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The Countdown conundrum... First woman in 26 years wins TV challenge... but why has it taken so long?


A female accountant has become the first woman in 26 years to win the final of Channel 4 quiz show Countdown.

The long wait for a woman with sufficient word power ended after a final match between Fiona Wood, from Kinross, Scotland and Chris Kirby, an account manager from Cheshire. The team behind Countdown, currently co-hosted by Rachel Riley and Colin Murray, with lexicographer Susie Dent in Dictionary Corner, had long explained that fewer women than men applied to take part. Triumphant Ms Wood, 50, a forensic accountant, said: 'I decided to apply after Colin appealed for older contestants, with Susie adding that they wanted more women.

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