The Chase

Bradley Walsh fronts a cheeky new quiz‑drama called Bradley Walsh presents as Tom from Cambridge, Rebekah from Croydon, Jo from York and Mark from Glasgow. It’s essentially a one‑off special where Walsh dons four regional personas – Tom, Rebekah, Jo and Mark – and teams them up with a rotating cast of celebrity quizzers. The four “characters” are played by Walsh himself, while the Chasers are the usual suspects from the main The Chase series, making it feel like a crossover between a light‑hearted panel show and a proper game‑show thriller. The premise is simple: our quartet of unlikely teammates must out‑wit one of the most ruthless Chasers in a high‑stakes round of rapid‑fire questions. The episode strings together a few rounds of classic chase‑style cat‑and‑mouse, peppered with banter about the quirks of Cambridge, Croydon, York and Glasgow. There’s a nice blend of regional jokes, a dash of nostalgia for long‑time Chase fans, and a few surprise twists that keep the tension from flat‑lining – all without giving away the final showdown. Honestly, it’s a mixed bag. The concept is brilliant and the banter feels genuinely British, but the pacing drags a bit when the show leans too heavily on the novelty of Walsh’s accents. The production values are decent, though the set looks a tad dated compared with the slicker recent Chase episodes. If you enjoy a bit of light competition mixed with regional humour, it’s surprisingly good; if you’re after a fast‑paced quiz, you might find it a little slow. Rated U, with mild language and occasional tense moments that could be a bit much for very young kids. This is the first terrestrial broadcast of the special, aired on BBC One as part of the holiday schedule, and it sits somewhere between a novelty sketch and a proper Chase episode – worth a watch if you’ve got a half‑hour to spare.