Chaser Mark Labbett almost met his match in the latest episode of The Chase, threatening to quit just minutes into the show in the face of extraordinary contestants.
Julie, Aaron, Elaine and Michael went on a near perfect run early in the episode, leaving Labbett – nicknamed The Beast – on the ropes.
Julie, 62, answered every question correctly in her head-to-head. That earned her £8,000 in her cash-builder, which she went for – despite a high offer of $40,000.
Host Bradley Walsh, noting her performance, said: “I really think you could have gone with the £40,00. What a team we’ve got here.”
Second player Aaron also answered all his questions correctly, managing to tot up £9,000.
The Beast then said: “I think this could be the earliest time in the show that I ever said this – has somebody got a white flag handy for me here? They haven’t got one wrong and they’ve got 17 right. I might as well give up now.”
Third player Elaine earned £4,000, taking the total to £21,000. Labbett at this point put his head in his hands and said: “Dejection personified.”
Final contestant Michael also got back, with £3,000 for a total of £24,000.
While The Beast had the last laugh, catching the team at the end, Bradley still had praise for the four contestants: “I tell you what, a brilliant team.”
The episode screened on ITV in the UK on Monday.
The Chase is on TVNZ1 and TVNZ+ daily at 5pm.
