features many references to the Beatles, with Greg's portrait showing him as John Lennon, based on how he appears on the cover for Menlove Ave.. The picture itself references a festival poster by Bonnie MacLean. The acts listed are themselves Taskmaster references, including Nell Diamond, The Clump Stumps, Rosalind, Diverse Stripes, Products of Conception, The Ollies, Caravanimals and Bosh. Objects on display in the main room include a yellow submarine. The music between tasks is a surf version of the usual theme. The portrait of Greg is described as being psychedelic art on the Taskmaster Store. |
| Series 16 | Art deco |  |
The main portrait is inspired by the poster for Fritz Lang's 1927 film Metropolis. The walls of the lounge are almost entirely painted dark grey, and various busts of mannequins line the table. |
| Series 17 | Victorian |  |
The door to the main room is now black, and has a black frame around it. Greg's portrait shows him with a long beard, round glasses and a top hat. The table in the main room is replaced with a circular wooden table. The music between tasks is much slower paced than usual, and features a more elegant, but poignant tone. Cinematography for the task introductions are also more gritty and bleak. Footage of contestants performing tasks lack much of the colour correction seen in previous series, making them slightly less saturated. Greg's portrait in this series greatly resembles a portrait brought in by Guz Khan in the prize task for Croissants is croissants. |
| Series 18 | Nautical |  |
The portrait of Greg depicts him dressed as a naval officer. The caravan has been decorated to resemble a submarine and is named the Submaravan, the bathtub has a sail, and the fence has been decorated with rubber rings. Objects displayed by the portrait of Greg include a lighthouse, a telescope, and the picture frame is decorated with shells and barnacles. The walls of the lounge are blue and pillows on the sofa depict boats, anchors and other sailor related iconography. Seal plushies are also present in the lounge. The front door has been decorated with rings with the windows painted yellow. The dome's flooring now has a water caustic design and is blue. One rendition of the music between tasks resembles a sea shanty. A handrail has been added outside the front door, likely to aid Rosie Jones, and is presumably unrelated to the theme. |
Specials[]
| Special | Theme | Portrait | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Champion of Champions | Golden |  |
The lounge is decorated with various awards, alongside a portrait of Greg in royal attire, complete with a robe and crown. Many things around the house are made gold. Promotional material for Champion of Champions III depicts a medieval theme, however this is not reflected in the episode itself. |
| New Year Treat | Cinema |  |
Greg's portrait is in black-and-white and is a reference to Buster Keaton. The lounge is decorated with a red curtain, with movie theatre props like a popcorn machine, a movie reel, and a projector. Honky-tonk music is often present during the transitions between tasks, referencing classical cinema, and the clips sometimes feature old film effects, such as film grain and burns. |
Schedule[]
In An Absolute Casserole: The Taskmaster Compendium, the details regarding the daily routine within the house are laid out for readers.
Below is the full schedule according to the book:
7:00am: The first member of the team arrives. The oven is turned on, water boiled and radiators checked. It's often cold and the heating doesn't always work. Sometimes it's warm and on those days the heating often can't be turned off.
7:30am: The camera department arrives. Without these people, Taskmaster is just desperate comedians doing pointless activities in a bungalow that is either too hot or too cold. So, no one questions what these people do for the next hour. It looks important and seems to involve taking apart every piece of their equipment, shaking their heads and then putting it all back together.
8:00am: The contestant arrives. They are guided swiftly into their modest dressing room and offered toast and apologies. They are only allowed out if they ask permission, just in case they see anything that might hint at what's about to happen. Apprehensively they nibble breakfast and don whatever clothing they have chosen to wear for the experience.
8:10am: The Taskmaster's assistant arrives. He asks if he's got there before the contestant and is let down gently. He also puts on his task clothing, usually in the freezing lab - he can put on an entire suit in under a minute - drinks a pint of liquified fruit and vegetables, and is ready by 8:15am.
For the next hour, the team, led by Andy Devonshire agrees upon the order of tasks and makes sure each one is ready to be launched. Andy Cartwright opens the spreadsheets, the sound department fiddles with shirts; we are ready.
9:30am: The contestant opens the first task of the day. These vary in length between five minutes and an hour. Seldom are they interrupted (if so, it's usually due to rain, planes or an unexpected delivery from Amazon) and if they are it is only briefly. They are over and done with quickly, and the contestant doesn't need to think about the task again until they are back in the studio. Often, however, they do. They stew over their decisions either until the next task or for the coming nights, turning over their decisions with disbelief until they are allowed to actually talk about them openly. For while in the Taskmaster world, you may never discuss the tasks themselves. Until you are in the presence of the Taskmaster.
11:00am: In between their second, third or fourth task, the contestant decides what everyone has for lunch. This is an important moment: too stodgy and the afternoon becomes tricky; too healthy and the morning lacks enthusiasm.
1:00pm: The food arrives, and every single person sits in a circle and eats whatever was chosen, and tells the contestant that they made a great choice.
2:00pm: Four or five more tasks in the afternoon. It's important to keep them coming, not only so they all get done, but also to drive the contestant into a state of zen-like exhaustion; to drill down to the essence of the person; to strip them of their constructed comedic sensibilities; and expose the actual human underneath.
6:00pm: They are released. Some have other commitments they must fulfil that evening - stand-up, acting, socialising - but a much better option is to rent a yurt with a hot tub, and to just sit and stare until sleep.
7:30pm: The member of the team who arrived first is also the last to leave. The camera department has taken apart their equipment and put it back together one more time. Vicky (production mother) has ensured that everyone has eaten enough and all the milk has been mopped up again. Everyone heads off to their other lives to do their own tasks in their own way. The doors are locked and the Taskmaster house rests.