Deborah Chan
In the first series of the British TV show Taskmaster, comedian Romesh Ranganathan gave away his wedding ring as a prize. The task was for contestants to bring in the most meaningful item, and Ranganathan won with his wedding ring, which he brought on the show without his wife's knowledge. In an official podcast, Ranganathan revealed that he did not get into much trouble with his wife for losing his wedding ring, and that the prize that actually caused him the most trouble was a snowglobe given to him by his sister-in-law. It is unclear whether Ranganathan got his wedding ring back, but one source mentions that Josh Widdicombe, who won the ring, gave it back eventually.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Name of the person | Romesh Ranganathan |
| Show | Taskmaster |
| Season | Season 1 |
| Episode | The poet and the egg |
| Other items given away | His car, a statuette of immense sentimental value |
| Points received | 5 |
| Reason for giving away the ring | Prize task |
| Winner of the episode | Romesh Ranganathan |
| Other contestants | Frank Skinner, Josh Widdicombe, Tim Key |
| Did Romesh get his wedding ring back? | Yes, eventually |
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What You'll Learn
Romesh Ranganathan gave his wedding ring away on Taskmaster
Romesh Ranganathan gave away his wedding ring on the BAFTA award-winning comedy show Taskmaster. The show sees five comedians or celebrities take on challenges to be crowned champion and win a golden bust of the Taskmaster. Ranganathan was a contestant on the first series of the show, which was presented by Greg Davies.
Ranganathan gave away his wedding ring as part of a prize task submission. He also offered up his wife's car and a statuette of immense sentimental value. Ranganathan was very invested in winning the show, and his competitive nature caused him to treat the prize round with the utmost seriousness. He even stuffed himself with watermelon to the point of vomiting and compromised his vegan ideals by hitting dozens of eggs with a golf club.
Ranganathan's decision to give away his wedding ring was not without consequences. He revealed that he faced more backlash for giving away a cheap trinket snowglobe that was a gift from his sister-in-law than he did for losing his wedding ring or his wife's car. Ranganathan's sister-in-law was offended by his mockery of the snowglobe on the show, causing some bad feelings and leaving him with explaining and apologizing to do.
It is unclear if Ranganathan ever got his wedding ring back, but he did mention on Reddit that Josh Widdicombe, who won the ring, eventually returned it after keeping it for a few months to tease him.
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He lost it to Josh Widdicombe
During the first series of the British TV show Taskmaster, comedian Romesh Ranganathan offered his wedding ring as a prize to his fellow contestants. Ranganathan's ring was not the only item of personal value that he wagered during the show—he also put up his wife's car as a prize.
Ranganathan lost his wedding ring to Josh Widdicombe, another comedian and contestant on the show. Widdicombe kept the ring for a few months, but eventually returned it to Ranganathan. In an IAMA on Reddit, Ranganathan confirmed that Widdicombe gave the ring back, stating that he only kept it for a short time to tease him.
In the same series, Ranganathan also wagered a statuette of immense sentimental value. Ranganathan's competitive nature and his willingness to put forward items of personal significance as prizes have been noted by viewers and critics of the show. His serious approach to winning the show has been a source of humour, with Ranganathan himself adopting a grumpy and combative attitude as part of his persona.
The wedding ring incident has been referenced in later series of Taskmaster. In series two, the star prize was a statue of Greg Davies' head, and from this series onwards, the winners of the show have been allowed to take home the prizes, including the statue.
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Josh gave it back eventually
In a bid to win the prize round of Taskmaster, Romesh Ranganathan put up his wedding ring, his car, and a statuette of immense sentimental value. He also brought in his wife's car without her knowledge.
In an IAMA on Reddit, Romesh said that Josh gave the ring back "eventually". He kept it for a few months to tease Romesh. It is speculated that Romesh chose to leave out parts of the anecdote for comic effect.
In the show, Romesh maintained a grumpy and combative attitude, but behind the scenes, he could be seen laughing and joking along with the other contestants. He conceded that he probably took things more seriously than he should have and that he was very invested in winning the show.
In another instance of the show, Romesh cashed Josh Widdicombe's blank cheque for several hundred pounds and then waited a bit to give it back.
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Romesh's wife didn't know he gave it away
In a bid to win the first series of the British TV show Taskmaster, comedian Romesh Ranganathan gave away his wedding ring without his wife's knowledge. The task required contestants to bring in a prize that best fit the category of the most meaningful item. Ranganathan won the episode and took home all the prizes, including his wedding ring.
Ranganathan's wife was presumably unaware that he had given away his wedding ring, as there is no mention of her finding out or reacting to the news. It is possible that he chose not to mention it to her, or that he downplayed the significance of the ring to avoid any conflict. It is also possible that she gave her consent for him to use the ring as a prize, but this is purely speculative.
Ranganathan's decision to give away his wedding ring caused a stir among viewers and his fellow contestants. Some viewers criticised him for trying to wreck his marriage on TV, while others admired his competitive spirit. It is worth noting that Ranganathan is known for his grumpy and combative attitude on the show, often taking a competitive approach to tasks and arguing with the host, Greg Davies.
While Ranganathan's decision to give away his wedding ring may have been controversial, it is not the only valuable item he has sacrificed in the name of winning Taskmaster. He also offered up his car and a statuette of immense sentimental value. In fact, it was revealed that the prize that caused him the most trouble in his personal life was a cheap snowglobe given to him by his sister-in-law, which he mercilessly mocked on the show, offending her and causing a rift in their relationship.
It is unclear if Ranganathan's wife ever found out about him giving away his wedding ring, and if so, how she reacted. While some sources speculate that he may have sought her approval after the fact, there is no concrete evidence to support this claim. Ultimately, Ranganathan's decision to prioritise winning a TV show over his wedding ring demonstrates his commitment to competitive spirit and his willingness to make controversial choices for entertainment value.
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He also gave away his car
Romesh Ranganathan's wedding ring was not the only item of significant personal value that he put up as a prize on the first series of Taskmaster. He also gave away his car.
In fact, according to Alex Horne, the programme's creator, Romesh "probably sacrificed the most" out of all the contestants in the history of the show. Horne has observed that the nature of the prizes has changed over the years. In more recent series, contestants have treated the prize tasks as a way of offloading unwanted items, like broken fridges. However, in the first series, Romesh's prizes were of a very different nature.
In the "most meaningful item" prize task, Romesh brought in his wedding ring without his wife's knowledge. He also brought in his wife's car. These items were of immense sentimental value, and Romesh was clearly very invested in winning the show. He took every opportunity to argue with host Greg Davies' decisions and treated the prize round as if it were the last thing he had left to live for.
It is unclear whether Romesh ever got his car back. However, Horne has suggested that "things were returned but they definitely made the most of the joke." This, along with comments made by Redditors, indicates that Romesh may have eventually gotten his wedding ring back, but that he left this detail out of his anecdotes for comic effect.
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Frequently asked questions
Yes, Romesh lost his wedding ring on the first series of Taskmaster.
Josh Widdicombe won Romesh's wedding ring on the show.
Yes, Josh gave the ring back eventually.
It is assumed that Romesh sought his wife's approval before giving away his wedding ring, but he did get in trouble with his sister-in-law for giving away a snowglobe she had given him.
