Countdown (game show) Stelling was confirmed as the new host, with Oxford graduate Rachel Riley in the Vorderman role. It was announced on 24 May 2011 that Stelling would be leaving the programme, and he presented his final show on 16 December 2011. On 16 November 2011, it was announced that Nick Hewer would be taking over as host, with his first show broadcast on 9 January 2012. "Countdown" quickly established cult status within British television – an image which it maintains today, despite numerous changes of rules and personnel. The programme's audience comprises mainly students, homemakers and pensioners, owing to the "teatime"
Countdown (game show) the show, he hit the button to reveal the conundrum and kept his old habit up. Contestants who have or had become notable for other reasons include "Nuts" magazine editor-at-large Pete Cashmore, rugby player Ayoola Erinle, footballers Neil MacKenzie, Clarke Carlisle and Matt Le Tissier, musicians Jon Marsh and Nick Saloman, comedian Alex Horne, and noted Irish playwright Peter Sheridan. "Countdown" is often referenced and parodied in British culture. The "Doctor Who" episode "Bad Wolf" (2005) mentions a futuristic version of "Countdown", in which the goal is to stop a bomb from exploding in 30 seconds. "Countdown" was referenced again