Countdown cast 'so relieved' as Anne Robinson steps down after one year in role

RACHEL Riley appeared to make a sly dig at Anne Robinson as she praised her Countdown replacement Colin Murray. The Irish presenter was announced as Anne's replacement after she quit the tea-time Channel 4 series last week.

COUNTDOWN'S new presenter Colin Murray has broken his silence on his latest telly role - vowing to "earn the respect" of co-host Rachel Riley. Channel 4 sources confirmed to The Sun today that the BBC Radio 5 live presenter, 45, will be taking on the Countdown reins "until autumn." They told us of Colin's plum new role replacing telly veteran Anne Robinson, 77, and said: "Colin started filming on set in Salford yesterday.

ANNE Robinson is tipped to be replaced as Countdown host by Colin Murray - who "gets on really well" with her ex co-star Rachel Riley. The Weakest Link presenter, 77, quit the tea-time Channel 4 series after just a year in the hot seat - months after The Sun revealed her feud with co-star Rachel.

Anne Robinson's new replacement has already started filming episodes for Countdown, despite the host announcing her departure just days prior.New episodes for the Channel 4 gameshow have already begun filming, with a new stand-in presenter taking the reins instead of no-nonsense and quick-witted host Anne.This comes days after the 77-year-old TV star quit her role after just one year on the programme.The Mirror has reported that 43-year-old radio and TV host Colin Murray will be stepping into Anne's shoes for the time being.Colin has appeared on the show before now, and actually guest presented 33 episodes last year when then-host Nick Hewer was shielding during the coronavirus pandemic. The paper has revealed that Colin will host the programme until the autumn, but could potentially be announced as the permanent host.A Channel 4 source said: "Colin has agreed to be a stand-in host for us, which is brilliant news.

Anne Robinson has revealed she had the chance to return to The Weakest Link but said no – twice! The TV star made a huge splash on the long-running BBC quiz show and amassed plenty of fans thanks to her rather acerbic wit, with her phrase "you are the weakest link, goodbye!" becoming well used.But when it was resurrected last year comedian Romesh Ranganathan was the host.And Anne has now shared that she was offered the opportunity to return twice but decided against it, because things are different today and she didn't want to be a "cheesy game-show host"."Wokeness has taken the heart out of comedy," the Mail quoted her as saying."Times have really changed. I wouldn't want to be a cheesy game-show host, and that is what the BBC wanted.

RACHEL Riley has had an especially racy week on Countdown which she admits happens "all the time." The maths whizz joined host Anne Robinson and Susie Dent on the Channel 4 puzzle show and was left very amused by one word that popped up in Dictionary Corner. After the 30-second timer was up, one player came up with the word 'erections', with a bemused Rachel putting the word up on the board.

Carol Vorderman could be set to return to Countdown following Anne Robinson's departure from the Channel 4 show. Anne, 77, announced earlier this week that she's set to step down as Countdown host after less than a year in the job, and there have been lots of rumours and suggestions as to who might take over as the new presenter on the popular game show. One name that's been mentioned as a possible replacement is someone who's by no means a stranger to the programme is former numbers expert Carol, who is reportedly a top choice for the role among show bosses.But former host Nick Hewer, who presented the show for almost a decade between 2012 and 2021, reckons she might not be the right choice, in part because she's too closely associated with another job on the programme.Asked about the possibility in an interview with RadioTimes.com, he said: "I've been on her show a couple of times, she's got a [BBC] Radio Wales show."I don't know whether there would be a sort of conflict in a way because both she and Rachel [Riley] did the same job.So I don't know."I think she's a very popular woman, but I would have thought that it would slightly confuse the audience, which is a very faithful audience, [with] some people watching it for years and yearsHe added, "I just think that there might be – people might be a bit confused."For her part, Vorderman recently said it would be "an honour" to return to the show and thanked fans for their comments, but appeared to distance herself from the gig by wishing luck to the future host."I want to wish whoever is the lucky human to be the new host all the love and 9 letter words in the world," she wrote on Twitter.For who else might be a good fit for the job, Hewer had a wealth of suggestions,

BBC Pointless star Richard Osman turned down a gig hosting Countdown years ago, a top TV executive has claimed.

Rachel Riley has asked that she and her family not be referred to as “part of the Strictly curse” during a discussion about the programme on the podcast Dirty Mother Pukka with Anna Whitehouse.The Countdown Presenter met her husband Pasha Kovalev through Strictly Come Dancing when she was still married, but insists that the pair did not fall for one another until “much later”.Rachel, 36, opened up about her annoyance at being branded with the “Strictly curse” years after taking part in the BBC One show. She and husband Pasha met in 2013 after they were partnered up for the dancing competition, but she has maintained that they are not a part of some “curse”.The “Strictly curse” is a term used by both fans and the media to describe the romantic entanglements and break-ups that have happened over the years to various couples on the show. The close relationships dancers form with their on-screen partners are often blamed for when their off-screen relationships suffer during their time on Strictly. When Anna asked Rachel when she first fell in love with professional dancer Pasha, the maths whizz was keen to set the record straight. “Well, that wasn’t until much later,” she said.

