CAROL WHO?

She caused controversy when she stepped into Carol Vorderman's stilettos. But who is the real Rachel Riley?

You can't help but feel a little sorry for Countdown's presenter Rachel Riley. Following in the footsteps of show stalwart Carol Vorderman was always going to be a tough gig - but not even Rachel could have prepared for the furore that followed her appointment last year.

Firstly, the 23-year-old Oxford graduate was deemed too young (Rachel wasn't even born when Carol picked up her first Countdown consonant 26 years ago).

Then critics called into question her maths credentials and branded her a beauty with no brain (hello, people - she's got a 2.1 degree in maths, what more do you need?).

For most of us, such a battering would have spelt disaster - quickly followed by r-e-s-i-g-n-a-t-i-o-n and then m-e-l-t-d-o-w-n. Not Rachel. Just like a cheery heroine in an Enid Blyton novel, she's taken the lashings on the chin.

"You can't please everyone and I knew the job was a bit of a poisoned chalice," says Rachel, who underwent a series of gruelling auditions, including playing the show's numbers game against the famous clock.

"Whatever people want to think, hiring me wasn't about age or looks, but my maths skills. On the day of my final interview, I nailed the numbers. End of story. I could have Angelina Jolie's looks and Stephen Hawking's brain and I'd still get criticised."

"I enjoy fashion but I'm rubbish at it"

Her beauty - as well as youth - has probably contributed to the backlash. Let's face it, some people are less forgiving of those blessed with looks and intelligence.

Out of the cardboard cut-out Countdown studio and into high fashion for today's futuristic shoot, 5ft 7in Rachel could easily be mistaken for a model. At first she's shy in front of the camera, but she quickly gets into her super sci-fi character, with dark purple glossed lips, sparkling silver eye make-up and backcombed hair. She may have an Einstein-esque IQ but, like her predecessor, this is a girl who is up for a giggle.

Much has been made of Rachel replacing 48-year-old Carol. Ultimately, it was Carol's decision to leave last year, albeit after bosses asked her to take a 90 per cent cut in her rumoured £1million salary.

Although the ageism row has raged all around them ever since, both Carol and Rachel have refused to be drawn in. Despite never meeting, Carol even sent Rachel a bunch of flowers to wish her luck on her first day.

Almost a year into the job, you'd have thought that both the critics and the die-hard Vorderman fans would have moved on and got over it. But Rachel is still under fire. Just last month the presenter was slated once again, this time for daring to wear a red body-con mini-dress, with one critic likening her look to that "of an LA hooker". Harsh? We think so.

Rachel before she sexed-up her look (left) and in that red mini-dress

"Sometimes it's hard when you hear things like that," Rachel admits. "But I just think: 'They don't know me. It's not personal.'"

But on the count of sexing-up her image, she is guilty as charged. Over the last few months Rachel's wardrobe has had the fashion equivalent of Viagra. The play-it-safe jumpers and trousers have been consigned to the charity bin, replaced instead with figure- hugging dresses, killer heels and thigh-high hemlines that have made headline news.

Again, critics sniped that subtracting her clothes was a ploy to multiply the viewing figures, which fell from 1.3 million to 650,000 soon after she took over the show with Sky Sports' Jeff Stelling, 53. Of mini-dress gate, he has joked: "I'm hoping the shortness of Rachel's dresses takes the attention away from the shortness of her co-host!"

But Rachel shakes her head at the idea that her frocks are part of a strategy to snare more viewers.

"If people are watching because they like my outfits then great - the more viewers the better - but I didn't consciously sex-up Countdown," she argues. "When I first started I bought clothes I thought a presenter should wear - jumpers and trousers."

Thankfully, Channel 4 came to the rescue and brought in stylist Janette Anderson. In the summer they hit London's Regent Street to solve Rachel's closet conundrum with a £10,000 clothing allowance.

"This time I went for clothes that suit my age," Rachel admits. "I'm no fashionista. I enjoy fashion, but I'm rubbish at it. I can't put an outfit together to save my life.

Half-woman - half calculator: what's inside Rachel's super-brain?

"We went to Banana Republic and Topshop and picked lots of dresses. I ended up with so many bags, I felt like Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman!"

Rachel says her new wardrobe has helped her performance, not detracted from it. "Now, once I've got my heels and outfit on, I go into Countdown mode," explains Rachel. "I feel like a different person. I'm more confident and I'm getting more numbers right - I think the new clothes make me a better presenter."

They have also boosted her sex symbol status, something that prompts an embarrassed giggle. "I don't feel sexy so being a sex symbol sounds weird," she protests.

"My first priority on the show is the numbers. If I look good then great, but if I don't, I'm not bothered. After filming I'm not rushing backstage to check my make-up, I'm checking I've got my sums right. I'm a numbers geek."

She has, however, attracted unwanted attention in the form of some very strange fan mail. "One guy wrote in to say he's got my name tattooed on his body," explains Rachel. "Another letter was from a man writing about his unconventional sex life."

