Rachel Riley: Countdown has been lively with Anne Robinson

15 June 2021

Rachel Riley says 'Countdown' has been "very lively" since Anne Robinson joined the show.

Anne Robinson

The 35-year-old TV presenter admitted her new co-host is "not shy of asking funny questions" on the Channel 4 game show, and she has wasted no time at all settling in.

She said: “It’s been really fun watching Anne very quickly find her feet and seeing the contestants in the new groove with her.

“She’s not shy of asking funny questions and responses ranged from comedy to not looking at her and hoping she doesn’t see them. It's been very lively."

Anne, 76, has joined 'Countdown' as Nick Hewer’s replacement and will make her debut from June 28, creating an all-female line-up alongside Rachel and Dictionary Corner's Susie Dent.

And Rachel is enjoying the all-female dynamic on the programme.

She told the Daily Mirror newspaper: “Three girls do 'Countdown' – who wouldn’t want to watch?”

What's more, Susie - who worked with Anne on BBC IQ series 'Test The Nation' in 2005 - is delighted the former 'The Weakest Link' host has joined the programme.

She said: “I’m so pleased to be able to work with Anne again. She’s going to be a wonderful addition to the Countdown team.”

In December, Nick confirmed he would depart 'Countdown' at the end of his contract.

He tweeted: "Delighted to be back in the Countdown studio after another enforced lockdown, BUT this latest lockdown has given me an opportunity to consider my future life and I’ve decided it’s a good time to step down at the end of my contract in the New Year.

"As someone in his 77th year, who will be in his 10th year hosting the great British institution that is Countdown, I think it’s time to smell the flowers and get a dog.

"But let me now take the opportunity to say that it’s been a privilege and a pleasure to take the helm of Countdown, first broadcast broadcast back in 1982 and still a Guinness recordholder and although I’ll be on your screens well into 2021, let me thank the broadcasters Channel 4, the truly dedicated and unwaveringly professional studio crew and production staff at ITV Studios who make the programmes, all 250 or so a year, my wonderfully talented co-hosts Susie Dent and Rachel Riley but above all, the quirky genius of producer Damian Eadie, who never ceases to amuse and who always demands the best of us. (sic)"