Quercus buys celebration of 10 years of Taskmaster

Quercus is publishing a celebration of a decade of the BAFTA-winning TV show "Taskmaster".

An Absolute Casserole: The Taskmaster Compendium by Alex Horne and Jack Bernhardt will be published in November this year.

Jane Sturrock, publishing director at Quercus, bought UK and Commonwealth rights from Avalon.

"Taskmaster" is a British comedy panel game show created by Horne, a comedian and musician. It began as a stage show at the Edinburgh Festival before being commissioned for television. Series 17 is currently airing on Channel 4 in the UK. The format has travelled around the world with versions in 12 countries and a British spin-off series called “Junior Taskmaster”.

Quercus said: “From the bizarre to the wonderfully pointless, the book will revisit the funniest contestant blunders, inspired madness and ’Taskmaster’ Greg Davies’ withering put-downs, as well as giving the inside scoop on the show’s creation.”

Horne commented: “After a decade of making ’Taskmaster’ we have amassed so many statistics, titbits and secrets that the only sensible course of action is to cram them all in a book and hope fans of the show might be curious enough to want to buy it. ’Absolute Casserole’ is a phrase uttered in one of the bleakest moments in the show’s history, so is a fitting title for a deep dive into the extremities of our ridiculous television programme."

Sturrock added: “I knew there was a big market for this book when I found myself in an online rabbit hole reading hundreds of comments debating whether being a vegan improved your chances of winning ’Taskmaster’. Fans love to geek out about the show and this is a book of its greatest hits.”

The book’s synopsis reads: "This hilarious book is a celebration of a decade of ’Taskmaster’ and will finally put these questions to bed. Fans can relive the most outrageous tasks, iconic meltdowns and ingenious victories from the contestants who have graced the ’Taskmaster’ stage.”