The Chase unveils new Chaser Darragh The Menace' Ennis

The Chase unveils new Chaser Darragh The Menace' Ennis

ITV's The Chase unveiled its sixth Chaser - Darragh The Menace' Ennis.

Darragh joins the award-winning series' formidable quizzing pros Jenny The Vixen' Ryan, Shaun The Dark Destroyer' Wallace, Mark The Beast' Labbett, Anne The Governess' Hegerty and Paul The Sinnerman' Sinha.

Dubbed The Menace' by host Bradley Walsh, Darragh, 40, is an Oxford-based scientist who hails from Dublin. His Chaser attire sees him sport a velvet paisley print jacket and bolo tie.

He previously appeared on the show as a contestant, facing Paul in 2017.

Of turning Chaser to join the smash hit series, Darragh said: Im so pleased to be the sixth Chaser. Its brilliant to be on such an amazing quiz team, and so much fun working with Bradley Walsh. Its such an exciting opportunity and I cant wait to take on more contestants!

Host Bradley Walsh added: Another Chaser? ANOTHER CHASER? That's another person cleverer than me on The Chase. I must have words with the producers. But I can't wait to educate Darragh on the important things in life; custard creams, cowboy films and real ale.

Executive Producer Helen Tumbridge said: We've gone from the Fantastic Five to the Sensational Six. We all think Darragh is the perfect addition to our Chase family.

Creative Director, Potato, Martin Scott said: It's a pleasure to welcome a past Contestant who is now our new Chaser to the family. I'm sure he'll take no prisoners!

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Please find below a Q&A with Darragh The Menace' Ennis -

Bio:

Age: 40

From: Dublin

Lives: Oxford

Day job: Scientist

How did it feel walking out for the first time as a Chaser?

It was really great. I was really looking forward to doing the job. I just wanted to get out there and get started!

What was more nerve wracking, being a contestant or your first show as a Chaser?

I don't get nerves, so neither to be honest. It's definitely a lot more comforting being a contestant as you're on a team. Not much is expected of you. So if you lose to one of the best quizzers in the country, it's not a big deal. But everybody kind of expects you to win when you're the Chaser. It's a lot more pressure on that side, but it doesn't bother me, I don't get nervous.

Host Bradley Walsh picked your Chaser name - The Menace - what do you think of it?

I really like it actually. I didn't know my The Menace' name until I walked out on set. I like it, it's good.

I can't wait for the merchandise. My friend has already said he wants me in Toby Jug form.

Talk us through your Chaser outfit...

I had originally said that I genuinely didn't care about the costume and that I would come out in a chicken suit if they wanted to - which I think they were tempted to do for a moment in time. They played around with a few different things. The tie is a bolo tie, a kind of Wild

West thing. They found this really cool paisley material for the jacket - I really like the jacket.

Is it your normal style?

No, I'm super casual. I wear jeans and a t-shirt all the time. In work we wear lab coats and no one really cares.

Your day job is a scientist - what are you studying?

We work on trying to understand how brains work and how memories are made at a molecular level. We use very advanced microscopes to study fly brains and their nervous system as a model to better understand how the human brain works.

In your first episode, the first two contestants went through to the Final Chase - did you start to get nervous at that point?

Not really. I thought they were good. They both got reasonable scores. As long as I could knock one or two of them out, I knew I had a good chance in the Final Chase. But if all four had got back with similar scores it would have been a bit more concerning.

Bradley joked you were getting a thrashing' at that point, how did that make you feel?

I just laughed. That's how Bradley works. We all have a bantery attitude on set.

And contestant Clint said you were nervous?

I think he was just trying to play mind games with me. I wasn't falling for them. I wasn't nervous. I made a few little mistakes. As time has gone on I've got better. Everybody makes a few mistakes.

How was your first Final Chase?

It was good. I got a few wrong, five wrong. At least two of those were because I really wasn't paying attention to the questions properly. I kind of half heard what Brad had said and I had been thinking about the previous question and not focussing on the next one. I think if I could wipe my memory and go back again and concentrate properly, I might have only got two wrong. But it wasn't too bad.

Did you fear you'd lose at any point in the Final Chase?

No, I still had quite a bit of time, 7 seconds.

Was it important to get a win in the first episode?

Yeah, I think it was. It's like Heathrow Terminal 5, when it wasn't going well the first day, everyone just wrote it off. It's a thing that humans do, if something doesn't work the first time people get a bias against you and they keep that in their mind always, no matter what the evidence is afterwards. So it was good to get a first win.

What did Bradley say when you joined the show?

He was very kind, very friendly. He said, Relax, don't worry about anything. We'll have a bit of back and forth. You give me a hard time, I'll give you a hard time, but it's all just fun. Just go out and do your thing.'

I grew up in a household like that and I have a group of friends at home who are exactly like that. We give each other a terrible time, so it's great.

What will the other Chasers make of your first episode?

They were all super encouraging afterwards when I spoke to

LINK:	https://www.itv.com/presscentre/press-releases/chase-unveils-new-chase...
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