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11th Mar 2021

Shaun Wallace defends ‘Dark Destroyer’ nickname after people call it racist

Charlie Herbert

the chase

The quiz master, who is one of the stars of The Chase, has been quick to clarify his thoughts on the nickname, which was given to him by host Bradley Walsh

Shaun Wallace of The Chase has defended his nickname on the show – Dark Destroyer – after it was labelled as racist by a guest on a morning TV show.

The debate was prompted by a discussion on Monday’s Lorraine, in which lawyer Paula Rhone-Adrien was speaking about everyday racism in the aftermath of the now-famous Meghan Markle interview with Oprah.

During her appearance on the morning show, Paula said how she didn’t allow her children to watch The Chase as Wallace is “the only Chaser defined by the colour of his skin”.

Many then jumped onto Twitter, as is the way nowadays, to get Shaun’s take on the topic. One person asked why Shaun has to be the “only Chaser defined by their skin colour” and that this “needs to change”.

However the quiz whizz was in no doubt about his views on the nickname. When asked whether or not he was offended by the moniker, he responded: “Absolutely NOT!!!”

Wallace has never shied away from discussions of race and race issues, having previously called for more Black history to be taught in schools and for better education on minority ethnic issues.

He has also spoken out about his own experiences of racism, revealing that he has previously been profiled getting off a train and cornered by police, and that he was once told as a child that he would “end up in jail”.

It seems though that on this matter, he is in no doubt that his stage name is nothing more than a title that strikes fear into a contestant’s heart. And he intends to live up to it for a while yet, continuing to “intellectually destroy” opponents in his path.