Novel approach to quiz

WHO doesn’t love a bit of BEAT THE CHASERS? It’s a fine show. Far better, though, is a lot of Beat The Chasers, which is what we have this week on ITV.

Yes, it’s another of those five-night specials (Monday to Friday, 9pm), which means another chance for members of the public (remember them? They used to be all the rage before celebs were invented) to pit their wits against the resident brainboxes from its daily teatime version – the Dark Destroyer, the Vixen, the Beast, the Menace, the Sinnerman and the Governess.Actually sorry, no, not the Governess. She’s indisposed. So in her place we have... the Supernerd.

In answer to your next question (I know you so well), the Supernerd is Issa Schultz.And in answer to your question after that, Issa is one of the brainboxes on The Chase’s Australian version. Yes, for a show that requires every participant to be hyper-alert and on their game, the producers have chosen to fly a guy halfway around the world.That’s, what, an entire day in a plane?

By now, I’ll be amazed if even Issa Schultz knows who Issa Schultz is.

Anyway, I guess we’ll soon see, because here comes contestant number one. Her name is Rachel and she’s a student. She’s studying English literature at King’s College, London, so no doubt she’ll be pretty sharp.

“Who’s your favourite writer?” host BradleyWalsh is keen to know. “That’s a good question,” Rachel replies. “I don’t know.” And then Rachel adds: “I knew you’d ask that.”

To which Bradley replies, not unreasonably: “If you knew I’d ask it, why didn’t you swot up?”

You see, that’s one of the many joys of Beat The Chasers, and indeed its sister show. Bradley knows just how rude he can get away with being to the contestants.

Not every host has that gift.A lesser one might have said: “Why didn’t you swot up, you imbecile?”

I think that might have spoilt the atmosphere a tad.

Fine margins, you see.

The other joy is that the questions are pitched just right, difficulty-wise, which makes joining in at home a huge part of the fun.They’re not stupidly obscure, as they are on, say, University Challenge, but nor are they so insultingly simple that a person with a brain the size of a peanut could answer them, as they are on, say, the general knowledge round of Mastermind.

I did try joining in at home, by the way, during last week’s five-night run of The Games, the ITV celebrity athletics show.

Sadly, I was forced to withdraw on the very first night, after accidentally throwing the hammer through my television.

Well, I say “accidentally…”