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Carol Vorderman
Carol Vorderman (b. 24 December 1960) was Countdown's co-presenter for an astonishing 26 years in a row.
She was the second woman to speak on Channel 4, and in early episodes she was only called upon to provide the occasional numbers solution. Her role grew as the show evolved, and was known for her repartee with Richard Whiteley. Since Des Lynam took over as presenter, she has given the celebrity introductions at the start of each show.
She appeared as a contestant in a Christmas special, in which she defeated Richard Whiteley after a crucial conundrum.
As Vorderman's role on Countdown has grown, so has her popularity with television producers. She was the host of Grand Slam, a television show pitting quiz show champions against each other on general knowledge and mathematical puzzles. Outside of the quiz sphere, she's hosted Tomorrow's World, How2, has appeared on Strictly Come Dancing and Stars In Their Eyes. She also appeared on Have I Got News For You which featured a farcical Countdown numbers game.
As a journalist, she's written for the Daily Mirror and the Daily Telegraph about her detox diets, and has published books and DVD's on the subject. She's also a big fan of sudoku and has written two books on how to solve them. She promotes numeracy amongst children and adults and is known for her charity work. She was the winner of ITV's Game Show Marathon which allowed her to raise £60,000 for charity.
Departure
In 2008, Des O'Connor announced that he would be leaving the show, which prompted Channel 4 to announce that Vorderman would also be leaving. Vorderman later revealed via the press that she had been willing to take a 33% pay-cut in line with Countdown's budget being cut by 33%, but when Channel 4 offered her a 90% pay-cut, she refused and opted to leave the show. Series 59 saw her final episodes, the Series 59 final on the 12th of December 2008 was her final episode, which was preceded by a 30 minute farewell to Carol, hosted by Gyles Brandreth which included other Dictionary Corner favourites such as Keith Barron, Barry Norman, Rick Wakeman, Paul Zenon and Kathryn Apanowicz. The Series final followed, won by Junaid Mubeen, which featured Susie giving flowers to Des and Gyles giving flowers to Carol. Carol made a small speech before bursting into tears, which was the last time she was ever seen on Countdown.
See also
- Carol Vorderman on Wikipedia.
- Carol Vorderman on the Internet Movie Database.
- Carol Vorderman's first and second dances on Strictly Come Dancing, courtesy of YouTube.
