Bradley Walsh and the Chasers are leaving Elstree Studios behind as they swap the familiar quiz show set for an adventure across Europe in the new spin-off of The Chase, The Chase Around the World. After more than a decade fronting The Chase, Bradley admitted the change of scenery made for a refreshing new challenge. “It was very different doing it on location, in these incredible places, instead of being in a studio,” he said. “The locations were unbelievable.”
ITV’s new series follows six pairs of contestants as they race through some of Europe’s most iconic cities in the hope of winning a £100k cash prize. While the format appears straightforward on paper, the competition quickly becomes far more demanding than a traditional quiz show.
Each leg sees contestants navigating bustling streets while solving questions and puzzles set by the Chasers. Every correct answer moves them one step closer to the finish line, where Walsh is waiting, but every mistake risks sending them in the wrong direction and costing them valuable time.
According to Bradley, it didn’t take long before pressure began to show. “The competition really heated up,” he remembered. “You could see contestants thinking, ‘Right, this is what we’ve got to do. This is how to play this game.’”
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He added: “A couple of times, they literally saw each other on the street, or in a place where they were getting a clue.” But that race to the finish line is only half the battle.
The first pair to arrive automatically secures a place in the next round and moves on to the next city. The duo finishing last, however, must immediately face the Chasers in a quick-fire quiz round, with their place in the competition hanging in the balance. The emotional stakes proved just as intense as the physical challenge.
“In one city, the couple that came in last were devastated,” Bradley said. “One of them couldn’t even bring themselves to look at me. They were so upset.”
Success also comes with an extra advantage. Winning pairs can hand one of their rivals either a five or 10-minute penalty at the start of the following race, potentially changing the entire leaderboard before the contestants have even answered their first question.
The opening episode begins in Rome before the race heads to Paris, Barcelona, Lisbon and Athens. Contestants also travel to the Swiss Alps, with one challenge taking place at the Piz Gloria, the famous mountaintop restaurant featured in the James Bond film, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.
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Joining Walsh on the journey are all six Chasers: Anne Hegerty, Mark Labbett, Paul Sinha, Jenny Ryan, Shaun Wallace, and Darragh Ennis. The Beast and The Governess are first in action as the competition gets underway in Rome, though both admitted filming away from the studio required a different approach.
Labbett was quick to notice the difference. “In the studio, it’s really organised. You turn up at a certain time, get changed, hair and makeup, on set, finish, back out,” he shared. “With location filming, it’s totally different. Everything’s in flux.”
Hegerty agreed, revealing the Chasers had to stay hidden. “We had to hide behind various props, including a newspaper, and the contestants ran past us,” she remembered. For Paul Sinha, however, the biggest challenge was the environment itself.
“There’s no escape on this particular show, you’re out there,” he said. “There’s linguistic challenges, there’s cultural challenges. Perhaps you haven’t had that breakfast that you like to have to give you a great start to the day. You might have been woken up early at 6am to do a task, absolutely frazzled. It’s a completely different set of challenges.”
With spectacular locations, unpredictable twists and the Chasers operating well outside their comfort zone, The Chase Around the World looks set to give one of ITV’s biggest formats a new lease of life.
The Chase Around the World starts Thursday, 16 July from 9pm on ITV.
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