Ryan Giggs 'is obsessed with TV quizzes The Chase and Eggheads'

The Manchester United legend says he likes to "broaden his horizons" by watching general knowledge game shows 

Quiz master: Welsh wizard loves Eggheads

A new access-all-area documentary shows Ryan Giggs get emotional as his playing career ends – but also reveals he is obsessed with TV quizzes.

Life Of Ryan: Caretaker Manager followed Giggs for a month as he took charge of his beloved Manchester United earlier this year.

But away from the training pitch where he was known for hard work, Giggs is depicted as a couch potato who spent up to two hours every afternoon lying on the sofa.

A 40th birthday cake shown on screen even has him in his pants lying down watching TV.

His wife Stacey Giggs says: “My first thought was how can he be a manager?

"He’s a player and it’s such a big role to do. I did worry a little bit, ‘cause I just thought, oh God, here we go, all the pressure, stress, but to be fair it hasn’t been that bad.

"The only change is he’s not sat on his a*** watching telly all afternoon.”

Ryan said: “I have a little two hours where, you know, well I used to anyway, just get home from training. You relax, just put my feet up - I like my TV programmes, a bit of escapism, but I also like my quizzes.”

But most revealing, his daughter Liberty then said to Giggs: “You’re just like, 'Shut up, Eggheads is on, or The Chase. The Chase is on, be quiet’.

“And then he’ll answer all the questions and get them all right and then he’ll get one wrong and he’ll go, ‘UH’.”

Giggs replies: “I’m trying to broaden my horizons, I like quiz shows. I forgot about The Chase and Eggheads.”

Giggs is also seen singing a line from a One Direction song with his kids and admiring birthday presents from Gary Neville, including red wine and pyjamas.

In a more serious moment, Giggs tells how he broke down crying in his car as he walked away at the end of the season having played his last game after 25 years, fearing he might not return to United.

 

Referring to the last game at Southampton, he said: “We got off the plane at Manchester Airport. I was saying goodbye to the players, thanking them. Like I say, potentially saying goodbye to a lot of players for the last time, a bit of staff, and I’m not an emotional person, well I didn’t think I was.

“But my car was parked right outside and I thought I need to get in my car here.

“I could feel myself getting emotional. So I get in my car and I just went, started crying, started getting really emotional. Sounds stupid now, but it’s just not me, it’s just not me at all.

“Then I come out the airport and I come at the lights and Nicky Butt has just pulled up next to me and I’m thinking f****** hell, can’t let Butty know that I’ve just been crying.

“So I just give him a little wave and just looked the other way and waited for the lights to go green.”

 

Thankfully for Giggs he has now found out he is staying on to work at United.

Unsurprisingly no reference is made in the documentary to Giggs’ extra-marital affair with his brother’s wife Natasha which was revealed in 2011.

In front of the cameras, his family unit seem very close and there are no signs of strain.

 

In the final sentence of the documentary, perhaps tellingly, Giggs says: “I’m always the kind of person who tries to look forward, don’t dwell on things, ‘cause if I did I’d probably get upset and it would really affect me, but I’ve had the best career anyone could ever have.”

* Life Of Ryan: Caretaker Manager is on ITV tonight at 9pm.