Nick creates tension through incompetence

As Nick enters the living room to find Alex looking uncomfortable, Nick asks him whether he’s alright. When Alex doesn’t respond, Nick says “Oh no. What now?” and takes a seat at the table.

After reading the task brief, Nick initially suggests that he could create “sexual tension”, but then instead requests a tablecloth, and announces that he’s going to get some “bits and bobs”.

Nick covers the table in the living room with a large gingham tablecloth, then lines up four thin-stemmed cocktail glasses, and balances a raw egg on top of a rolled-up sheet of paper, on each of them.

With a minute left, Nick grabs the Taskmaster’s cane, and approaches the table, where he takes a swipe at all four rolls of paper simultaneously, aiming to knock them out from beneath the eggs, and drop the eggs into the glasses. Unfortunately, all four eggs travel sideways by a couple of inches, and crack on the table instead.

Nick sheepishly pretends that his trick has gone to plan, and then upturns each of the glasses on top of its corresponding egg.

Finally, attempting to redeem himself, Nick tries to whip the tablecloth out from beneath all of the glasses, but this also ends badly, with everything ending up on the floor.

In the studio, Nick observes that it had been genuinely stressful for him to rewatch the video, and Greg admits that there had been tension.

Greg ultimately awards Nick joint second place with Steve, noting that the tension was down to his “gross incompetence as a magician”. Nick therefore earns 4 points.

(Written by Karl Craven)

(Illustrations collected by Jenny R and adjusted by David Fuller)