BBC Strictly star admits The Chase was 'scary' after being left at major disadvantage

Strictly Come Dancing: Jason Bell voted off show by judges

Strictly Come Dancing's Jason Bell, who graced the BBC dance floor in 2020 with pro dancer Luba Mushtuk, has opened up about his nerve-wracking experience on ITV's The Chase. The sports pundit and ex-NFL star confessed to finding the quiz show "scary" during a broader chat with Reach regarding his collaboration with Samsung on their American Football Jargon Buster, aimed at demystifying the sport for UK fans ahead of the new season.

Jason, chuckling, admitted: "Yeah, [The Chase] was scary." He highlighted a significant challenge he faced, saying: "You know, I watch all these shows, and one thing that's hard is I'm an American.

"So, some of the things they say or do, I'm like, 'Ah, this is cool, but what is that?' Like, basic knowledge stuff. I didn't grow up listening or hearing it, but I still love these shows. I really like the game shows out here. I think all of them are so fun and entertaining. So, I really liked going on that."

On The Chase, Jason joined forces with singer Cheryl Baker, weather presenter Laura Tobin, and comedian Mark Steel. Despite his efforts, Jason was eliminated before the final chase, leaving his teammates to face Chaser Jenny Ryan.

In the end, they were bested by Ryan, missing out on a whopping £142,000 charity prize pot , reports Birmingham Live.

Jason appeared on The Chase (Image: ITV)

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Elsewhere in the interview, Jason excitedly spoke about his new, helpful guide to help American Football novices understand the game better.

He said: “The British love their sports, but to understand your sports, you’ve got to know the rules, and Samsung has got some data together that shows over 60% of the public is struggling with knowing the rules.

“That's why we started the NFL Jargon Buster playbook, so we can give them some of the terminology so they can try to follow along.

“Sometimes the words and terminology will kind of just throw you off, so being able to understand what it all means will allow you to [get into it].

Jason and Luba appeared on Strictly together (Image: BBC)

“It's just like learning a new language. You’ve just got to build on each word at a time, and the next thing you know, you're speaking fluently.”

Summing up the game for new fans, he continued: “For the main rules, you just have to think that the team's got four tries to move the ball 10 yards, and that's, in essence, what you're trying to do. It's as simple as that.

“Watch the quarterback - that's the key. Everything starts and ends with them, and really just move on from there. But keep watching and be patient with yourself.

“And then I would say, keep my Jargon Buster playbook right in front of you, in case something pops up. So, then you can say, ‘Oh, I know exactly what that means!’

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Jason opened up about his time on Strictly (Image: BBC) window.topArticlesScript="https://cdn.images.express.co.uk/js/dist/article-top-articles20241113.min.js"

“But now is the time to really get involved, because this is when good football is starting to be played,” he encouraged.

Jason also identified his top two teams: legacy champions Kansas City Chiefs, and the Detroit Lions, who he described as “the underdogs”.

Strictly Come Dancing continues tonight at 6.30pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

Jason Bell has partnered with Samsung , the official TV partner of NFL UK, to create the American Football Jargon Buster to help fans from fumbling the rules.

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BBC Strictly star admits The Chase was 'scary' after being left at major disadvantage

BBC Strictly star admits The Chase was 'scary' after being left at major disadvantage

BBC Strictly star admits The Chase was 'scary' after being left at major disadvantage

BBC Strictly star admits The Chase was 'scary' after being left at major disadvantage

BBC Strictly star admits The Chase was 'scary' after being left at major disadvantage