The show involves a group of
child prodigies competing a series of tasks to gain the title of
child genius. Simon Blair acted as quizmaster for the first three series and since 2016, the role has been taken by
Richard Osman, who also acts as presenter. Alongside the quizmaster, Olivia van der Werff acts as independent adjudicator and they are joined by an expert in the round's subject.
Celebrity editions In October 2016, a celebrity edition aired on Channel 4 as part of
Stand Up to Cancer UK. Celebrities who took part were
Aisling Bea,
Alan Carr,
Rachel Riley and
Krishnan Guru-Murthy. In December 2017, another celebrity edition was aired as a Christmas Special. The celebrities who took part were
Janet Street-Porter,
Dom Joly,
Cathy Newman and
Rob Delaney. Despite the absence of the series in 2018, an annual Christmas celebrity edition was aired in December. Celebrities who took part were
Shazia Mirza,
Rick Edwards,
Charlotte Hawkins and
Jimmy Carr. On Christmas Eve, 2019, another Christmas Celebrity Edition was aired.
Jimmy Carr was once again Team Captain, alongside
Richard Bacon,
Vick Hope and
Jo Brand. ==References==