After just a year in the 'hot seat' Anne Robinson is stepping down as the host of Countdown host. Fans of the show quickly took to Twitter after the news broke with mix feelings about the move.
Famed for her acerbic quips on the Weakest Link, the 77-year old star said: “I’ve had a blast hosting this wonderful show. And I stayed longer than I signed up for. Now it is time for an older woman to take the reins.”
Anne joined the Channel 4 quiz show last year, becoming its sixth presenter and the first female to take the role. She recorded a total of 265 episodes of the show.
READ MORE: Frustration in Forest Fields as neighbours 'miss out' on restaurant turned down over noise concerns
She said: “I hope too I’ve encouraged TV bosses to realise that not all women at the wrong end of their seventies are in care homes playing bingo and watching conjuring tricks. In fact the genius of Countdown is that it’s a brilliant way to keep the brain exercised."
According to PA News Agency, Robinson added that she is both physically and mentally fit, saying: "I run 5k most days of the week. And I can now do an anagram at twice the speed I could this time last year. But I have grandchildren, a large garden and a home in New York, all deserving more of my attention.”
Fans had a mixed reaction to the news. One fan taking to Twitter said: "Aww that’s a shame. Wish she could head up The Weakest Link again. She was brilliant on that." Another wrote: "Oh wow. I enjoyed her on there as host."
Another Twitter user suggested a replacement, writing: "Give the job to @AnnekaRice #Countdown #channel4 @Channel4". While another lamented: "I wish Anne would return to the weakest link." Other suggestions included: "Do they need a host really after all Susie Dent and Rachel Riley could handle that so easily on their own."
Robinson followed in the footsteps of Richard Whiteley, Des Lynam, Des O’Connor, Jeff Stelling and Nick Hewer as the presenter of Countdown, which launched in 1982. However, not everyone loved Anne's style. One Twitter user responded to the announcement that she was leaving the show: "Good. Sarcastic and uninterested in the competitors. It's not the weakest link."
Another said: "I don’t know why she got the job in the first place. Her presenting style is completely inappropriate for the show. They need somebody a lot more personable." Someone else added: "Good, completely spoilt the show for me, I look forward to watching it again!"
Robinson joined the daytime show last year alongside mathematician Rachel Riley and lexicographer Susie Dent, with her first instalment broadcasting on June 28. In November 2021 Riley dismissed reports of a “feud” between her and co-star Robinson, telling ITV’s Lorraine: “You know not to believe tabloids. I think it is just you have got some women there now so they want to make something up." Adding: “I have seen all the headlines of the feuds escalating. I have been on maternity leave for about six to eight weeks or something.”
Speaking about Robinson’s famously icy public persona, Riley told Lorraine Kelly: “She is not the cuddliest person in the world. It is just a different show now. She is making it her own. She is getting stuff out of the contestants. Sometimes it is barbed, sometimes it is funny. She has got a different flavour.”
She will appear in shows until the summer with a new host announced in due course, Channel 4 said. A show spokesperson said: “Quick-witted Anne has been a brilliant host on this iconic show.”
