Jenny Alexis Ryan (born 2 April 1982)[1] is an English quizzer, singer and television personality, best known as one of the six chasers on the ITV game show The Chase, where she is nicknamed "The Vixen".
Ryan has written questions for game shows.[7] She joined The Chase as a chaser in 2015, making her debut appearance on 2 September.[8] She was recommended for The Chase by Anne Hegerty, as they had competed on the same quiz team, with Ryan serving as captain.[9] Her nickname on the show is "The Vixen", in reference to her red hair, freckles and ponytail; Bradley Walsh came up with the name and the producers liked it since "vixens are notoriously clever and cunning".[10] She is also referred to as "The Bolton Brainiac" and "The Bolton Bombshell".[9]
In 2018 Ryan, along with comedian Lucy Porter, launched Fingers On Buzzers, a podcast about quiz and game shows. The duo appeared on Richard Herring's Leicester Square Theatre Podcast in early 2019, where they discussed Fingers On Buzzers and other topics.
In July 2019, Ryan appeared on the 14th series of Celebrity MasterChef.[12] In October 2019, she began competing in The X Factor: Celebrity.[13] She was initially eliminated before the live shows, with heavy criticism of this decision from viewers leading to her being asked back to join the live shows.[14] She went on to reach the final and finished in third place.[15]