Angus team’s ‘pinch me’ moment as they star on Crystal Maze

Angus man tells of his delight after his team were picked to take part in Channel 4’s The Crystal Maze

A group of Angus men are to star in The Crystal Maze tonight.

The Gamers team all hail from the county and applied to take part in the iconic show, which returned in 2016 after more than 20 years off the screens.

William Stephen, 30, filled out the application on behalf of his team-mates Matt Shaw, Neil McGregor, Ross Gauld and Mathew Tosh.

Self-confessed Crystal Maze nut William, who runs Yard’s Games in Arbroath, said: “I’ve been able to see the episode ahead of time and there are a couple of moments that will be memorable, without a shadow of a doubt.

“I finished the application for the show with 12 hours to spare, but they got back fairly quick and invited us to audition in Glasgow on what turned out to be my birthday, which was a nice coincidence.

“Unfortunately not all of us could go down on the day because of a family

To be on the show is quite surreal. I was quite calm during the filming, but it was a ‘pinch me to see if it’s real’ sort of moment

emergency. They don’t normally allow you to audition if there isn’t everyone on the team, but seeing as we’d travelled three hours on a train they saw us anyway.

“They said they liked us a lot and interviewed the missing team member on Skype later. It wasn’t long after that they got in touch inviting us on the show.

“As the team captain they contacted me first, so I immediately went on to our group chat to tell them and the reaction was of instant excitement from everyone.

“We recorded in May and took a 10-hour train trip to Bristol, which played havoc on all of our backs. We then stayed two nights in a hotel.

“I was a big fan of the show in my youth,” William said.

“I watched all the episodes taped on VHS over and over. I would make puzzles for my dad to solve over the summer holidays.

“To be on the show is quite surreal. I was quite calm during the filming, but it was a ‘pinch me to see if it’s real’ sort of moment.”

The game show ran on Channel 4 for five years in the early 90s, most famously being presented by Richard O’Brien.

It returned in 2016 with a one-off celebrity edition presented by Stephen Merchant, before Richard Ayoade took the reigns for a full series.

“Richard Ayoade is a very reserved guy in real life, but he was a total professional,” William added.

Members of The Gamers team who are to appear on The Crystal Maze on Channel 4 tonight, from left, William Stephen, Martyn Shaw, Ross Gauld, Neil McGregor and Mathew Tosh.