Countdown star Susie Dent has addressed viewers’ concerns that she sometimes appears to be “drunk” on the show.
The lexicographer, who has appeared on the Channel 4 gameshow as its dictionary corner expert since 1992, says that caffeine causes her to slur her words.
“The thing that visibly affects me most is caffeine,” she told The Mirror, adding: “My body goes into toxic shock.”
Dent said that caffeine intake causes her to “get incredibly cold and start shivering”, adding that the “freezing cold” studio where the show is filmed makes matters worse.
“My lips go absolutely black with cold and I start slurring my words,” she said, quipping: “I seem much more drunk than I would have done had I had a couple of gin slings.
Dent recalled that one time, while appearing as a panelist on a celebrity quiz show, it “genuinely sounded like [she] was slurring”.
“I did get a couple of tweets saying ‘Susie has been on the sauce,’ but I honestly hadn’t,” she said.
Anne Robinson recently made her debut as the new host of Countdown, which began in 1982. Dent also appears in 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown, presented by Jimmy Carr.
On Friday’s episode of countdown (16 July), Rachel Riley criticised Twitter as “a cesspit of hate” in response to negative comments she’s received in the past.
