Carol Vorderman: 'Best kiss of my life? There's a long list'

Born in Bedfordshire, Carol Vorderman, 65, studied engineering at Cambridge and used her mathematical skill to join Channel 4’s Countdown, which she co‑hosted from 1982 to 2008. Since 1999 she has presented the Pride of Britain awards and was awarded an MBE in 2000.

She has published educational workbooks and self‑help guides; her latest paperback is Now What? A People’s Manifesto for a Better Britain, and she is a team captain on Channel 5’s Celebrity Puzzling. Vorderman is twice divorced, has two children and lives in Bristol.

She says she was happiest in the 1990s, when she was married to Paddy King, their two children were young and her mother lived with them while Countdown was the channel’s biggest show. She describes herself as independent, curious and funny, and admits she still says yes to too many things; the trait she most deplores in others is narcissism.

United Kingdom, Bristol

carol vorderman, countdown, channel 4, cambridge, engineering, pride awards, mbe, celebrity puzzling, now what, bristol