It might surprise you to know that Carol Vodeman is actually Welsh, half Dutch and born in Bedford, Bedfordshire. This eclectic mix gave rise to one of the most well known polymaths around along with her lengthy tenure on Countdown. It is a shame that her Mother took her back to Prestatyn because Bedford is a lovely county as the demand for Park Homes for Sale in Bedfordshire shows. Take a look at http://www.parkhomelife.com/our-parks/pine-view-park-homes-maulden-bedfordshire/.
She went to Cambridge University and came away with a third. To be fair she did go at 17, a full year before regular admittance. A pop career was on the cards as she and future Radio one DJ Liz Kershaw formed Dawn Chorus and the Blue Tit’s. Nothing came of it and she returned home to work at the hydroelectric power station in Llanberis.
She still did a bit of radio work but it was a chance advertisement spotted by her Mother that set her on to TV stardom. The advert said “wanted:a woman with good mathematical skills to co host quiz show” This was to be on the newly created Channel 4. And so it was that 21 year old Carol got to appear with Richard Whitely as one of the first people to appear on the Channel on Countdown. Initially she just did the numbers round, displaying dazzling skill to get to the figure, and then moved on the words as well.
