While Max is working on his shrimps in room 101, the others today are oblivious to what he's actually doing, as they havent been shown on the plasma screen.

When they come out one by one not smelling of fish, Max will think theres something fishy going on, surely.

My advice to them, would be to each individually come up with their own task what they had to do whilst working in their rooms, ie do a jigsaw.

Havent been overly impressed with their treats either.

they seem to be DRINKING wine so when there all pi**ed will be a give away
Alan

It's probably the idea behind giving them wine. This task has been too easy so far! It is a very boring task

Doesn't matter what they drink or eat, if Max wants to pretend that he has no inkling, then the task is won! Stupid bloody task.

Excellent. This could be the clincher that sees them fail. Drunk people not smelling of seafood - if Max does not notice that he is well and truly stupid

Do the housemates know before Max goes to his room what the job of the day is about? What BB could do is to tell everyone the task is say counting snails when in fact it is shelling prawns. Then when he comes out everyone will be talking about slimey snails and Max will definitely be put into a position of asking WTF is gong on because he was the only one shelling prawns

Starting up that "Max is already in the know" rubbish again? Get over it he does not know

But he ALREADY knows! If that happened he'd still keep quiet, I reckon. See how he didn't press on the issue after Makosi wiped the maggot-stained hands on her face (the look when she realised her error was priceless)

Surely there is one fatal flaw to this task.
i.e. Saskia has a little word in Maxwells ear, tells em whats happening, how they need to pass the task, and he just pretends he doesnt know whats going on.

simple. He comes out smelling of roses, erm, or shrimps.

But he doesn't know that the task is for him not to guess does he? So if he does think something;s up he won't know there is a reason for him to pretend not to

I'm not saying he's in the know due to a conspiracy. He just worked it out. It's not hard, is it. I'd expect all the HMs to talk about their shift later in the evening, did they do this? I bet they didn't. And I bet Max stopped asking people how many pots they did once he worked it out.

mind at this rate a broken leg or arm could be the give away never mine the smell of drink
Alan

I just don't think that Max would remain quiet if he had sussed it. There would be no reason to keep quiet.

Surely BB must tell someone when they're doing a task, otherwise what's the point. So Max could eaily understand that he's been given one "task" which he knows about, and the others have a different task which he doesn't know about. But which probably doesn't involve sorting maggots etc.

Because he thinks "well, they must have to convince me that they worked for a reason... maybe they win a prize if they convince me... I'm convinced!" I don't understand why people are dismissing this as not possible. Max isn't as dumb as he'd suggest. Anyway, it's bloody obvious something odd is going on. "How may pots?" "Er, don't know, how many did you do??" No-one gave him a straight answer to that simple question.

They don't need to tell him about the task if they don't want to. The task is for the housemates, not for Maxwell.

oh yes, apart from the microphones which pick up their every word, even when they whisper.....

For all Maxwell knows he may get a prize for not guessing.
i.e. immunity from eviction this week and the rest up for eviction.
Maxwell is not there to protect the others, he is there to protect himself, same as all housemates. If any of the housemates had to do that task they would not pretend they knew about it as they would be unaware of the rewards for guessing or not guessing.

I think it's beyond even the strange realms of BB to give someone a task that they don't even tell them about. Sure, give people a task that they can't divulge to others, but how do you judge someone a task they are not aware of? That's like saying, "Kemal will win a prize if he falls over", then watching if he does.

Max knows this is the big weekly task; that there is the budget riding on it; in my view it's quite conceivable that he'd work out what was going on without having to ask.

Well in effect, that's what is happening. So he worked it out! Don't guess, and you win a prize. Just play along and the truth will out. If he thought the task was that HE had to guess that the others WEREN'T working, he might expect the others to start dropping huge hints.

of course he knows its the task, he thinks the budget is riding on the first 'task' given by BB, about clocking in and out on time.

What if, Max is told not to discuss the task to the others and BB, whilst keeping the others in the dark about the task, then, treat the housemates to a Shrimp Dinner

I think you missing the point. The task is not for Maxwell, it is for the other housemates.
Their task is for them to keep the secret away from Maxwell, not for Maxwell to guess it. So there is no need for him to be in the know.

Really, Maxwell's on a win/win here.
A couple of hours a day doing a task that's not so terrible with music in the headphones so you can sing to the mirror/camera.
Even if he were to twig that there's something funny going on would he say. I'm sure that Maxwell knows enough about BB to know that there'll probably be something in it for him - all he has to do is pretend that he's fallen for their very bad acting and even worse lies and he is potentially exempt from eviction and has a luxury budget (alcohol) to play with next week.
I mean how do BB know he knows if he pretends he doesn't know!

I would guess that 105 is empty today and they will be required to really put it on