The Chase Australia
The Chase Australia is an Australian television quiz show based on the British program of the same name. It is broadcast on the Seven Network and premiered on 14 September 2015. Four contestants play against an opponent, known as the "chaser", who plays for the bank. The show was originally hosted by Andrew O'Keefe until July 2021, when he was replaced by Larry Emdur. The series began with Brydon Coverdale, Anne Hegerty, Matt Parkinson and Issa Schultz as chasers, with Mark Labbett joining in 2016. Shaun Wallace appeared as a guest chaser in 2018, and Cheryl Toh has appeared as a chaser since 2019. Mara Lejins joined as a chaser in 2022, and David Poltorak joined in 2024. Brandon Blackwell also appeared as a guest in 2024.
The series has also spawned a prime-time celebrity series, and a spin-off called Beat The Chasers.
The largest amount of money ever won by people on The Chase is $141,000 split between 4 people.
History
In mid-2014 it was reported that the Seven Network had considered producing a local version of The Chase on the back of good ratings for the British version of the show which has been airing in the 3:00 pm timeslot since August 2013. A pilot episode on the UK set was made, but ultimately it was decided not to proceed.However, interest in a local version was renewed in May 2015 and in July the Seven Network commissioned the show to eventually replace Deal or No Deal and Million Dollar Minute in the 5:00 pm timeslot in a bid to revive ratings for its struggling 6:00 pm nightly news.
From June 2020, social distancing measures were applied on set due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with contestants spaced apart from each other. In August 2020, it was announced that beginning with the spin-off, Beat The Chasers, production of The Chase Australia would move from Melbourne to Sydney in September 2020 due to COVID restrictions in Victoria at the time.
On 2 February 2021, Seven announced that the network did not renew host Andrew O'Keefe's contract in December 2020 and parted company with him after he was charged with domestic violence. On 22 February 2021, it was announced that Larry Emdur would replace O'Keefe as host of the program, with future episodes to continue to be recorded in Sydney. The final new episode with O'Keefe as host aired on 20 July 2021. Episodes with Emdur as host began airing from 26 July 2021.
Gameplay
Cash Builder and Head-to-Head rounds
Each contestant plays the first two rounds alone. In the first round, the "Cash Builder", they have one minute to answer as many questions as possible, earning $2,000 per correct answer. Next, the contestant faces the day's chaser in a head-to-head contest, attempting to move the money down to the bottom of a seven-step gameboard and into the team bank. They may start three steps down from the top and play for the money earned in the Cash Builder, start one step farther down for a lesser award, or start one step farther up for a greater award. The latter two awards are stated by the chaser; since 2016, lesser awards can be zero or even negative.Once the contestant chooses a starting position, the host begins to ask a series of questions with three answer options. The contestant and chaser separately lock in their guesses on keypads; once either person locks in, the other must do so within five seconds or be locked out for that turn. A correct answer moves the person who gave it one step down the board, but a miss or lock-out leaves them in place. If the contestant reaches home without being caught, they advance to the Final Chase and their money is added to the team's prize fund. If the chaser catches up, the contestant is eliminated and their money is forfeited.
If all four contestants lose their head-to-head chases, the team nominate one contestant to play for them for an amount of money offered by the chaser in the Final Chase, informally dubbed a "Lazarus" round.
Final Chase round
The remaining contestants now must work together to avoid being caught by the chaser. They blindly choose one of two question sets for themselves during the final commercial break, with the other set put aside for the chaser, and then have two minutes to answer as many questions as possible on the buzzer. Each correct answer moves the team ahead one step, and they are given a head start of one step per contestant participating in the round. Only the contestant who buzzes-in may answer or pass, and may not confer with their teammates; if a contestant responds without buzzing-in, the answer is automatically ruled wrong. The buzzer is not used if only one contestant is in the Final Chase. The host will only ask a new question once someone has buzzed in and either answered or passed. Unlike the original British version, the chaser remains onstage to witness the team's performance.The chaser then has two minutes to answer questions from the unused set, moving one step ahead per correct response. If the chaser passes or misses, the clock stops and the team is given a chance to discuss it and respond. A correct answer pushes the chaser back one step, or moves the team ahead by one if the chaser is at the starting line. If the chaser catches the team before time runs out, the prize fund is lost and all four contestants leave with nothing. If the chaser fails to catch the team, the participating contestants split the prize fund equally.
Half-hour format
Half-hour episodes have occasionally aired due to Seven's commitments to air various sporting events. These episodes feature two contestants instead of four. Each contestant plays the cash builder round, and the contestant that earns the higher amount of money takes the combined total of the two contestants to the gameboard for the head-to-head. If both contestants earn the same amount in the cash builder, the pair chooses which contestant will play head-to-head. If the contestant makes it back to the bank, the Final Chase is played as normal. If the contestant is caught in the head-to-head, the team nominate one contestant to play for them for an amount of money offered by the chaser in the Final Chase.''Double Trouble'' format
In 2024, the show introduced a new Double Trouble format variation, in which contestants face off against a pair of chasers in each episode, with the chasers alternating in the head-to-head rounds. During the Final Chase, the remaining contestants then choose a chaser to compete against from the pair.Mega money spinner
In 2024, the show introduced a new format, called the Mega Money Spinner. The show is as usual until The Final Chase, where if the contestants reach 10 steps, they get a spin at the money spinner, for a maximum of $50,000. If the team gets 15 steps, they get a spin at the mega money spinner, where they can win a maximum $100,000. If they get the money spinner or the mega money spinner, whatever they land on is added to their total cash prize pool.Special episodes
Special shows featuring shortened gameplay have featured during Saturday Night Footy, Sunrise, Fifi, Dave & Fev and The Morning Show.In February and March 2017, four specials aired featuring two teams from the eighth season of My Kitchen Rules playing for a home viewer.
