Countdown: 24/02/2026


05:45 am - 06:25 am, Today on Channel 4 (4)

Average User Rating: 0.00 (0 votes)
My Rating: Sign in or Register to view last vote

Add to Favourites

About this Broadcast

-
24/02/2026
Season 2026, Episode 1

Colin Murray and Rachel Riley host the words-and-numbers game, with actor-turned-Strictly winner-turned-farmer Kelvin Fletcher joining Susie Dent in Dictionary Corner


HD subtitles repeat
Game Show/Quiz/Contest Show/Game Show

Cast & Crew

-

Rachel Riley (Co host)
Susie Dent (Contributor)
Damian Eadie (Series producer)

More Information

-

No Logo

Did You Know..

-

Colin Murray (Host)
Born: March 10, 1977 in Dundonald, east Belfast
Best Known For: Co-hosting the Colin and Edith Show on Radio 1
Early-life: Born on March 10, 1977, and raised on the Ballybean Housing Estate in Dundonald, east Belfast. Expelled from grammar school at 16 for being disruptive in class, Murray was keen on entering a career in journalism, becoming a trainee on The Ulster News Letter and spending a year's fellowship at the Toronto Star. He then set up a pop magazine called Blank and wrote a pop column in the Sunday People.
Career: He got his big break when he was signed up to co-host Radio 1's Session programme alongside Donna Legge in 1999. His witty one-liners and laidback presenting style proved popular, and the pair often deputised for the likes of John Peel, Steve Lamacq and Mary Anne Hobbs. In 2002, Colin was headhunted to front Channel 4's ill-fated breakfast show RI:SE but left to front the channel's late-night music shows. In late 2003, he was reunited with RI:SE co-host Edith Bowman for The Colin and Edith Show, which pulled in more than five million listeners before the pair went their seperate ways in 2006. Since then, he has presented Five's American football show, NFL Live, and the channel's European Poker Tour Series. He currently presents the channel's coverage of the UEFA Cup and hosts the topical sports-based news show Fighting Talk on BBC Radio Five Live. However, he hasn't forgotten his roots and also presents a late-night weekend show on Radio Ulster.
Quote: 'It used to be that you'd turn on a TV chat show, and you'd learn by the end something about the person. These days, it tends to be just an interviewer cracking bad jokes.'
Trivia: Murray supports the Toronto Blue Jays baseball team.
Rachel Riley (Co host)
Born: January 11, 1986 in Rochford, Essex
Best Known For: Countdown.
Early-life: Rachel Annabelle Riley was born in Rochford, Essex, on January 11, 1986. She studied mathematics at Oriel College, Oxford.
Career: Riley's big break came in 2008 when she was chosen from more than 1,000 applicants to replace Carol Vorderman on Countdown. She presented her first show alongside Jeff Stelling in January 2009, and reached her 1,000th episode in June 2013. Away from the numbers and letters on Countdown, she began co-hosting The Gadget Show alongside Jason Bradbury in June 2013. She was a contestant on Strictly Come Dancing in 2013 and was the fifth celebrity to be eliminated.
Quote: 'I don't want girls to aspire to being famous for the sake of being famous. If I was only known for wearing a dress, that wouldn't have any value for me.'
Trivia: Riley won £36,000 for charity on a celebrity edition of The Bank Job. She supports Manchester United.
Susie Dent (Contributor)
Kelvin Fletcher (Guest)
Born: January 17, 1984 in Oldham
Best Known For: Playing Andy Sugden in Emmerdale.
Early-life: Born Kelvin Warren Fletcher in Oldham on January 17, 1984, Kelvin started acting at an early age by attending Saturday morning drama classes at the Oldham Theatre Workshop. As a child actor, he appeared on the stage as Tom Sawyer at the Grand Theatre, Manchester, and appeared on TV in episodes of Three Seven Eleven, Cracker, Chiller and Heartbeat.
Career: His big break came in 1996 when he joined the cast of Emmerdale as Andy Hopwood. Following a troubled childhood, 10-year-old Andy's luck changed when he was fostered by Jack and Sarah Sugden. To help ease Jack's financial problems, Andy hit on the idea of destroying a barn for the insurance money but he didn't know Sarah was in the building with her lover Richie when he set it on fire. She died but Richie managed to escape. Andy went on to have a baby with his first girlfriend Katie. They eventually married but the relationship did not last when Katie fell for his adoptive brother Robert. Andy had a baby with Debbie Dingle but that relationship did not last either. He confessed to setting the fire that killed Sarah and was sentenced to three years in prison. While incarcerated, Andy married Jo Stiles. When he was released, he discovered that everything had changed. The farm was losing money and Jo had lost the lease. It wasn't long before Andy began taking his frustration out on Jo by hitting her. Jo decided that her best course of action was to leave him. Following a breakdown, Andy sought professional help and began repairing friendships.
Quote: 'I hope I can show that I've got a little bit of talent. I'm very fortunate now in that I have my first love, which is drama and acting, for a living and I'm also managing to go racing as well.'
Trivia: Fletcher has won two British Soap Awards. In 2013, he achieved his childhood dream of competing in the Porsche GT3 Cup series.
Damian Eadie (Series producer)
Born: August 15, 1969 in Blackpool

Before / After

-

Cheers
06:25 am