Mark Labbett has hinted he could quit The Chase after costing ITV £100,000 and storming off Beat The Chasers following a dramatic defeat. The National Television Awards appearance found the 60-year-old quizzing personality balancing pride in his work with a readiness to pursue a full-time role elsewhere if the right offer comes along. Labbett, a mainstay of ITV’s quiz franchise renowned for his nickname The Beast, told the NTAs that he views himself as the best Chaser in the world, but also acknowledged that The Chase is a part-time gig.
I take great pride in being, as I modestly put it, the best Chaser in the world... I love my job. At the same time - it's a part-time gig. I won't deny it if I'm lucky enough to get a good offer somewhere else for a full-time gig. But until that time, I'll keep working,
During Beat The Chasers earlier this month, Labbett built a prize pot of £4,000 in the cash builder and then offered Gavin the chance to win £100,000 by going up against the five Chasers in a 40-second sprint. The format sees contestants answer questions for £1,000 each and then attempt to beat the Chasers in a timed round to claim a larger prize. Gavin accepted the challenge and went head-to-head with Paul Sinha, Anne Hegerty, Jenny Ryan, Darragh Ennis and Labbett himself. While Gavin stumbled on a few clues—remarking that Gomez was the head of The Munsters, not The Addams Family—he found a late stretch and ultimately won £100,000.
After a rapid-fire sequence of answers, Gavin’s win marked one of the few three-figure jackpots on Beat The Chasers, though not the largest in the show’s history. The moment came as ITV watched the prize pot slip away in real time, and Labbett’s bold offer created a tense, high-stakes chase that captivated viewers.
Ahead of the final stretch, Labbett’s fellow Chasers faced the mounting tension with mixed reactions. The Vixen, Jenny Ryan, acknowledged Gavin’s skill in a sportsmanlike assessment: There’s very little we can do. It doesn’t matter how many of us are up here when you were getting so many of yours right. When you missed the Addams Family one, I thought, Oh, the wheels might come off here, but you got straight back on it. The Menace, Darragh Ennis, also offered a lighthearted dig about Gavin’s background, noting that the fireman’s career brought a different sort of challenge to the game.
Social media responses were swift, with many viewers congratulating Gavin on the big win. Posts celebrated the contestant’s accuracy and the dramatic finish, while others expressed sympathy for ITV’s potential £100,000 loss in the moment.
The incident casts a reflective light on Labbett’s role on Beat The Chasers and The Chase franchise more broadly. Labbett has long been a fan favorite across daytime television and reality-competition formats, and his NTAs remarks underscored a recurring theme in his career: rising fame inside a format that he has described as a part-time job. Beyond The Chase, the star has appeared on Celebs Go Dating and multiple daytime programs, further cementing his status as a recognizable figure in British pop culture. His comments about the possibility of a full-time move come amid ongoing conversations in television about the optimal balance between high-profile hosting roles and other personal or professional commitments.
Beat The Chasers continues on Saturdays at 9 p.m. on ITV1 and is available to stream on ITVX. As the franchise evolves, viewers will likely watch closely to see whether Labbett continues to balance a love of quiz-show competition with a longer-term career strategy that could involve more permanent television opportunities.