Colin Murray breaks silence on Anne Robinson’s Countdown feud with Rachel Riley
COUNTDOWN host Colin Murray has lifted the lid on former show host Anne Robinson’s feud with Rachel Riley.
Colin stepped in to become the face of the long-running Channel 4 game show when Anne decided to step down after a short tenure in the hot seat amid rumours of a bitter feud with co-star Rachel Riley.
Now in a chat with The Mirror, Colin has admitted that things changed on the show during Anne’s run.
Although he confessed he has never met the former Weakest Link star, he said that morale on the show appeared to be at its lowest during her controversial stint.
He told the publication about him taking over from the star: “The atmosphere has changed and that’s huge.”
During Anne’s time on the show, it was littered with headlines of explosive fall-outs on set with Rachel, something the pair have had little to say on publicly.
The Sun previously reported on how Anne, 77, clashed with co-star Rachel, 36, over dressing rooms, make-up artists and wardrobe budgets backstage.
Rachel, a show favourite since joining in 2009 with then-host Jeff Stelling, has done little to disguise her apparent dislike of Anne.
An on-set source told The Sun at the time: “They film five episodes a day so it’s pretty full-on.
“When they meet there is very little small talk.
“Anne was overheard saying ‘Hello’ and asking how Rachel’s day was going.
“Basically, if looks could kill then Anne would be six feet under. Everyone was laughing.
“Anne is a stickler for time-keeping, and doesn’t like seeing the younger crew members, including Rachel, on their phones, on Twitter, constantly. Basically the two women are worlds apart.”
Elsewhere, during his chat with The Mirror, Colin admitted that he told Channel 4 bosses, he would only step in to cover for Anne if they allowed him to do so for three months in the hopes of gaining the role permanently.
He confessed that the Countdown gig has been his dream presenting role throughout his entire career.
Colin has previously filled in for Nick Hewer when he took a break during Covid but was left disheartened when Channel 4 chose Anne in place of him when Nick quit for good.
Speaking about his role, he said: “I think my words were, ‘You’ve got to give me a run of three months’.”
He later received a call from his boss to confirm he had been chosen to continue with the show full time.
Colin said: “And that was it. I’ve got a two-year contract and in December we got the highest ratings in 10 years.”