Celebrity specials
A weekly prime-time version of the show began airing on Seven from 21 August to 25 September 2019, entitled The Chase Celebrity Specials Australia. In it, teams of celebrities compete against the chaser to win prize money for their chosen charities. The game is played in the same way as the regular version. If a celebrity does not make it to the Final Chase, or if the team is caught during the Final Chase, a consolation prize is awarded to the charities for each celebrity. Unlike the regular version, the series is filmed in front of a studio audience.In February 2022, a celebrity episode aired in the regular 5:00 pm timeslot to promote Dancing with the Stars. This was produced without a studio audience like the regular version.
Chasers
| Chaser | Nickname | Duration | Notes |
| Brydon Coverdale | "The Shark" | 2015–present | Appeared on several Australian quiz programs, including Million Dollar Minute where he won $307,000 in 2014, becoming the first grand champion of Pass the Buck where he won $38,788 in 2002. He also won a total of $32,000 on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, appeared on The Weakest Link in 2001, Deal or No Deal in 2005 and was a quarter-finalist on Letters and Numbers in 2011. Ranked 289th in the World Quizzing Championships 2019. |
| Anne Hegerty | "The Governess" | 2015–present | Appeared on several British quiz programs, including Mastermind, Fifteen to One, Today's the Day and Brain of Britain; semi-finalist on Are You an Egghead?. Holds the rank of Grand Master in the UK quiz rankings. Ranked 40th in the World Quizzing Championships 2014. Best known in Australia for being one of the Chasers on the original UK version of the show. |
| Matt Parkinson | "Goliath" | 2015–present | A championship winner on the television game show Sale of the Century in the 1990s and a frequent member of the "brains trust" on The Einstein Factor in the 2000s. |
| Issa Schultz | "The Supernerd" | 2015–present | Twelve-time winner of the Australian Quizzing Championships in 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025. and seven-time pairs champion. Ranked 23rd in the world at the World Quizzing Championships in 2020. Appeared on The Rich List where he won $200,000 in 2009. He also appeared on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? and The Einstein Factor. Appeared on the UK version in 2022 as a Guest Chaser on Beat The Chasers to substitute for Anne Hegerty. |
| Mark Labbett | "The Beast" | 2016–2020, 2022–present | Appeared on several British quiz programs, including Mastermind, University Challenge, Fifteen to One, The Syndicate and Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? ; runner-up on The People's Quiz, runner-up on Brain of Britain, part of a winning team on Only Connect, represented Wales from 2005 to 2007 at the European quiz championships. Ranked 134th in the World Quizzing Championships 2014. Best known in Australia for being one of the Chasers on the original British version of the show as well as the being a Chaser in both American versions of the show. |
| Shaun Wallace | "The Destroyer" | 2018 | Appeared on several British quiz programs, including Fifteen to One, Weakest Link, Beat the Nation, BrainTeaser, Greed and The Waiting Game; winner of Mastermind, finalist on the first series of Are You an Egghead?. Best known in Australia for being one of the Chasers on the original UK version of the show. Ranked 455th in the World Quizzing Championships 2014. Appeared on the Australian version as a Guest Chaser during Season 5. |
| Cheryl Toh | "The Tiger Mum" | 2019–present | Appeared on Temptation, The Einstein Factor and Million Dollar Minute. |
| Mara Lejins | 2022–present | A former contestant on The Chase Australia in 2017 and appeared on Beat The Chasers Australia in 2020, winning $60,000 against 3 Chasers in the heats, and walking away with $58,000 in the final. | |
| Brandon Blackwell | "The Lightning Bolt" | 2024 | Appeared on the American game shows Jeopardy!, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, The Million Second Quiz, and the British quiz show University Challenge, and has served as a Chaser on the American version of The Chase since 2022. |
| David Poltorak | "The Professor" | 2024–present | Record-setting Sale of the Century contestant, and former question writer for Sale of the Century, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? and Millionaire Hot Seat. Appeared on Beat The Chasers Australia in 2020. |
;Notes
- Hegerty and Labbett were unable to get visas authorising them to travel from Britain to Australia, due to border closures implemented as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020.
- Hegerty returned to Australia to film during May 2021, with her first episode since June 2020 airing on 28 July 2021.
- Labbett briefly featured in the advertisement for Season 10, but was not listed in the list of chasers in Seven's press release for Season 10 of The Chase Australia. Labbett joined ABC's version of The Chase USA in May 2021. Labbett's contract on the American version was not renewed by ABC in 2022 and rejoined the Australian version for Season 11 in February 2022.