Jenny Ryan
Born
Jenny Alexis Ryan

(1982-04-02) 2 April 1982
Bolton, Greater Manchester, England
Other namesThe Vixen
The Bolton Brainiac
Alma materUniversity of Leeds
Occupations
  • Quizzer
  • singer
  • television personality
Years active2002–present
TelevisionThe Chase
The X Factor: Celebrity
Beat the Chasers
Websitewww.jennyvixenryan.com

Jenny Alexis Ryan (born 2 April 1982)[1] is an English quizzer, singer and television personality, best known as one of the six chasers on the ITV game show The Chase, where she is nicknamed as "The Vixen".

Career

Ryan's first quiz show appearance was on University Challenge, helping the University of Leeds to reach the semi-finals in 2003.[2] She also appeared on Mastermind in 2006, choosing the American television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer as her specialist subject, and featured in both series of Are You an Egghead? in 2008 and 2009.[3][4] She found success on Only Connect as a member of the team The Gamblers, who won the third series of the show in 2010.[5] Additionally, she has made appearances on Fifteen to One and Weakest Link, and worked as a QI Elf.[6]

Ryan has written questions for game shows.[7] She joined The Chase as a chaser in 2015, making her debut appearance on 2 September.[8] She was recommended for The Chase by Anne Hegerty, as they had competed on the same quiz team, with Ryan serving as captain.[9] Her nickname on the show is "The Vixen", in reference to her red hair, freckles and ponytail; Bradley Walsh came up with the name and the producers liked it since "vixens are notoriously clever and cunning".[10] She is also referred to as "The Bolton Brainiac".[9]

In 2017, Ryan appeared alongside fellow chasers Anne Hegerty, Shaun Wallace and Mark Labbett on Let's Sing and Dance for Comic Relief. They won the competition, performing a Wizard of Oz medley.[11]

In 2018 Ryan, along with comedian Lucy Porter, launched in 2018 Fingers On Buzzers, a podcast about quiz and game shows. The duo appeared on Richard Herring's Leicester Square Theatre Podcast in early 2019, where they discussed Fingers On Buzzers and other topics.

In July 2019, Ryan appeared on the 14th series of Celebrity MasterChef.[12] In October 2019, she began competing in The X Factor: Celebrity.[13] She was initially eliminated before the live shows, with heavy criticism of this decision from viewers leading to her being asked back to join the live shows.[14] She went on to reach the final and finished in third place.[15]

Ryan also plays the ukulele.[16]

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
2003 University Challenge Contestant Semi-finalist
2006 Mastermind Contestant 1 episode
2008–2009 Are You an Egghead? Contestant 2 series
2010 Only Connect Contestant / The Gamblers Winner
2015–present The Chase Chaser / The Vixen 7 series (11-15 regular)
6 series (celebrity)
2 series (family)
2019 Celebrity MasterChef Contestant Series 14
2020 Supermarket Sweep Contestant Winner
2020–present Beat the Chasers Chaser / The Vixen 4 series
2021 Catchphrase Celebrity Special Contestant Winner
2022 Would I Lie to You? Panelist With Lee Mack and Stephen Mulhern
2022 The Masked Singer Live Contestant Appeared as Baby Dino in Newcastle
2022 Britain Get Singing Contestant With Anne Hegerty and Darragh Ennis

References

  1. ↑ @jenlion (19 May 2022). "I'm so excited about my big 40th birthday show on Sunday 29th May!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  2. ↑ "The Leeds University Challenge Team 2002". Skidd. Retrieved 24 November 2019.
  3. ↑ Koncienzcy, Rebecca (20 May 2019). "The Chase fans confused by 'new chaser' on ITV show". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 24 November 2019.
  4. ↑ Palfrey, K (27 August 2015). "Meet The Chase's newest recruit… Jenny Ryan AKA The Vixen". whatsontv. Retrieved 24 November 2019.
  5. ↑ "About – Jenny Ryan". Squarespace. Retrieved 24 November 2019.
  6. ↑ Taylor, Frances (2 September 2015). "The Chase gets a new Chaser! First look at Bradley Walsh welcoming Jenny 'The Vixen' Ryan onto the show". BT. Retrieved 3 September 2015.
  7. ↑ Daly, Emma (31 August 2015). "Who is the new Chaser Jenny Ryan the Vixen?". Radio Times. Immediate Media Company. Retrieved 3 September 2015.
  8. ↑ Lindsay, Duncan (2 September 2015). "Here's how The Chase fans reacted to newcomer Jenny 'The Vixen' Ryan". Metro. Retrieved 3 September 2015.
  9. 1 2 Lindsay, Duncan (31 August 2015). "The Chase Exclusive: New star Jenny 'The Vixen' Ryan chats cheeky contestants and Twitter trolls". Metro. Retrieved 3 September 2015.
  10. ↑ "r/IAmA - Hi, I'm Jenny 'The Vixen' Ryan from The Chase. Ask Me Anything!". reddit. 8 January 2019. Retrieved 9 January 2019.
  11. ↑ Taylor, Frances (26 March 2017). "The Chase stars win Let's Sing and Dance for Comic Relief". Radio Times. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
  12. ↑ "BBC - Celebrity MasterChef spices up the kitchen for its 14th series - Media Centre". BBC. 11 July 2019. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  13. ↑ Duke, Simon (12 October 2019). "When is X Factor: Celebrity on? ITV show returns with star lineup". Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 12 October 2019.
  14. ↑ Westbrook, Caroline (21 October 2019). "Why has Jenny Ryan returned to X Factor: Celebrity?". Metro. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  15. ↑ "The X Factor: Celebrity voting results revealed!". ITV. 30 November 2019. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  16. ↑ "The Chase's Jenny Ryan stuns fans as she reveals her incredible singing voice". 9 March 2022.
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