A Quick Chat With: Carol Vorderman

"I was really surprised my dress didn't fall down at the Baftas"

Carol Vorderman (Getty Images)

Carol Vorderman, 49, is a celebrity best known known for co-presenting the game show Countdown from 1982 until 2008.

A phrase I use far too often is… “that sounds fantastic.” I get carried away with ideas and say yes to things I don't have time to do.

I wish people would take more notice of… maths. I wish they'd stop saying "ooh maths is boring, it should be more fun”.

A common misperception of me is… that I only eat healthy food. When I’m in the supermarket, people stare into my trolley and if they see anything that isn’t detoxing they say “ooh Carol, what are those biscuits doing in there?”. Yes, I eat biscuits. Sometimes. And I drink wine. A lot of the time. And I love chips - although not from the supermarket.

The most surprising thing that happened to me was… going to the Baftas with a slippy down strapless dress which didn’t fall off. When I saw the papers the next day, I was really surprised it hadn't!

I’m not a politician but… if I were I'd stop gold plated pension policies for those who were unable to be sacked and bore no direct responsibility for overspends or appalling service. They're on a different planet.

I’m good at… samba dancing. I dance in body paint at the Rio carnival every year under the name Fabiana. That's in my dreams of course.

I’m bad at… cooking. I get so bored that I walk out of the kitchen and while the food is cooking on the hob I might have a bath or write a dozen emails and forget all about it. I'm always, always burning things.

My ideal night out… would be in New York City with my friends. Walking, drinking, music, ice skating, laughing, comedy, music, drinking, music, drinking etc.

In moments of weakness I… champagne and chocolate and cake and chips.

In another life I'd have been... a samba dancer at the Rio carnival. I'd call myself Fabiana. Have I mentioned that before?

The best age to be is… any age. Any age is good as long as you’re still breathing. Better than the alternative.

In a nutshell, my philosophy is… Laugh. Ignore people you don’t like. Who cares what they think or do, and have a lot of great, er... dancing!

Carol Vorderman’s online maths Summer School is at www.themathsfactor.com