Canty fans chase ‘dark destroyer’
Fans mobbed Shaun Wallace of The Chase ahead of a popular quiz night at Christchurch bar The Carlton yesterday.
Fans of The Chase’s Dark Destroyer packed the The Carlton pub to make it a standing roomonly event.
Shaun Wallace, star of the popular British quiz show The Chase, was in the Garden City last night as part of a whirlwind tour of New Zealand to promote his autobiography, Chasing The Dream.
Wallace hosted The Carlton’s weekly Believe It Or Not quiz night after signing some autographs, speaking about his life and going head to head with a handful of people chosen from the crowd.
The night got off to a tough start for Wallace, as his ‘‘worst defeat’’ during his almost 10-year tenure on The Chase aired on TV yesterday.
In contrast to his ‘‘focused assassin’’ Chase persona, Wallace in person is an upbeat effervescent man, happy to converse on any subject.
Millie Earnshaw and Annie Scales were in the crowd and spent a few minutes talking to Wallace as they got his autograph. The pair watch The Chase ‘‘religiously’’.
Earnshaw said seeing someone in front of you who was usually on television was surreal but Wallace was genuine lovely to talk to.
‘‘He was very relaxed. He could be a kiwi bloke,’’ Scales said.
Mark Teear said after he saw Wallace on his TV, he just wanted to see him.
Teear spent a few minutes chatting to Wallace about his tour of New Zealand, and said he was a ‘‘top bloke’’.
Everywhere he’s gone, celebrities and ordinary Kiwis have been challenging Wallace’s quizzing prowess and results haven’t all gone the 58-year-old barrister and one-time political candidate’s way.
‘‘I’ve been taking on loads of Kiwis head-to-head to win my book and I’ve lost five times,’’ he mock lamented.