It all sounds rather sinister and you can't help but feel protective of one of telly's youngest recruits. After all, female celebrities like DJs Zoë Ball and Fearne Cotton, BBC journalist Emily Maitlis and model Lisa Snowdon have all fallen victim to obsessive stalkers. Rachel, however, insists she's not worried. "It doesn't freak me out because they don't know me. If they don't know me, they can't hurt me. And if a weirdo really wants to find me, they'll find me," she says.

If Rachel's down-to-earth attitude seems far removed from that of your average TV star, it's perhaps because her life is a million miles from celebville.

She still lives at home in Southend, Essex, with her charity fund-raiser mum Celia and accountant dad Chris, is still paying off her student loan, and gets her hair cut in the same salon she's visited since she was 13.

On paper, her life mirrors that of other 20-somethings. But not many have a job with a reported £100,000 salary.

Rachel beat over 1,000 applicants to bag what she terms "the coolest maths job around". As well as a face - and body - for TV, her academic record set her apart from the others. She achieved straight As in maths, further maths, physics and French at A level. She then attended Oxford University's prestigious Oriel College - her application form stated: "Rachel is one of the most talented physicists her teacher has taught in 30 years."

At school, classmates called her 'The Boff', but she insists she was never bullied. "It was harmless and just because I was the brainiest girl in junior school," she explains. "At grammar school I was in the top group, but all the girls were clever."

But even a super-brain like her can occasionally get it wrong, much to the delight of the die-hard 'Vorderfans'. Since her debut in January, Rachel's fluffed a few calculations against the 30-second clock, including one on her first day. There's even an area of YouTube dedicated to her blunders.

"I did struggle with some of the sums at first, but when you're flying through them you're not going to get them all," she admits.

Thank goodness for that. Further proof that the half-woman, half-calculator has a sense of humour can be found when it comes to the words and spelling side of Countdown.

"I once spelt out 'penises' and put it on the board but it got edited out. If the contestant had suggested it they'd have won, but they were worried it would end up on YouTube. Another time I came up with 'horniest'. That was funny," she says.

And that's about as naughty as Ms Riley gets. Don't expect to see her falling out of clubs à la Sarah Harding any time soon.

With boyfriend Jamie Gilbert

"I like a drink, a couple of G&Ts, but I'd rather go out for dinner than spend the night getting drunk in the VIP area of a club," she says. "I'd never dare try to blag my way into one anyway - nobody would know who I am!"

We're not so sure. One man with Rachel on his radar is T4 presenter and legendary Lothario, Steve Jones, who said of her: "I'm thinking: 'Get a bikini on now!" Response, Rachel?

"Bikinis are a no-go on Countdown - they'd have to put Jeff in Speedos and that wouldn't work!" she jokes.

Presumably Rachel's boyfriend, Jamie Gilbert, would also have some objection? Rachel has been dating the 27 year old for four years since meeting at Oxford where he was studying classics. He drives his dad's Lamborghini Diablo, works for the family's high-end computer company and lives with his parents in their multimillion-pound Surrey home. Their old place sold for £3.5million - to the equally flash Cheryl and Ashley Cole.

"I was there when they were pretty much signing contracts," recalls Rachel, who names Cheryl as her style icon. "It was a bit surreal."

However, there are no plans for an extravagant WAG-style wedding for Rachel and Jamie any time soon.

"I'd love a big white dress but that's about as far as I've thought. It's a long way off and I'm really young," she says. With typical level-headedness, Rachel adds: "I'd really like to buy a place of my own, but I have to see if I can get a mortgage first."

Somehow we think making the numbers add up will be the last thing she'll have a problem with.

LIFE OF RILEY

What's the naughtiest thing you've done as an adult?
I had a party when I was 14 and my parents were away. I got seriously grounded. My brother, Alex, who's 21, is the rebellious one.

Have you ever gone to work drunk after a night out?
When I was 18 I used to work in a call centre Friday nights and Saturday mornings so, yes.

What's guaranteed to make you lose your temper?
Loose Women. It drives me nuts. One minute they're discussing man boobs, the next it's immigration. They don't know what they're talking about!

Ever been confused with another celebrity?
I was at a government maths do and somebody thought I was Gwyneth Paltrow.

Which Sex and the City character are you?
I'm practical like Miranda, but girlie like Charlotte.

Who last offended you?
Some friends said: "You look a lot skinnier in real life" which I interpret as: "TV doesn't do you any favours". They were being complimentary, but it came out wrong.

When did you last release your inner bitch?
A couple of weeks ago, arguing about bank charges.

What's your biggest regret?
I don't have any.

• Watch Rachel on Countdown, weekdays, 3.25pm, Channel 4.

PHOTOGRAPHY: TILLEN AND DOVE, REX, IMAGES INTERNATIONAL LTD HAIR: ENZO VOLPE AT ODELS 1 MAKE-UP: ROZELLE PARRY AT JOY GOODMAN RACHEL WEARS (TOP): VEST AND LEGGINGS, BOTH HOSS; SHOES, ZARA; (MIDDLE) DRESS: PINKO; HEELS, NEW LOOK

• Myleene Klass mans up for Fabulous!
• I've found true love - babies are next!
• Kim Kardashian on her famous derrière
• The new leaders of the fash pack
• The Queen of broken hearts
• Katie Price exclusive interview

This article has 30 comments