Advertising helps fund Big Issue’s mission to end poverty
Feeling the heat? Help our vendors keep cool. Buy a summer support kit for £35
BUY NOW
TV

Master The Big Issue task set by Taskmaster's Alex Horne

Can you impress the Taskmaster? All you have to do is buy The Big Issue and encourage your friends and family to do the same!

Buying The Big Issue is easy. You visit your local vendor, pay £3 (in cash or increasingly via cashless payment), read, enjoy and look forward to doing it all again the next week. But we want more people to experience all the benefits.

That’s why this week, we have teamed up with Alex Horne, creator of hit series Taskmaster, to set a challenge to readers:

horne-03

It’s simple. Encourage as many people as you can to buy and read The Big Issue, send in some evidence and you might win… well, it’s the taking part that counts.

Alex Horne said: “I think buying The Big Issue is the easiest thing to do in the world. You all know where your Big Issue salesperson is. So persuading other people should be the task…”

Readers are asked to share their photos on social media using the hashtag #bigissuetask to be in with a chance of winning, who knows, maybe a like or retweet from @alexhorne and @bigissue.

Advertising helps fund Big Issue’s mission to end poverty
Advertising helps fund Big Issue’s mission to end poverty

The challenge features alongside an interview with Horne in this week’s magazine, where he talks about the show’s move to Channel 4, his relationship with co-presenter Greg Davies and his favourite lockdown challenges.

When the first Taskmaster aired six years ago Horne knew he had a winning format from the start.

He said: “Romesh [Ranganathan] and Tim [Key, poet, and Horne’s former flatmate] smashed a watermelon on the ground, and then started gobbling it up [The task was: ‘Eat as much watermelon as possible in one minute’]. That was the moment that the programme caught alight, showed how competitive people were and the lengths they’d go to.”

Over nine series, Taskmaster has built up such a large cult following that it’s on the brink of being mainstream, and this week it follows in the floury footsteps of the Great British Bake Off by defecting to Channel 4.

“I’ve got a lot of respect for [free-to-air channel] Dave because they were the only ones who took the risk and I love it,” Horne says. “But we came to the end the contract and Channel 4 said how about we show it? I want it to be exactly the same but just easier to find.”

The fresh Taskmaster has exactly the same ingredients: random tasks attempted by a mix of comedians, this year: stand-up veterans Johnny Vegas and Richard Herring, The IT Crowd’s Katherine Parkinson, This Country’s Daisy May Cooper and show-stealing Mawaan Rizwan.

The new series of Taskmaster begins on Channel 4 on Thursday October 15 at 9pm.

Big Issue vendors have returned to selling the magazine across the country. However, with footfall significantly lower on many high streets, vendors need your support now, more than ever. If you don’t have a local vendor, you can support The Big Issue by downloading the app, available on Apple Store and Google Play, or subscribe online.

Advertising helps fund Big Issue’s mission to end poverty

SIGN THE PETITION

Will you sign Big Issue's petition to ask Keir Starmer to pass a Poverty Zero law? It's time to hold government to account on poverty once and for all.

Recommended for you

View all
Rosie Jones: 'My disability benefits have been cut – but I'm one of the lucky ones'
TV

Rosie Jones: 'My disability benefits have been cut – but I'm one of the lucky ones'

St Denis Medical star Wendi McLendon-Covey: 'Lounging seats in movie theatres is a big mistake'
TV

St Denis Medical star Wendi McLendon-Covey: 'Lounging seats in movie theatres is a big mistake'

Ex-England star Alex Scott: 'I went from playing football on my council estate to World Cups'
Letter to my younger self

Ex-England star Alex Scott: 'I went from playing football on my council estate to World Cups'

The Gold star Charlotte Spencer: 'Maybe we need to root for the heroes again'
Charlotte Spencer photographed by Matt Smith
TV

The Gold star Charlotte Spencer: 'Maybe we need to root for the heroes again'

Most Popular

Read All
Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits
Renters: A mortgage lender's window advertising buy-to-let products
1.

Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal
Pound coins on a piece of paper with disability living allowancve
2.

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal

Cost of living payment 2024: Where to get help now the scheme is over
next dwp cost of living payment 2023
3.

Cost of living payment 2024: Where to get help now the scheme is over

Strike dates 2023: From train drivers to NHS doctors, here are the dates to know
4.

Strike dates 2023: From train drivers to NHS doctors, here are the dates to know

Support our vendors with a subscription

For each subscription to the magazine, we’ll provide a vendor with a reusable water bottle, making it easier for them to access cold water on hot days.