Bishop Wordsworth's Church of England Grammar School
Beyond Bishop's
Mark Labbett
Mark Labbett (BWS 1976-1983)
Born in Tiverton, Devon, Mark, the son of an intelligent but under-educated meat inspector, had ‘the best education money can’t buy’ at Bishops. With 10 GCEs and Five A levels, Mark studied maths at Oxford, law in Glamorgan and then became a maths teacher, a job he did in South Wales for 20 years. Labbett became interested in quizzing when working at Butlins, where he supplemented his wages with his winnings on the quiz machines. He has appeared on a host of TV quiz shows, including Mastermind (his special subjects on his two Mastermind appearances were the Olympics and The Simpsons), Countdown, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? Only Connect, and University Challenge. Mark has made his face and his brain famous via The Chase, ITV’s hit quiz show that attracts up to five million viewers as contestants try to beat The Beast or the other ‘Chasers’ in the general knowledge game show. But not many do....