ITV Beat the Chasers returned to screens for a brand new series on Thursday night, but fans were left fuming

ITV viewers were left fuming as a Beat the Chasers contestant was “robbed” after narrowly missing out on a £75,000 prize by just one second.

The seventh series of the popular ITV quiz show returned to our screens last night (October 5).

As usual, new contestants faced off against the formidable chasers: Mark Labbett, Shaun Wallace, Anne Hegerty, Paul Sinha, Jenny Ryan, and Darragh Ennis, all competing for a cash prize.

The show got off to a somewhat shaky start, with Jemima starting strong and pocketing £4,000, but subsequent players, Ceri and Daniel, failed to catch up to the chasers.

Player Sanjay scooped a whopping £60,000 after an impressive round against four chasers, but it was contestant Sam who had everyone talking after a nail-biting showdown, reports Bristol Live.

Bradley Walsh returned to front Beat the Chasers (Image: ITV)

After a solid cash builder, Sam chose to challenge all five chasers for a staggering £75,000. In a tense face-off, he narrowly missed out on the massive sum by just one second, sparking outrage among viewers.

Some fans felt he was “robbed, as taking to X, formerly Twitter, one fan said: ” with one viewer taking to X, formerly Twitter, to say: “#BeatTheChasers doesn’t often get that close.”

Another simply posted: “Robbed.” A third commented: “Absolutely gutted!”

A fourth added: “Poor Sam. Lost by one second.”

Sam missed out on £75,000 with just one second to go (Image: ITV)

Viewers were fuming when Sam was given the wrong answer for saying Chanel, with one person writing: “He said Coco Chanel! Out of order.”

Another added: “You have to give Chanel, what!”

A third said, “How did he not get Chanel? !” A fourth replied: “That was outrageous! Chanel Coco Chanel wtf.” (sic).

One person said, “Why was Jenny allowed *JFK* instead of *Kennedy* if Coco Chanel was not allowed?”

Earlier in the programme, one chaser faced criticism from viewers just minutes into the show.

Jemima was first to tackle the quiz legends, and following a solid beginning, she chose to take on Paul Sinha and Shaun Wallace for £4,000 within 37 seconds.

With an impressive display, she defeated the pair, with fans declaring it a “disaster” for Paul and Shaun, as Shaun tackled a few questions whilst Paul delivered multiple wrong answers.

Taking to X, formerly Twitter, one person wrote: “Catastrophic from the Chasers!”

Another said: “Paul is having a mare.” A third added: “That was a disaster for the Chasers.”

Even chaser Darragh was quick to share a cheeky remark on the show as he told Jemima: “I’d love to say you played well, but you really didn’t have to.”

Beat the Chasers airs Sundays at 8pm on ITV1

Invalid email

We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. Read our Privacy Policy