Carol Vorderman

Vorderman was born on 24 December 1960{{Cite Instagram |user=carolvorders |postid=C1MhpKLI0j4 |date=23 December 2023 |title=Christmas Carol|access-date=23 March 2023}} in Bedford, Bedfordshire, the youngest of three children of a Dutch father, Anton Vorderman (1920–2007), and a Welsh mother, Edwina Jean Davies (1928–2017).Who Do You Think You Are?, 27 September 2007. Her parents separated three weeks after her birth, and her mother took the family back to her home town of Prestatyn, Flintshire, North Wales, where Vorderman and her brother and sisterFamily Fortunes, 11 February 2012 grew up. Vorderman did not see her father again until she was 42. In 1970, her mother remarried, separating ten years later.Piers Morgan's Life Stories, 27 April 2012 Vorderman's father remarried; his wife died in the early 1990s.

Vorderman was educated at Blessed Edward Jones Catholic High School in nearby Rhyl. In 1978, aged 17, she began studying engineering at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge. She left with a third-class degree, a result which she has described as having been "disappointing".{{Cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/passedfailed-carol-vorderman-1249858.html|title=PASSED/FAILED: Carol Vorderman|date=1997-07-10|website=The Independent|language=en|access-date=2019-01-08}} Vorderman did not trace the Dutch side of her family until 2007 (as part of the BBC genealogy programme Who Do You Think You Are?). It was only then that she discovered that her father had been an active member of the Dutch resistance during the Nazi occupation. He died while the programme was being filmed. Her great-grandfather Adolphe Vorderman played a key role in the discovery of vitamins.{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/whodoyouthinkyouare/past-stories/carol-vorderman.shtml|title=Who Do You Think You Are? – Carol Vorderman|publisher=BBC One|access-date=8 August 2010}}

Vorderman initially found employment as a junior civil engineer at Dinorwig Power Station in Llanberis, Wales, and later as a graduate management trainee in Leeds. In her spare time, she was briefly a backing singer with friend Lindsay Forrest in the Leeds-based pop group Dawn Chorus and the Blue Tits, fronted by radio DJ Liz Kershaw during the early 1980s.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZO3krUsS34AC&q=%27Dawn+Chorus+and+the+Blue+Tits%27+vorderman&pg=PT137|title=It All Counts|isbn=9780755360109|last1=Vorderman|first1=Carol|date=16 September 2010|publisher=Headline }}

The group recorded, among other songs, a version of The Undertones' hit "Teenage Kicks" (one of the tracks Vorderman had to identify during the "intros round" when she appeared on Never Mind the Buzzcocks in December 2009; the series often includes questions from contestants' pasts).

During 1984–85, Vorderman made regular appearances on the Peter Levy show on Radio Aire, appearing mid-morning to read a story for pre-school children. In the mid-1980s, Vorderman worked part-time in the Information Services Department of the UK Atomic Energy Authority, principally in the production of in-house video programmes.

{{Main|Countdown (game show)|l1=Countdown}}

Vorderman's mother noticed an advertisement in The Yorkshire Post{{Cite tweet |last=Volderman |first=Carol|user=carolvorders|number=1655127716604067840|date=7 May 2023|title=I got my job on Countdown when my Mum read about it in YP when we moved to Leeds in 1982}} asking for "a woman with good mathematical skills" {{Citation needed|date=March 2020}} to appear as co-host on a quiz show for the fledgling fourth terrestrial channel. She submitted an application on behalf of her daughter, then aged 21. Vorderman appeared on Countdown from the show's inception in 1982 until 2008.{{cite web|url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/carol-vorderman-quits-tv-quiz-2166411 |title=Carol Vorderman quits TV quiz Countdown |publisher=Welsh Media Ltd |quote=As the first woman to appear on Channel 4, Welsh television presenter Carol Vorderman and her sculpted, 1980s bouffant hair became the icon of a generation |date=26 July 2008 |access-date=18 April 2014 |work=WalesOnline website}}

Initially, Vorderman's only contribution to the show was the numbers game, and she formed part of a five-person presentation team, billed as one of the "vital statisticians" along with Linda Barrett.{{cite web|url=http://www.thecountdownpage.com/hosts.htm|title=Hosts|access-date=30 June 2022}} However, over the following years, the team was pared down, and Vorderman began handling tiles for both the letters and numbers games.Carol Vorderman, It All Counts (Headline Publishing Group, 2010). {{ISBN|978-0-7553-6010-9}} Vorderman thus became a new type of game show hostess, revealing her intellectual ability by carrying out fast and accurate arithmetic calculations during the numbers game to reach an exact solution if neither contestant was able to do so. Her lasting success on the show led to her becoming one of the highest-paid women in Britain, ultimately earning her an estimated £1 million per year.{{citation needed|date=September 2013}}

In June 2005, the producers of Countdown asked Vorderman if she wanted to fill the role of main presenter vacated by the recently deceased Richard Whiteley. Vorderman declined, and a search for a new presenter began while the show went into a four-month hiatus. In October 2005, Des Lynam replaced Whiteley and co-hosted with Vorderman. In January 2007, Des O'Connor replaced Lynam while Vorderman continued to co-host the show. On 25 July 2008, after 26 unbroken years with the show, it was announced that Vorderman was stepping down from Countdown. She later said she had resigned after failing to agree terms for a new contract, and it was reported that she had been asked to take a cut of 90% from her previous salary, estimated as £900,000.{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/7527091.stm |title=Entertainment | Vorderman 'forced' to quit quiz |publisher=BBC News|date=26 July 2008 |access-date=24 September 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101128100621/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7527091.stm|archive-date=28 November 2010}} She had considered leaving the show when the show's original host Richard Whiteley died in 2005, but remained on the show when Lynam took over, and until 2008 when his eventual replacement O'Connor announced he was also to step down as the show's host.{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7526290.stm|title=Carol Vorderman quits Countdown|publisher=BBC News|date=25 July 2008|access-date=8 August 2010}} Vorderman and O'Connor both left the show in December 2008.{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7728744.stm |title=Vorderman and O'Connor's final show |publisher=BBC News |date=14 November 2008 |access-date=23 September 2011}}

