Des and Carol were always going to be a very hard act to follow but we think Jeff and Rachel are settling in brilliantly. Jeff has a natural warmth, coupled with a fierce intelligence which seems to fit perfectly with the show – and he has brought with him an army of fans from his Soccer Saturday show on Sky. After every recording, the long queue of audience members requesting his autograph is testament to how popular he is. Some viewers have complained that he talks about sport too much, so Jeff is trying very hard to limit his footie references!

Rachel is going from strength to strength and we are delighted to have found such an incredible talent. Despite never having set foot in a TV studio before, she has lost her early nerves and is now solving the most incredible sums with ease. She really is a maths genius and the proportion of men watching the show has noticeably increased – we’re not sure if this is down to Jeff or Rachel! Rachel’s high heels attracted a great deal of interest at the beginning, with many viewers commenting that they adversely affected her posture. The truth is that Rachel only saw herself on TV for the first time after having recorded six weeks’ worth of shows! Having seen herself, she swapped the sky-high heels for some lower ones and her posture has definitely improved as a result.

The biggest complaint by far has been that we don’t put the words up on the board enough. Again, by the time we realised how important this was to viewers, we had recorded several weeks’ worth of shows. But we have now addressed the issue and I hope those who rang us to ask that we start putting them up again will feel that we have listened to your views and taken action.

Overall, the response to the relaunch has been tremendously positive, with viewers particularly enjoying the fact that the game itself has now taken centre stage. Some viewers still miss Des’s showbiz stories and Carol’s glamour and charisma – which is completely understandable as they are both great TV talents – but we hope that viewers will agree that having new presenters is a better option than losing the show altogether.

Countdown is now in its 27th year and we are so pleased to have it on Channel 4. Now that things are settling down again after such a tumultuous year, we can look forward to enjoying it for many years to come.

On behalf of the Countdown team, I’d like to say thankyou to everyone who has contacted us to share their thoughts – we always appreciate feedback from our viewers, so please leave your comments below if there’s anything more you’d like to say…

Regular fans of the daytime dinner-party competition will absolutely love the hour-long peak-time version, which features all four dinner parties in one show. I really hope you enjoy it because I think it’s one of the best series ever! Not that I’m biased of course. But where else would you get food fights, backstabbing, sexual tension, drunkenness, great cooking, terrible cooking and even throwing up – and that’s just one episode.

This week we also welcomed Paul O’Grady back onto our screens in the tough 5 o’clock slot. I was so delighted to see him beat The Weakest Link, Goldenballs and Neighbours in the ratings – glad to see you viewers know real class when you see it! Paul and his team are a joy to work with – I don’t know how they manage to make such ambitious, entertaining shows day in, day out, but I’m constantly in awe of their sheer brilliance.

Paul is feeling relaxed after his break (in a caravan in Rhyl, so he says) – but his good mood won’t last, thank God. Paul’s legendary rants and rages against everything from parking meters to the taxman are what make him so unique. He is genuinely one of the funniest and kindest men I’ve ever met, both on and off-screen. Years ago, when I was a producer on This Morning in Liverpool, Paul’s stints as Lily Savage were so hotly fought over by us producers that (allegedly) blows were exchanged on occasion.

And talking of This Morning, which of course was then presented by Richard & Judy, this August we will sadly be waving goodbye to the king and queen of daytime, after 7 very successful years with Channel 4. They have decided that the time is right to move on to new challenges and we will certainly miss them very much.

Obviously, Richard and Judy’s departure leaves a big gap in our schedule and we’re currently thinking about how we might replace them. Who or what would you like to see in its place? I’d love to hear your thoughts.