Rachel Riley has discussed the vile comments she has received from trolls over the years in the podcast Dirty Mother Pukka with Anna Whitehouse.The maths whizz, who campaigned against Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party in the run up to the general election, described how one Twitter user wished for her daughter to be “stillborn”. Rachel, 36, opened up about the abuse she has faced online over the years, particularly after voicing her views about antisemitism under Corbyn’s Labour Party. The Countdown star has often been outspoken about antisemitism online, and has faced plenty of vitriol from internet trolls as a result. After the general election in 2019 that saw the Labour Party lose to the Conservatives, Rachel shared a tweet that angered some of her followers. Speaking about the incident to Anna, she explained: “On the 12th of December it was such a relief when the exit polls came in. “And I didn’t vote for the Tories, I’m not a Tory.

Countdown presenter, 36, opened up about the incident for the first time during a new podcast interview. Setting the scene, the mum-of-two explained how she and her former Strictly Come Dancing professional dancer other half had been playing ping pong at the time.

Carol Vorderman is an iconic figure of British television who made her way there through her role in the daytime classic, Countdown.Now, following the announcement that fellow-tv legend Anne Robinson is due to be stepping away from the role she has had with the show that she has had since 2021, Carol’s name is being thrown up again and again as a possible replacement.According to the Mirror, Countdown bosses are “desperate” to get her back. Responding to the rumours she said: "Thank you to all of you saying such lovely things about the possibility of me returning to Countdown."You're very kind & it would be an honour but I want to wish whoever is the lucky human to be the new host all the love and 9 letter words in the world #CountWell#HappyDays."Carol worked on the show for 26 years but finally, in 2008, placed her last letter on the board - but why?The reasons behind why Carol Vorderman quit countdown are shrouded in controversy.

Carol Vorderman has broken her silence after Anne Robinson's Countdown exit, saying it would be an "honour" to host the show. Carol co-hosted the show with Richard Whitely for 26 years before he sadly died in 2005 and she left in 2008. And it's now been claimed that bosses are desperate for Carol to return and replace Anne.

The Countdown star Rachel Riley has spoken of a time when a celebrity strangely put his phone under her skirt whilst she was playing table tennis. She was playing with her husband, former Strictly star Pasha Kovalev at a party.

Rachel Riley, 36 and Anne Robinson, 77, have clashed in the past, with The Weakest Link star publicly admitting that she found her co-star too "noisy" and admitting that she wouldn't "go on holiday with her".

Rachel Riley has opened up about the moment a mystery celebrity once used their phone to film up her skirt.

POINTLESS star Richard Osman has reacted to rumours he’ll replace Anne Robinson on Countdown. Last month the telly favourite, 51, walked away from the long-running BBC One series having filmed more than 1,300 episodes andnearly 30 series. Now fans are suggesting he had a secret plan to takeover from Anne, 77.

COUNTDOWN fans have been speculating wildly as to who will replace Anne Robinson in the hotseat after she announced she is quitting the show. One name that's been thrown around is Good Morning Britain's Richard Madeley, 65, whose telly career has been revitalised after a short stint on I'm A Celebrity.

Rachel Riley has revealed how a fellow celebrity used his iWatch to look up her skirt during a house party and how her husband Pasha Kovalev came to her rescue.MORE: Rachel Riley shares sweet clip of daughter Maven following in dad Pasha Kovalev's footstepsTalking on the Dirty Mother Pukka' podcast on Thursday while hailing the forthcoming Online Harms Bill, Rachel said: "One who shall remain nameless, who people would know, he just got an Apple Watch, and at a party at a friend's house, I was playing table tennis with Pash, and this guy, in full view of everyone, came, put his phone on the floor under my skirt where I was playing table tennis, and went and sat back down a couple of metres away while him and all his mates looked at his watch."WATCH: Rachel Riley's daughter Maven, two, has the cutest singing voiceShe continued: "It was like a video basically. So he went and put his phone down so he could look up and went two metres away to go and look at his phone, look up my skirt."READ: Rachel Riley has the cutest interaction with daughter Maven ahead of family milestoneRELATED: Rachel Riley shares new candid picture of Pasha Kovalev and baby Noa - but fans question one detailOf the identity of the celebrity, the mother-of-two added: "I wouldn't call him a friend, but you would know him.

Maths whizz Rachel Riley has revealed a shocking incident when a male celebrity took a video up her skirt while she was playing table tennis with her husband, Pasha Kovalev. Refusing to name the man in question, mum of two Rachel said: "One, who shall remain nameless, who people would know, he just got an Apple watch, and at a party at a friend's house, I was playing table tennis when this guy, in full view of everyone, came, put his phone of the floor under my skirt where I was playing table tennis." She added that he, "went and say back down a couple of metres away while him and his mates looked at his watch." Adding more details about the horrifying event, she said, "It was like a video basically.

COUNTDOWN'S Rachel Riley took a swipe at Anne Robinson by toasting to the next chapter after the host quit. The maths whizz was all smiles after the news broke about Anne's future on the show.