‘Taskmaster Durham 2026’ review

‘highly developed [and] wildly creative […] all those involved should be pleased with how their hard work paid off’

Last night’s performance of Taskmaster was an enjoyable showcase of humour and out-of-the-box thinking, presented in a well-structured and interesting format. The contestants were well-selected with a mixture of comedies and humour.

The overall winner of the two shows was Will Simpson - a deserved winner who gave his all and showed a level of creative genius in the tasks. A favourite of mine was the music video he made for a song written by Carlos Davies entitled ‘Waiting For the Kettle to Boil’, or when he revealed that he had gotten ordained and subsequently married himself to the Taskmaster (Ollie Cochran) over a video call where Cochran was asleep.

Ollie Painter (who was runner-up) was also hilarious. His dry humour and commentary during the show was so naturally entertaining and his comedic timing is excellent. In the prize task, where the contestants had to bring something that makes the Taskmaster nostalgic, Painter revealed a multitude of photos of Cochran, some with a screen saying “Ollie Painter is watching you” behind him. Alongside his strong hold of comedy, he showed an almost unbelievable genuine skill in most of the tasks.

Elena Cupaiolo had a great response to the task of giving the Taskmaster’s Assistant ‘an experience he will never forget’; she put him in drag and took him to Market Square to learn a new kind of confidence and humility. Her easily frustrated persona was a fun perspective to the show, contrasting well against ‘her nemesis’, Painter.

Carlos Davies, in an attempt to get his egg to the highest point, attached his egg to a fly bar in the Gala Theatre and left it there as a show happened on stage. And though it was less than 100ft above sea level (compared to Painter’s almost 1,000ft), I believe he was unfairly scored in last place. Davies was very quick-witted throughout the show and some of his recorded tasks were my favourites watch.

Olivia Kindred summarised her time on the show as “it’s not about how many points you get, it’s about how much you make people laugh”. She showed an awesome nonchalance which proved the great mindset she came into the show with. The task of finding the location of a finish line to cross at a specific time and date had the contestants brought into a room with several objects, each with coordinates hidden in them (and, as some eagle-eyed members of the audience noticed were references to the What Three Words location of the finish line). Kindred found every set of coordinates on each object yet despite this, somehow, did not make it to the finish line.

The Taskmaster and Taskmaster’s Assistant were brilliantly brought to life by Ollie Cochran and Michael Nevin respectively, with Cochran becoming an abrasive yet light-hearted judge who dealt well in the face of, at times, deranged tasks poking fun at him. Nevin was similarly brilliant, having great comedic chemistry with each cast member and he was more than willing to be a pawn in each of their crazy games.

Props must also go to the filming and editing crew who captured the tasks very comprehensively. It is obvious that they understood the comedy and the importance of structure and timing to create interesting, pre-recorded tasks. This was highlighted in the filming of a task where contestants worked in teams to create their own secret code corresponding to letters of the alphabet, and later communicate and translate a phrase in said alphabet. The aftermath of Painter, Cupaiolo and Kindred’s attempt featured a great behind-the-scenes type of filming, with Painter crouched on the floor, head-in-hands with the Taskmaster’s Assistant watching over him. Onstage camera work from Cassia Thurston added to intensity and humour for the live tasks and the switching between cameras, designed by Riley Hutton, was excellent.

The live music (directed by Ben Armitage) was a lovely addition to the show and helped add to a more professional atmosphere, and it was great to see that they were able to be involved in a live task as well. Technical elements (managed by Production Manager Rory Collins and Assistant Production Manager George Murray) were well-balanced, and despite a few issues that arose during the later performance meaning that some of the pre-recorded content was corrupted, the show persisted strongly after a delay.

The lighting (designed by Leyla Aysan Montoya and operated by Zac Jackson) was great at separating the areas of the stage and drawing the audience focus from the panel at the apron and the projection on screen. It was great to see how smoothly lighting was, especially seeing as there were unpredictable elements to the show. The sound of the projected videos was holistically good too (designed by Oli Fitzgerald and operated by George Jones, Andrew Mullins, and Kai Doak), though it may still have been useful to have subtitles to aid the audience.

Th stage team (led by Evie Collins) were very well prepared for any issues, running on with extra jellies, grapes, and onions for the last task and helping the show run smoothly between live and pre-recorded tasks. Additionally, the set - attributed to Production Designer Sarah Johnston who designed the overall aesthetic vision for the show - worked very well in order to support the technical elements and the band. The portraits and paintings of the Taskmaster and Taskmaster’s Assistant as well as the contestants were funny and well-done.

Overall, the interactive space for the live tasks was highly developed, with scoreboards updated quickly in accordance with the show and double-sided weighing scales that gave a score out of ten in the accuracy of cutting in objects half. Though there were a few problems which arose in the show, it was a good two performances and wildly creative, all those involved should be pleased with how their hard work paid off.

By Harriet Miller.