AFTER losing controversially on TV quiz show ‘Pointless’ just last year an Irvinestown civil servant has made amends by winning £4,000 on ‘The Chase’.
In May 2013 Chris McGonigle and his father Richard appeared on the popular BBC quiz show Pointless. Their time on the show was to end on a sour note however as an answer was lost in translation due to the Fermanagh accent.
Undeterred however, this week Chris set the record straight appearing on UTV show ‘The Chase’ where as part of a team he combined to win £12,000.
“It was the experience on Pointless that made me decide to apply for The Chase,” explained Chris, who now lives in Belfast.
“I was disappointed at the outcome of it and knew I could do better if I got another chance. I watched both shows daily anyway so it seemed like the logical thing to do.
“The slagging from friends (all good natured of course) after Pointless did make me more determined to do well.”
An avid quiz goer and creator, Chris applied for the show back in 2013 and in September was called for an audition in Belfast.
After making it through that process filming took place in October, before the show was aired on March 21.
For those unfamiliar with the format of the show four contestants pit their wits against a quiz brain or ‘chaser’ to win money.
The first part of the show is the ‘Cashbuilder’ round where contestants answer quick fire questions in 60 seconds to put money in for the group.
Up first Chris managed to add £6,000 to the pot. He then went one on one with ‘frosty knickers’ Anne Hegarty and made it through to the final round.
Set a target of 17 in the final round the Chaser was unable to deny Chris and his fellow contestants the £12,000 jackpot.
“In the end the chaser got six questions wrong, three of which we knew the answer to. With about 20 seconds left we knew we had done it and it started to sink in.
“I couldn’t believe we had won and I think it wasn’t until I got back to Belfast that evening that I finally stopped grinning!
“It’s the first time I’d ever won anything more than a cycling proficiency badge so I was ecstatic.
“I got the cheque in December so had a really good Christmas, paid off a few bills and put some towards a car.
“It’s been really well received and anyone I chat to really seem to be pleased for me, my gran even said it took her three times as long to get to the hairdressers and back with everyone stopping her and sending congratulations.
“It really hit how popular the show is the amount of people that have sent messages.”
As for the future Chris is already weighing up the possibility of further TV stardom.
“I’ve got a bit of a telly bug now so I wouldn’t rule out trying another game show, maybe something like Tipping Point or one of the National Lottery shows. I’d recommend trying to appear to anyone, your personality is more important to them than your intelligence, they want people who come across as bubbly and lively.
“The best way to think of it is to imagine what kind of person you would like to see on telly.”
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