ITV The Chase's 'best ever player' shares real reason he was 'fired' from quiz show

Since debuting on ITV in 2019, 'The Chase' has been capturing hearts across Britain. The well-loved quiz show hosted by entertainment legend Bradley Walsh, has seen hordes of hopefuls take to the stage, each with aspirations of outsmarting the Chaser and pocketing a tidy sum.

'The Chase' currently boasts a formidable line-up of quiz goliaths – Mark Labbett, Shaun Wallace, Anne Hegerty, Paul Sinha, Jenny Ryan, and Darragh Ennis who offer stiff competition to the contenders. Despite a plethora of memorable contestants over the years, Tom Williamson stood out as a particular triumph, with many viewers even lauding him as "the best ever".

The computer programmer from Liverpool particularly impressed during his October 22 appearance. Taking the lead as the first contestant, he left everyone stupefied by nailing every question dished out by host Bradley Walsh.

READ MORE: ITV The Chase's Anne Hegerty says condition impacts her love life with longest relationship lasting four months

His prowess continued to shine through in the next segment where he secured a high stake of £60,000, after which Chaser Shaun Wallace commended: "Tom, you're probably one of the best players I've ever played against in my 14 years of The Chase. Try this for size," reports the Express.

Tom had an intriguing journey even before taking to 'The Chase' stage, having battled a rare medical condition known as haemorrhagic cavernoma. He later divulged details about the less-seen aspects of the hit ITV quiz show's experience.

The Chase application process.

In an exclusive chat with Express.co.uk, Tom said: "They tell you this in advance, they say they are going to record you talking about yourself for about one minute. And they don't give you another go.

"So, you have to write a script. You have to know exactly what you're saying and have an idea of what they want to hear. They want everything to be fast and understandable."

He mentioned that part of the application process involves answering questions like those in the cashbuilder round, even though they keep your results under wraps. Tom said: "You also get a researcher calling you, and I must have had about five phone calls with them, each lasting about an hour. So they want to know everything about you.

"One of the things that they try and get you to do is share something quite interesting that you are going to do with the money."

Initially planning to travel to see family in America with any potential winnings, he chuckled as he recalled being prompted to switch it up because "Everyone says that," leaving him to conjure up a unique alternative.

He also exposed the brief introductory moment each contestant has with Bradley Walsh on the ITV programme is the product of "about a year's worth of preparation behind it," despite only appearing as a minute-long segment on air.

The Chase on the day

Reflecting on his day at the ITV Chase studio, Tom enthused that it was an all-around "fantastic" affair, saying: "They make you feel like a TV star for the day. They put you up in a hotel, which was the most fun. The hotel I stayed in was almost exclusively used by The Chase contestants."

He revealed that conversations blossomed in the evening at the bar as they all found out they were there for the same reason. The contestant added: "You had a bunch of people all there for the same reason and all really excited about what was going to happen. That was a great atmosphere. We worked out that there were three groups, with the first one starting recording at 7am, then one at 9am and another group at 1pm.

"When you get there, you learn that it's pretty much a military operation. You get about an hour with your team [before going into the studio] and get shown a presentation of what makes a good contestant, what makes a bad contestant and they give you tips.

"My favourite tip was to try and show up the Chaser if you can. If you get a question and you've got some knowledge on it, if you give the question knowledge then you're showing the Chaser up."

In the Studio

He further described the sequence of events on the day. He said: "You finally get taken to the studio in a little buggy and when you get in there it's just so overwhelming. I'd never been in a TV studio before or experienced an atmosphere like it.

"But you've got absolutely no time to adjust to it because you're then introduced to the director and the independent adjudicator. You're told if there's any question about anything then they get involved."

Bradley Walsh makes a point to introduce himself to participants on The Chase, with Tom recalling, "He gave us a little speech, which I think he must give to everyone."

Tom also mentioned that the affable host prefers a less formal approach, asking team members to call him Brad, as he finds "Bradley is too formal". Another insight given by Tom reveals that contestants are kept separate from Chasers until filming, with crew using radios to clear corridors for movements of participants, who are granted toilet breaks but are carefully managed to avoid encounters with other teams or the enigmatic Chasers.