Mark Labbett has revealed that he finds dating “tough” but tries his “best” while contending with a hidden condition. The revelation emerged during a recent interview where the Chaser, famously dubbed ‘The Beast’ on the ITV quiz programme, admitted he struggles with two crucial elements of dating.
Mark, who has joined the celebrity lineup on Channel 4’s ‘Celebs Go Dating’, previously revealed he’d been “single most of my life” but later married his second cousin, Katie Labbett, in 2014.
The couple welcomed son Lawrence in 2018 but separated in 2020. In 2023, he began a relationship with Hayley Palmer, though Mark ended things with the TV presenter during a brief “three-minute” phone conversation.
Now, when asked what he’s actually like on a date, Mark confessed that it’s “tough” for him.
Speaking to Heat Magazine, Mark said: “I would say I was terrible, but according to the agents, I did a bit better than that. But I’m terrible at flirting or eye contact. I’m a little bit on the autistic spectrum. You try your best, but it’s tough for me.
“Unfortunately, I can intimidate people just by walking by them, what with being so big. So, you almost have to make yourself smaller so you’re not scary.”
Alongside celebrities including Kerry Katona, S Club 7’s Jon Lee and Too Hot To Handle’s Louis Russell, Mark is reportedly seeking to find his perfect partner on the Channel 4 dating programme.
In a chat with the Express Online, he revealed that he had “never done” TV like this before, but it presented an opportunity for him to “branch out a little bit” and explore the “other side” of the business.
He also confessed that he had become “very comfortable” with his single status but decided he would “give it a try”. He even dropped some hints about his early dating experiences.
Mark said: “Going back to Oxford [University] because I was quite a late developer, and let’s just say it didn’t last long, and we’ll leave it at that.”
In other news, Mark recently made an exit from the set of ITV spin-off series Beat The Chasers (Sunday, August 31) after losing £100,000 to a lucky contestant, jokingly saying: “I’ll get my coat.”
He offered contestant Gavin the chance to compete against him, Darragh ‘The Menace’ Ennis, Paul ‘The Sinnerman’ Sinha, Anne ‘The Governess’ Hegerty and Jenny ‘The Vixen’ Ryan for the hefty prize.
Mark labelled the other offers as “stingy” before announcing: “I’m going reduce the time to 40 seconds on our clock and you’ll be playing for £100,000!”
However, Gavin navigated his way through the questions and secured the life-changing amount with four seconds to spare. As he fell to his knees in disbelief, the Chasers applauded him.
Host Bradley Walsh commented: “Beastie, you’d best leave now.” Mark added: “Firstly, well played, Sir. Secondly, I’ll get my coat!” The Beast then stood up and left.