Bradley Walsh couldn’t believe his eyes when he met a star whose name he had mocked in a viral scene on The Chase.
To make matters even more weird, their face-to-face meeting occurred while the TV presenter was laying naked in bed.
On Saturday night, the most recent installment of Michael McIntyre’s Big Show aired on BBC One, with Bradley, 63, being the latest star to have their sleep rudely awakened by the comic for an impromptu game show quiz.
Michael, 47, went into Bradley’s hotel room with a video crew in the middle of the night, with the aid of the star’s son Barney Walsh, 26, whom he presents with on Gladiators.
After shocking his guest by waking him up, Michael stated that one segment of their midnight gameshow would include him asking questions from The Chase that had previously made the host giggle.
One of them ran like this: ‘In what sport does Fanny Chmelar compete?’ The possibilities were swimming, show jumping, or skiing.
Fans of The Chase may recall Bradley reading the identical question to a candidate years ago. and burst into wild laughing at the athlete’s name.
He even added that if he were in her situation, he’d go right to the courtroom to alter his name.
On Michael McIntyre’s Big Show, Michael exclaimed, ‘Please welcome Fanny Chmelar,’ putting Bradley in complete amazement before joking.
But it was a double deception, for Fanny, 38, did eventually come, dragging her skis in tow.
Bradley’s eyes widened and his jaw dropped to the ground when Fanny stood at the foot of his bed.
He immediately cried, “I am so sorry!” I’m very sorry!” he said, bringing his palms to his head. ‘I did not mean to chuckle.’
After Fanny disclosed the exact pronunciation of her name, Bradley stumbled as he sought to find the perfect words to speak in her presence.
‘This is really surreal,’ he eventually managed to say. ‘This is the most surreal moment of my life. I am properly sweating. I am actually sweating.’
He then finally sat up, telling Fanny: ‘It’s so lovely to meet you,’ as he extended his hand to shake hers.
‘You’ve got a grip and a half on you!’ he remarked, to which Michael quipped: ‘‘Cause she doesn’t like you Bradley.’
Bradley’s night was not only surreal, as he ended up sharing a bed with fellow Chase star Anne Hegerty (after putting on some trousers), reuniting with Peter Nokes, the man who married him and his wife and christened his son Barney, and laughing with entertainment star Brian Conley.
Viewers couldn’t believe what they’d witnessed on the programme, particularly Bradley’s reunion with Fanny, with one called Darren writing on X: ‘My life is complete. Bradley Walsh meets Fanny Chmelar.’
‘Bradley Walsh meeting Fanny Chmelar will not be beaten as the best TV moment of 2024. Classic TV,’ added Simon.
Michael McIntyre’s Big Show returns on Saturday at 6.50pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.