HAMISH BLAKE'S UNSKILLED ADULT PROVES IT'S NEVER TOO LATE TO HAVE A GO

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If you have ever looked at a tradie and thought, "How hard could it be?", Hamish Blake has the show for you.

His new Stan Original series, Unskilled Adult, premieres today, Sunday 1 November, with a double episode.

New episodes will follow weekly across the eight-part series, only on Stan.

What is Unskilled Adult about?

The idea is beautifully simple.

Hamish plays the "CEO" of a makeshift workforce made up of comedians and celebrity friends.

In each episode he recruits two of them to complete a real job for a real client, even though they have no idea what they are doing.

At the end, the client decides what the work is actually worth.

The jobs are wonderfully varied, according to The AU Review.

Among them are welding a trailer, catering a wedding, drywalling a salami shed, sewing costumes for a community theatre production and building garden planter boxes.

Who's in it?

Hamish has called on a long list of famous friends.

The rotating cast includes Sophie Monk, Andy Lee, Anne Edmonds, Becky Lucas, Hugh van Cuylenburg and Lloyd Langford.

Also signing up are Dom Littrich, Ryan Shelton, Susie Youssef, Bret McKenzie, Lu Dal Din and Melanie Bracewell.

Rounding out the line-up are Alexei Toliopoulos, Jack Post, Guy Montgomery and Abby Howells.

That is a lot of comedy talent, and a lot of potential for things to go hilariously wrong.

Each episode pairs two of them up, so expect plenty of banter as they try to work out which end of the tool to hold.

Watching clever, funny people admit they have no clue is half the charm.

A celebration of having a go

What makes Unskilled Adult stand out is its warm, optimistic heart.

Stan describes the series as a "funny and optimistic celebration of having a go".

It is also a reminder, the streamer says, that you are "never too old, or too unskilled, to learn".

In a world that often celebrates perfection, there is something refreshing about watching grown adults fumble their way through unfamiliar tasks, and laugh about it.

What the critics say

The AU Review's Peter Gray gave the show three and a half stars out of five.

He praised its wholesome and consistently funny take on failure, while noting it is not reinventing the reality television format.

And sometimes that is exactly what you want on a Sunday night.

Why Hamish Blake fans will love it

Hamish has built a career on playful, big-hearted television, and this series feels like a natural fit.

The show is produced by UA Productions, with Hamish among its executive producers.

If you enjoyed his gentle, curious brand of humour in past projects, you are likely to feel right at home here.

The lesson for the rest of us

It is easy to feel that the time for learning new skills has passed, especially once work, family and life get busy.

But Unskilled Adult is a gentle nudge to try something new, whether that is a pottery class, a sewing course or finally learning how to fix that wobbly gate.

Many community colleges, libraries and councils run short, affordable courses, so it has never been easier to have a go.

Mistakes are part of the fun, and as this show proves, they are often where the best stories come from.

Learning something new can also be good for confidence, and it is a great way to meet people.

So if there is a skill you have always wanted to try, perhaps this is the push you need.

How to watch

Unskilled Adult premieres today on Stan with episodes one and two, followed by new episodes every week.

So grab a cuppa, put your feet up and enjoy watching someone else attempt the welding.