The Chase’s Jenny Ryan Sparks Backlash With Brutal Joke About Contestant’s Smile

Ricky was a the butt end of a joke about his nashersCredit: ITV

Jenny Ryan is known for putting The Chase contestants under pressure with her formidable quiz knowledge, but one remark aimed at a contestant named Ricky left some viewers feeling she had taken the banter too far.

The prison officer had barely come face-to-face with The Vixen when Ryan delivered a cutting one-liner about both his performance and the noticeable gap in his smile.

“There are more gaps in your knowledge than there are in your smile,” she told him.

The studio audience laughed, but the reaction from viewers at home was considerably more divided.

Viewers Call Jenny’s Remark ‘Harsh’

Jenny Ryan made fun of his dodgy smileCredit: ITV

Some fans watching the 2019 episode criticized Ryan’s comment, describing the personal dig at Ricky’s appearance as unnecessarily cruel.

Social media quickly filled with reactions from viewers who felt joking about someone’s teeth crossed a line. One viewer simply branded the remark “HARSH,” while others hit back at Ryan for targeting Ricky’s looks.

However, there was an important piece of context behind the exchange.

Ricky himself had already spoken openly about his teeth earlier in the show.

When host Bradley Walsh asked what he hoped to do with any prize money, Ricky pointed out the gap in his smile and revealed that fixing it was actually part of his plan.

“You probably have noticed I have a little gap in the smile there,” he said.

He joked that if he won enough money, he hoped to get “a few facial repairs.”

That admission seemingly gave Ryan the opening for the joke when Ricky later stepped up to face her.

Ricky Refuses to Let the Joke Derail Him

The prison officer wanted money for a new smileCredit: ITV

Whatever Ricky thought about the remark, he did not allow it to end his run.

Instead of becoming visibly rattled by The Vixen’s dig, he concentrated on the game and successfully returned to his teammates with £3,000 for the prize fund.

The team eventually built a combined total of £8,000 and advanced to the Final Chase.

But their hopes of taking the money home ended there.

Ryan ultimately caught the team in the final round, meaning Ricky left without the winnings he had hoped might help pay for his new smile.

Still, it wasn’t the result alone that had viewers talking afterward. One quick line from The Vixen had transformed an otherwise routine encounter into a moment that divided fans over where playful Chase banter ends and a joke becomes too personal.