Episode 2: Butter in the microwave

Episode synopsis

In this episode the contestants must bring in the best bag, identify which bin Alex is in, draw a portrait of the Taskmaster across a flipchart, complete a treasure hunt, and then arrange and perform some other actions with some playdough balls.

Title context

'Butter in the microwave' was a phrase uttered by David Baddiel, when answering questions about his team's performance in the 'Say the word ‘demeaning’' task.

Alternate Titles

• On Denmark's TV2 Play streaming platform, this episode is titled 'Smør i mikroovnen', which translates as 'Butter in the microwave'.
• On Finland's MTV Katsomo streaming platform, this episode is titled 'Voita mikrouunissa', which translates as 'Butter in the microwave'. [Translator credit: zador]
• On New Zealand's TVNZ+ streaming platform, this episode is titled 'The Gobblers'. Alex refers to the team of David Baddiel and Jo Brand as 'The Gobblers' during the scoring for the 'Say the word demeaning' task, after Greg refers to them as the 'Cheese Sandwich Gobbling Old People'. [Source credit: Alice]
• On Norway's Discovery+ Norge streaming platform, this episode is titled 'Smør i mikrobølgeovnen', which translates as 'Butter in the microwave'. Note: this Norwegian translation of the title only appears in the subtitles for the episode, whereas the episode title listed on the platform is the original English title. [Translator credit: Jan Harald]

Taskmaster Intro

Hello, I'm Greg Davies. I am a leggy blonde. Born in '68 and I am 6ft 8. Mind-blowing! But enough about me, let's just get on with the show and meet our five brave warriors. Please welcome them.

Assistant Intro

And, to my left, a man who Tina Turner once described as 'simply the best' and, in a separate conversation, as 'a complete arsehole'. It's little Alex Horne!

Taskmaster's Sign-off

So, what have we learnt today? We've learnt that if you find yourself in an emergency situation up against the clock with disaster imminent, every second a crucial second, stop, pause, make yourself a lovely sandwich. And we've learnt that Ed Gamble won some bags. This is truly a day he will never forget. Night-night. See you next time.