Meet Callie, the 7-year-old Manchester inventor who beat more than 1,600 young competitors with a machine that combines a task dispenser and rubber-duck launcher

Young inventors have the ability to turn imagination into creative solutions, often approaching everyday challenges in ways adults might not expect. From unusual machines to clever designs, children’s ideas can demonstrate remarkable curiosity, problem-solving skills, and originality. Competitions that encourage young people to experiment and develop their ideas provide valuable opportunities to explore science, technology, engineering, and creativity. One such initiative recently highlighted the talents of children through an inventive challenge that combined education with entertainment.

Seven-year-old Callie from Manchester has won a nationwide invention competition after creating an imaginative machine designed to help Little Alex Horne become the best possible Taskmaster’s Assistant. Her winning invention, called the “Task Firing Driveable Bath,” transforms an ordinary bathtub into a moving task-dispensing machine complete with a playful rubber-duck dispenser.


The competition was supported by the UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO) and invited children to submit creative invention ideas, with the winning concept selected to be built in real life. Over 1,600 young inventors aged between four and 11 submitted ideas from across the UK, with entries also received from around the world.

A Bathtub With a Very Unusual Purpose

Callie’s winning invention combines a driveable bathtub with equipment capable of launching tasks to Taskmaster contestants. The machine also incorporates a rubber-duck dispenser, including an extra element of fun to an already unusual design.

The invention mirrors the imaginative spirit of Taskmaster, where contestants are challenged to complete unusual tasks in creative and often unpredictable ways. Callie’s idea takes that concept a step further by making the task-delivery procedure itself part of the challenge.

Little Alex Horne Tests the Invention

Little Alex Horne had the opportunity to put Callie’s creation through its paces at the Taskmaster house. He praised the invention for combining practical functionality with playful silliness, making it a fitting tool for the show.

The finished machine offers contestants another challenge to overcome: catching a task as it is fired from a moving bathtub. The combination of engineering and entertainment illustrates how an imaginative childhood idea can become a working invention.

Young Inventors Bring Their Ideas to Life

The competition was organised with Kids Invent Stuff, an innovative project founded by engineers Ruth Amos and Shawn Brown. The initiative gives children aged four to 11 an opportunity to submit invention concepts and see selected concepts transformed into real working creations.

For Callie, the experience meant seeing an idea that started on paper become a functioning machine. The project illustrates how encouraging children to experiment can help develop confidence along with practical skills.

Supporting Creativity Through Education

Taskmaster Education adapts the famous Taskmaster format into educational experiences for children and young people. Its activities are made to encourage skills including problem-solving, teamwork, creativity, and critical thinking.

The collaboration with Kids Invent Stuff and the IPO offers children an opportunity to explore these skills through an entertaining and memorable project. Rather than focusing only on traditional classroom learning, the initiative encourages young people to approach problems from unusual angles and experiment with creative solutions.

Celebrating Young Innovation

The unveiling of Callie’s invention coincided with British Science Week celebrations and was also scheduled to feature at the Get up to Speed with STEM event at Magna Science Adventure Centre in South Yorkshire.

The project emphasizes the remarkable creativity of young inventors and demonstrates how engineering and imagination can work together. With more than 1,600 entries, Callie’s achievement is a significant recognition of her originality and problem-solving ability.

A Creative Idea Becomes Reality

Callie’s “Task Firing Driveable Bath” features how a seemingly silly idea can become an inventive engineering project when young people are given the opportunity to develop their creativity. By combining a bathtub, task launcher, and rubber-duck dispenser, she created something that is both entertaining and surprisingly practical for the world of Taskmaster.

Her achievement is also a reminder that innovation can begin at any age. With encouragement, imagination, and the chance to experiment, children can turn their unusual ideas into real inventions and perhaps inspire the next generation of engineers, designers, and problem-solvers.

Source: Kids Invent Stuff, OpenGovt

FAQs:

1. Who is Callie?

Callie is a seven-year-old inventor from Manchester who won a nationwide invention competition. Her creative idea was selected from more than 1,600 entries.

2. What did Callie invent?

Callie invented the “Task Firing Driveable Bath.” It combines a moving bathtub with equipment for dispensing tasks and rubber ducks.