Channel 4 has nabbed British entertainment format Taskmaster – the highest profile channel swap for a show since The Great British Bake Off moved from the BBC to C4.

The network has handed the Avalon Television-produced series a six season deal across three years and will launch episodes in 2020.

The show, which was created by Alex Horne and is hosted by The Inbetweeners star Greg Davies, has run on UKTV’s Dave since 2015 with its ninth season launching in September.

It is produced by Last Week Tonight with John Oliver producer Avalon Television with Horne, Richard Allen-Turner, Rob Aslett, James Taylor, Jon Thoday and Andy Devonshire exec producing with Andy Cartwright as series producer.

The show will air on Channel 4 with repeats on youth-skewing network E4. The move is a blow for UKTV which has seen Taskmaster become its highest-rated original series.

A U.S. version of the format aired on Comedy Central, hosted by Reggie Watts, in 2018 although it only ran for one season.

Creator Alex Horne said, “We’ve had an amazing nine series on Dave and I’d like to thank UKTV for letting us do such ridiculous things for so long. Greg and I are looking forward to getting started on a new series for Channel 4 from next year. It seems like the right time to move to a channel with a broader audience and I can reassure people who like the show that it won’t be changing one bit and I’ll still be forced to do things no one should ever have to do.”

Ian Katz, Channel 4 Director of Programmes said: “Taskmaster is anarchic, original and a brilliant springboard for new comic talent. It’s everything we look for in a Channel 4 show and like millions of others I’m a massive fan so I’m delighted it will soon be taking its place in our unrivaled slate of scripted and studio comedy.”

Karl Warner, Controller of E4 said, “Not only is Taskmaster one of the best formats on TV, it’s also one of the best launch pads for new talent. I’m thrilled we’re getting to build on its success across Channel 4 and E4 and can’t wait to start working with Alex, Greg and the team at Avalon.”

Avalon’s Jon Thoday added, “We are delighted Taskmaster will have a new home at Channel 4. I would like to thank Steve North, Richard Watsham and Hilary Rosen at UKTV as well as all the other people who have helped make the show such a success.”