The Chase star Darragh Ennis has opened up about presenter Bradley Walsh, describing him as a consummate professional who "wouldn't tolerate anybody being mean or nasty" behind the scenes.
Walsh, 66, has hosted The Chase since its debut on ITV in 2009. As the programme expanded, additional Chasers were brought in, including Ennis, who first appeared as a contestant in 2017 before returning as 'The Menace' in 2020.
Professionalism and no diva behaviour
Speaking on the Digg YouTube channel earlier this year, Ennis was asked what Walsh is like off-camera. He praised the presenter's skill on the quiz show, saying: "Reading those Final Chase questions is not easy. He has to read them at the exact same speed for both sides."
He added: "He has to make very few mistakes, and he has to scan answers, because sometimes there’s four or five possible answers to a question, all in the fraction of a second and keep it going, and keep it going, and he makes almost no mistakes. He is a brilliant professional. He is not in any way a diva, he turns up on time. We don’t mess about. But we mess about a bit, we have fun."
Walsh's genuine warmth and passion
Ennis noted that Walsh sometimes gets carried away chatting with contestants, especially if they know someone he knows or come from a place he knows well. He said: "He warms to the contestants and he’s genuinely on their side. He wants them to win. He does not want us to win. He wants us to lose every episode."
He continued: "He's a lovely, lovely man. I'd love to give you dirt, I really would, but there isn't any. There's no dirt on Brad. He is a genuinely lovely guy."
Ennis also highlighted the atmosphere on the show, saying: "[He] wouldn't tolerate anybody being mean or nasty, and that is led mainly from the producers, but Brad is very much on board with that. He doesn't put up with any of that nonsense at all."
He added: "He loves doing the show, but the other thing is we all look at him and he's funny and everything. You should see how good he is at that job."
Walsh returns to screens with Bradley Walsh's Million Pound Shot tonight (November 1) at 9pm on Channel 4.
