Natalie Cassidy appeared on The Chase in 2016 (Image: ITV)
star Natalie Cassidy has shared how her family “ripped her apart” following an “embarrassing appearance” on The Chase.
The 41-year-old soapstar, best known for her role as Sonia Fowler, confessed that she was overwhelmed with nerves during the first round of the popular ITV quiz show, leading her to feel like she “looked like a potato”.
In a chat on the Monday Mile podcast with Olympian Aimee Fuller, Natalie admitted that while she enjoys participating in quiz shows—having previously appeared on The Weakest Link and Blankety Blank—she begged her family not to watch her stint on The Chase.
The mother-of-two elaborated: “The Chase was one of the most embarrassing things I’ve ever done because that first round, you have to do a quickfire, and I genuinely looked like a potato. I was so nervous, I just stood, I looked like a lifeless potato.
“I was so nervous, the light came down, my family ripped me apart when it came out. I was like please don’t watch it, it was so different from sitting in your lounge.”
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Natalie Cassidy branded her appearance on The Chase ’embarrassing’ (Image: ITV/YouTube)
Natalie took part in The Chase back in 2016, joining forces with Hairy Bikers’ Dave Myers, Olympian Amy Williams, and Westlife’s Nicky Byrne.
The team managed to accumulate a prize fund of £10,000 before going head-to-head with Mark “The Beast” Labbett in the final round, .
At one point, the soap actress had host Bradley Walsh in stitches as she delivered a sharp retort to The Chaser while they were tackling the question “who was the last foreign-born American Secretary of State”.
Natalie was triumphant when her guess, Madeleine Albrighton, trumped The Beast’s choice, Colin Powell, on the quiz show. Reveling in her correct answer, Natalie remarked, “Sometimes you’ve got to guess, haven’t you?”
The Chaser, known as The Beast, admitted his surprise: “Honestly, thought I knew that one…” only to be cheekily cut off by Natalie’s retort: “Well you didn’t, did you?”
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Natalie Cassidy left Bradley Walsh in fits of laughter on The Chase (Image: ITV)
She couldn’t help but comment on his expression, teasing, “Like a bulldog chewing a wasp that face. Look, he’s really upset.”
In the nail-biting final round, Natalie and the dearly missed Dave Myers pitted themselves against The Beast, who endeavored to correctly answer 13 questions.
Although the duo managed to secure one pushback, they were ultimately caught with 56 seconds to spare.
Opening up on the Monday Mile podcast, Natalie shared her less than lucky stint on Michael McIntyre’s The Wheel, grumbling: “The Wheel, I never got picked, I was fuming, just sat there and didn’t do anything.”
Mark Labbett was umimpressed by Natalie’s comments (Image: ITV)
Earlier in the year, Natalie announced her upcoming departure from after two stints totaling 22 years playing the beloved character Sonia. Her departure was tinged with both sorrow and anticipation for the future.
Reflecting on her time with the soap, she said in a heartfelt statement, “I feel extremely sad to be writing this, but also very excited.”
Adding sentiment to her career milestone, she continued, “After another 11 solid years back on the square, I have decided it’s time to move on to pastures new.
” is in my bones so I will never forget where I started my career and I will continue to love the show.”