The governess, Anne Hegerty, on autism, the quiz and its daily challenges

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Anne Hegerty is mostly stupid naked as he r ruthless television alter-ego, The Governess, who regularly puts budding champions firmly in their place on The Chase. But the former journalist, who was diagnosed with autism later in life, reveals that while quizzes come easily to her, she finds day-to-day tasks extremely difficult.

Every morning, the Chaser pours himself a big cup of coffee and sits down to answer 25 quizzes. She says it's "the easiest part" of her day.

"After that, I do the hard stuff, like go upstairs, take a shower, and dry off. And then put some clothes on and make sure that they are clean and then get out of the house.

"It's all hard work," she told the BBC Access All podcast. "It's like I've climbed a mountain."

64-year-old Hegerty discovered a love of knowledge at an early age.

"I was a nerdy kid and discovered that I could memorize things," she says of the skill she doesn't have lost.

"This morning I was trying to get back to sleep, so I decided to reel the US presidents working upside down. And the moment I got to Lincoln, I thought… I obviously didn't want to sleep and just got up."

Hegerty turned this proficiency in the profession when she joined hit ITV quiz show The Chase in 2010 as The Governess, in a role that sees her alternately bullying, deriding and occasionally flirting with contestants for discourage gambling.