Format

Three years later came The Button, also created by the Horne/Devonshire duo and produced by Avalon for BBC One. The concept was quite similar, but the format left the studio to enter the homes of everyday people. The title comes from the fact that families received instructions from an interactive button placed in their living rooms. The new show was well-received, but only one season was produced.

In 2020, at the height of the pandemic, came Home Tasking. Horne (once again supported by Devonshire) launched this native spin-off series on YouTube, asking viewers from all over the world to film themselves performing absurd tasks using only what they had at home.

Fast forward to the summer of 2026. Channel 4 and Avalon have announced the pilot for Your Time Starts Now, with Horne once again as creator and Devonshire as director and producer. The new show officially merges these three previous experiences: it takes the devious tasks and cynical style of Taskmaster, the interactive and distribution structure of The Button (everyday families competing simultaneously from their living rooms), and the spirit of home-based resourcefulness tested on a massive scale with Home Tasking.

The concept is described as follows on the network’s official website:
“UK households compete against one another while tackling a host of his typically devious tasks without ever leaving their homes. Five teams of friends and families across the UK will need to display creativity, lateral thinking, speed, knowledge and teamwork if they want to win.”
This is essentially an IP extension, made up of successive ‘concentric spin-offs’ all within the “Taskmaster Universe.” It remains to be seen if the audience will embrace this latest “variation on a theme” as well.

To read about 2 other formats with an IP extension,  go to Espresso

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