John and Sophie throw rings at Joanne

At the start of the task, Joanne suggests that Nick will “be gone in three rings” due to his short stature. Greg agrees that Nick is “a three-ring man”, thus coining the episode title.

John and Sophie alternate their ring throws. After several misses and a warning from Greg about Sophie not crossing the line, they manage to land a ring on Joanne. Joanne then looks over at Nick and is alarmed at the lead the other team have gained on them. However, they manage to catch up with the team of two, thanks to some near misses by Steve.

It becomes unclear towards the end of the task as to which team will finish first, with just Joanne’s forearms and hands still visible, versus the very tips of Nick’s fingers. However, Steve successfully lands one more ring on Nick, completely covering him and ending the task.

As the group return to their chairs, Alex and Greg make a point of observing how fine a margin the game was won by, and Alex asks Greg if he wants to see some more fine margins. Alex then displays a frame of the footage which reveals that part of Steve’s foot was over the line. When Greg suggests this isn’t conclusive, Alex shows a second and third still, revealing that Steve had stepped over the line multiple times. Greg therefore has to disqualify Steve and Nick, and the team of three earns 5 points each by default.

(Written by M3 / Andres Sanchez and proofread by Karl Craven)

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