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In Anne Robinsons first episode of Countdown she cuts an authoritative figure. Chatty and encouraging, the presenter many remember from her days as the cutting, contentious host of The Weakest Link is gone almost. Is that as fun as it sounds? she sarcastically asks her first contestant, Steve, of his job as an accountant. Some contestants I have to go much more gently with than I would have done on The Weakest Link, she explains. Others are brilliantly funny, and thats not always been exploited in the past.

When I speak to Robinson, shes already filmed her first 30 episodes. Quiz shows are notoriously demanding of their hosts and crew and Robinson has been filming five episodes a day in Salfords Media City, three days a week. But after more than 30 years working in television, the 76-year-old is dismissive of the hard work she puts in: Im used to long hours.

Robinson takes over as host of the long-running series today (on Channel 4, at 2:10pm) after Nick Hewer, once better known for his role as one of Lord Alan Sugars advisors on The Apprentice, announced he was leaving last December. She is determined to make the job her own and certainly doesnt take lightly the responsibility of steering the beloved 39-year-old series.

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Im professional, so I do worry, she says of her performance. I was anxious at the start simply because I hadnt done it before it would be stupid to think that I was going to be brilliant from day one. It took a bit of time to get my head round the grammar of the programme: where to go and who to talk to next.

The team have been incredibly welcoming, and she finds mathematician Rachel Riley and word expert Susie Dent very impressive. Hewer didnt give her any advice on how to handle the show, though Robinson is unsure of how helpful he would have been, given the changes the production has had to make to stay Covid-secure since he left. Sometimes the break between shows is 15 minutes and theres a very long, one-way system to get back to your dressing room, she says. Nick only had to change his jacket I have to change my whole outfit, get my hair done, redo my lipstick and maybe choose a new necklace.

Robinson was born in Crosby, and spent time in Liverpool as a young adult when she took charge of her mothers poultry dealing business. She started her media career as a trainee newspaper journalist at the Daily Mail in 1967 and went on to have success at The Sunday Times and the Daily Mirror and played a part in breaking huge stories, from the details of legendary music manager Brian Epsteins death to news of Princess Dianas eating disorder.

She moved into broadcasting in 1982 as a regular guest on Question Time, before taking the role as presenter of Points of View, where she stayed for 11 years. She still draws on her journalistic instincts to read how ironic she can be with contestants. In that sense, its no different from how she approached her tenure at The Weakest Link (which ran from 2000 to 2007) her style was funny and edgy in the noughties, but is now often recalled as cruel and bullish.

Viewers with a forgiving view of her performance on The Weakest Link which included mocking players over anything from their appearance (So you havent had any time to work on yourself then? she once asked a beauty therapist) to their perceived sexuality (Why are you dressed like a lesbian?) often put the controversy down to Robinson playing a character, but she doesnt ascribe to such a merciful assessment.

Those conversations arent any different from those youd hear in a newsroom. I never let a thought go unsaid what your mum would say while watching the telly at home. She argues that the competitors were far from lambs thrown to her verbal slaughter and were often in on the ruse.

Quiz show contestants are incredibly feisty and competitive, she adds. I remember asking one man why he was voting off another and he said, If you cant name the Teletubbies then you shouldnt be here.

When I ask how she feels about criticism of the show, she says it was a different time. You cant say a lot of the things that I said now. We have become much more woke. She points out that it took 16 years for Vanessa Feltz, who appeared on a celebrity version of the show, to decide she was upset over Robinsons question, How can someone like you attract gorgeous black boyfriends?

Theres a lot of self-censoring, adds Robinson. Theres a lot of television executives who are too scared to criticise or to allow anything on that has a bit of edge to it. I dont quite know who it is thats deciding I can say this and cant say that.

Robinson is in full support of the recent trend among cultural commentators and the tabloid press of anti-wokeness, then. She thinks the launch of GB News, Andrew Neils 24-hour news channel designed to challenge the homogeneity of the current media landscape, is terrific and refreshing, even if it does need to sort out the lighting.

Even if I dont agree with its more right-wing views, I think it will challenge the woke, which is important.

The broadcasters views on modern feminism in the wake of the #MeToo movement have made headlines in the last few years. On the Today programme in 2017, she said that Forty years ago there were very few of us women in power and we had a much more robust attitude to men behaving badly.

It sparked accusations of victim-blaming and internalised misogyny, but today, she doubles down: Were in a funny place only because my generation put up with all the sexism and got on with it, she says.

We have really terrible women too now that theyve got to the top jobs all that has become much more equal. But these clever women are often lacking in confidence. Im sympathetic to that, but it means that they dont deal with badly behaved blokes as I would.

Women arent naturally geared to the treachery of the workplace and, in my day, if you were there as a woman, you were pretty feisty to start off with. Thankfully, all those jobs are available to women, whether youre feisty or not.

How does she propose we tackle the confidence crisis she sees? I wish that instead of wasting their time doing a masters degree, women could spend a year learning how to cope with office life and how to negotiate a good salary. In her 2002 memoir, she wrote about doubling her salary, and getting a brand new Mercedes Benz included in her contract.

As Rory Bremner, Robinsons first celebrity guest in Dictionary Corner, points out at the top of the opening episode, more men called Des have hosted Countdown than women. Robinson is its first female presenter. Shes proud to hold the title theres one episode where everyone on screen is a woman, we did sort of punch the air a little bit but wishes her appointment didnt come as a surprise.

It shouldnt be astonishing to anyone. It sort of suggests that despite being a woman and therefore not as bright as a bloke Ive been asked to do a job that men normally do, she says.

Weve got a queen of England, weve had two female prime ministers, women can fly aircraft and be High Court judges and do everything men can do its time we took that as read.

You may as well say Im the first presenter with an O negative blood type.

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Countdowns new host Anne Robinson: Theres a lot of self-censoring on TV - iNews