Countdown (game show)
Countdown originated from the format of the French game show Des chiffres et des lettres (Numbers and Letters), created by Armand Jammot. After watching the programme, Belgian record executive Marcel Stellman brought the format to Britain on the belief it could be popular overseas and proposed his concept for the British version to several networks. The concept was purchased in the early 1980s by Yorkshire Television which commissioned a series of eight shows under the title Calendar Countdown, aimed at being a spin-off of their regional news programme Calendar with the programme's host Richard Whiteley deemed the natural choice for the concept. The spin-off was aired only in the Yorkshire area, with Whiteley earning the nickname of "Twice Nightly Whiteley" because of his daily appearances on both programmes. He was assisted by Cathy Hytner and Denise McFarland-Cruickshanks who handled the letters and numbers rounds respectively.