Taskmaster star Alex Horne has appeared on Chris Moyles' Radio X show to talk about the upcoming tour with his band The Horne Section. He also revealed to stand-in host Toby Tarrant a few titbits about the upcoming series of Taskmaster. You can read an extract of their conversation below:
editor's note - we think that's Toby Tarrant in the picture although it does look a lot like Alex Horne.
You can also listen/watch Horne here.
Toby Tarrant: “Now, when you’re in the studio with The Horne Section and you’re writing these songs, it must be difficult. Because what I imagine it’s always like when you’re in the studio, and you’re the Rolling Stones are you’re writing ‘Gimme Shelter’ and you’re all looking at each other going, ‘this is a masterpiece.’ Do you ever stand around looking at each other going, ‘right, we’re writing a song about peas.’ Is there going to be a point when you take a song to a live audience you realise you’ve actually finally lost the plot?”
Alex Horne: “Well, yeah. This year we’ve got songs about cleaning fluids, religion…”
TT: “Hahaha!”
AH: “No, we have a sort of catchphrase in the show, well, in the writing room. Which is, ‘it’s good enough for the podcast.’ So, we have sort of three categories of songs: one which we’ll work live, two which maybe might work in a corporate event, and the rest which is good enough for the podcast. So, the hardest ones are the ones to play live, because you want people to laugh throughout it and applause at the end. It’s difficult, because you want them to enjoy the music. So yeah, it is a challenge. And I’m glad you’re constantly comparing us to The Beatles and the Rolling Stones.”
TT: “Hey, you’re very welcome.”
AH: “Yeah, I think they had a similar problem. I think it’s harder being a comedy band than The Beatles. Because we have to come up with new stuff every single time. We can’t just play the same old hits, because people will know the punch lines. So yeah, I think we have it tough.”
TT: “Are you saying in a way that you’re better than The Beatles?”
AH: “In more than one way.”
TT: “In more than one way, yeah.”
AH: “I think we’ve now outlived them as well. Yeah, we’ve been going 13, 14 years.”
Dominic Byrne: “Oh you have then.”
AH: “None of us are dead, thank you.”
TT: “Hahaha!”
Later on in the show, Toby asks Alex about the upcoming series of Taskmaster and the new batch of celebrity contestants due to take part.
TT: “Well whilst I’ve got you here, it would be remiss of me to not talk about the new series of Taskmaster, which is coming soon to Channel 4. And the line-up, Alex, is… I mean I say this every time the line-up comes out, but I’m particularly excited about this. I’m going to list it so that you don’t offend anyone and miss them out. How do you feel about that?”
AH: “Okay. I feel good about that, I’m grateful. I also like that you’re excited, but there will also be many people who go, ‘well I haven’t heard of any of them this time.’
TT: “Right, do you reckon?”
AH: “Every single time, they’re furious.”
TT: “Really? Well, they’re silly billies. More fool them. Urm, Joanne McNally, who we have had on The Chris Moyles Show and she does the podcast with our company, who is lovely and hilarious and – with all the respect in the world – absolutely insane, Alex.”
AH: “Yes, she is our Dublin-based comedian, and yeah, she is the only one who was keen for me to be drunk throughout. That was her main plan, to get me drunk. That was her way round it.”
TT: “I’ve never seen you get force fed alcohol on the show. I’ve seen it at charity events.”
AH: “Yeah, we had to cut a lot of it out of the series as well. But yeah, that’s her vibe I suppose.”
TT: “John Robins, who we know well from his Radio X days. Having said we don’t talk about him we’ve mentioned him twice. But now knowing John, he will be the most competitive man in the world.”
AH: “Yes, do you want guess what he’s wearing, Toby? One guess.”
PT: “Oh, I know.”
TT: “Do you know? Go on. Oh, Freddie Mercury outfit?”
AH: “Absolutely. Yellow leather.”
TT: “Yes of course, which I imagine doesn’t lend itself to tasks very well.”
AH: “Well, he takes the leather yellow jacket off quite a lot to reveal not a bad body anymore. He’s taut.”
TT: “’Not a bad body anymore,’ haha! Urm, Nick Mohammed. I mean, people know him from Ted Lasso.”
AH: “Ted Lasso magic, hopefully some sprinkling onto the show. Very funny. I’m not going to tell you what he’s wearing throughout, but it’s ridiculous. And a full face of make-up for a reason, which you’ll see.”
TT: “Perfect, of course. Now, Sophie Willan. Now, I don’t know Sophie particularly well, she is one on the list that I don’t know too well.”
AH: “Yeah, she’s got a sitcom called Alma’s Not Normal. She’s from Bolton, she is a very funny woman. I don’t want to say this out loud, but I would say these two women outshine the three men often in the show. They’re so funny and they don’t care. Whereas men care and get all niggly, the women are just there to have a fun time and I’m up for it.”
TT: “Well men get competitive and actually do want to do the task quite well. Now, the name that’s jumped out at me as soon as I saw the line-up which I was just like, ‘yes, thank you, Manna from heaven,’ is Steve Pemberton. Because I like it when on Taskmaster the more senior comedians don’t care. Because the younger comedians have to go onto the show and try and… They’re launching their career a little bit to an extent. Whereas when you get someone like an Alan Davies or a Frankie Boyle on, they don’t need the PR.”
AH: “No, but Pemberton has a competitive streak. He might be the cleverest person we’ve had on the show. There’s some stuff he does – I don’t know if this will get the viewers – involving cryptic crosswords, which is very exciting. But he’s also a very silly man and yeah, he’s an old man, which gives Greg something to constantly chuck at him. I think they’re the same age, but you’d think he was Gregg’s grandad by the end of the series.”
Tune into Toby Tarrant (in for Chris Moyles) on Radio X weekdays from 6:30am – 10am and on Global Player**
