Eagle-eyed fans were recently stunned as they unearthed a snap from Katherine Ryan’s first stint on British TV, dating from 2008, due to her drastically different appearance.

TV fans could never mistake Katherine Ryan for somebody else which made it easier for them to spot her in the crowd of a popular BBC show in 2008.

After starting off her career in Much’s Video on Trial, in her birth country of Canada, Katherine relocated to the UK where she has since become a household name, fronting a multitude of shows, comedy specials and earning her own Netflix series, The Duchess.

But fans were left with their jaws dropped as they unearthed a snap from an unexpected appearance she’d made on the box in 2008, at 25 years old. Before gaining recognition and earning the Funny Women Award that same year, the comedian and presenter showed up in the audience of the game show 1 vs. 100, hosted by Ben Shephard, which aired for three years from 2006 to 2009.

Katherine Ryan was spotted in the crowd of a 2008 game show and fans were shocked by her unrecognisable appearance
Taking to X, formerly known as Twitter, one telly enthusiast shared a screenshot of Katherine’s appearance, where she can be seen sat in the audience next to Loose Women’s Linda Robson.

Katherine’s fans were shocked to see her looking unrecognisable with dark brunette hair. “Obsessed with Katherine Ryan randomly turning up as an audience member in a 2008 episode of 1 vs 100”, they captioned the post, triggering a small handful of followers to react. “The investigative journalism I’m all in for”, someone notably quipped.

Although she was branded “the funniest new female stand up in Britain” in 2008, 40-year-old Katherine had to wait until 2011 before gaining recognition in the UK, starring in Channel 4’s short-lived program Campus, where she portrayed restructuring guru George Bryan alongside Sarah Pascoe and Andy Nyman.

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Katherine then proceeded to panel a number of comedy shows from Never Mind the Buzzcocks to Have I Got News For You. As of 2024, her TV credits also included appearances in Taskmaster, Mock The Week, Would I Lie To You?, Ready to Mingle and Celebrity Gogglebox.

Katherine Ryan gained recognition in the UK in 2011 when she starred in Campus (
Image:
Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

She has since fronted a number of shows and comedy specials, even earning her own series on Netflix (
Image:
Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images)
For the latter, Katherine shared the limelight with her partner Bobby Kootstra. But after a year in the reality series, Katherine claimed she’d been axed for a surprising reason. “I’m not sure that we were the best fit for Celebrity Gogglebox only because we were new and there are so many other families and couples on there, that I don’t think we were on it very much. I loved being on it and I would love to be of more use on it”, she’d said in an interview with The Sun.

She’d then added: “I loved the opportunity because it’s a show that we watch… You know, I’m not going to lie and pretend I didn’t notice that I’m on it for like five seconds.”

More recently, Katherine has decided to join forces with pal and fellow comedian Joe Wilkinson for another program titled Joe and Katherine’s Bargain Holidays, due to premiere on Channel 4 on Thursday, April 5 at 10pm.