Vorderman recorded her last Countdown show on 13 November 2008 which was broadcast on 12 December 2008. Both of her children were in the audience, together with many of the previous guests from "Dictionary Corner". After the prizegiving at the end of the show, Des O'Connor was presented with a bouquet of flowers by the show's lexicographer Susie Dent, and Vorderman received one from Gyles Brandreth. She was too moved to complete her farewells. A special show, One Last Consonant, Please Carol, hosted by Brandreth and featuring Vorderman's highs and lows during the 26 years of the show, was also filmed and transmitted just before her final Countdown appearance.{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/celebritynews/3452989/Carol-Vorderman-ends-Countdown-career.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090721014835/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/celebritynews/3452989/Carol-Vorderman-ends-Countdown-career.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=21 July 2009 |title=Carol Vorderman ends Countdown career|work=The Daily Telegraph|date=13 November 2008 |access-date=8 August 2010|location=London}}

After leaving Countdown, Vorderman continued to contribute her column to the British magazine Reveal. Channel 4 admitted in 2009 that all Countdown presenters had always worn earpieces, and that producers would "sometimes supply extra ideas as there are often multiple options to ensure viewers are given the best possible answers." A source close to Vorderman denied that she had worn an earpiece or cheated in her mental arithmetic answers.{{cite news|url=https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/a159104/vorderman-outraged-over-countdown/|title=Vorderman 'outraged' over 'Countdown'|date=10 June 2009|website=digitalspy.com}}

{{Main|Loose Women}}

In July 2011, Vorderman and Sally Lindsay were tipped for roles on Loose Women following ITV's decision to axe Kate Thornton and Zoë Tyler from the programme.{{cite web|last=Love|first=Ryan|title=Carol Vorderman, Sally Lindsay tipped for 'Loose Women'|url=http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tv/news/a329606/carol-vorderman-sally-lindsay-tipped-for-loose-women.html|work=Digital Spy|date=13 July 2011}} This was later confirmed, with Vorderman presenting her first live show on 5 September 2011.{{cite web|last=Love|first=Ryan|title=Sally Lindsay: 'I'm ready to be a Loose Woman'|url=http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tv/news/a331865/sally-lindsay-im-ready-to-be-a-loose-woman.html|work=Digital Spy|date=27 July 2011}} From September 2011 to June 2013, Vorderman and fellow Loose Women host Andrea McLean hosted two to three shows per week. However, after the show returned from its summer break in September 2013, she began to host one episode per week, with McLean anchoring the remaining four. On 3 October 2013, it was announced that former Loose Women presenter Kaye Adams would be returning to the show later in the year and Ruth Langsford would join the panel in January 2014. Adams, Langsford and Andrea McLean hosted the show in rotation, with Vorderman remaining as an occasional presenter on the programme, usually presenting one episode a fortnight.{{cite web|last=Fletcher|first=Alex|title=Coleen Nolan, Kaye Adams return to 'Loose Women'|url=http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tv/news/a520600/coleen-nolan-kaye-adams-return-to-loose-women.html|work=Digital Spy|date=3 October 2013}}

On 14 July 2014, Vorderman announced her departure as a presenter on Loose Women. Vorderman explained:

{{blockquote|I am getting into the hard work for my planning and training to go round the world next year. In the first two years on Loose I did over 100 days a year but in the last year I have only managed just over 20 days because I kept having to cancel days due to other work commitments. I tried appearing just once a week up until Christmas and I just couldn't do it. I write a lot of educational books and have a big maths website so my time is spent with those too. I like to do things properly and it's unfair to commit to something half-heartedly.}}

Vorderman is the presenter of the annual Pride of Britain Awards, which are televised by ITV. She began hosting the awards when they were introduced in 1999. In 2004, Vorderman took part in the second series of Strictly Come Dancing, partnered with professional dancer Paul Killick. She was the second celebrity to be eliminated from the show. She guest presented Have I Got News for You in 2004 and 2006 and also presented an episode of The Sunday Night Project. Vorderman guest presented 15 episodes of Lorraine in 2011. She presented the ITV Food show Food Glorious Food in 2013. In March 2013, Vorderman recorded an ITV gameshow pilot called Revolution. On 29 June 2013, it was announced that the show had been "scrapped" by ITV.{{Cite web|url=http://www.digitalspy.com/tv/a494358/carol-vorderman-quiz-revolution-scrapped-after-pilot/|title=Carol Vorderman quiz Revolution scrapped|first=Catherine|last=Earp|date=29 June 2013|website=Digital Spy}}

In 2016, Vorderman finished in eighth place in the sixteenth series of I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! On 7 April 2020, Vorderman appeared on The Great Stand Up to Cancer Bake Off and won. Broadcast on S4C on 19 April 2020, Vorderman took part in the show {{lang|cy|Iaith ar Daith}} ('Language Road Trip') and, with the help of Owain Wyn Evans, learned Welsh and completed various challenges in the language. An extra episode, {{lang|cy|Iaith ar Daith 'Dolig}} ('Language Road Trip: Christmas') was broadcast at the end of 2020, interviewing each of the celebrities about whether they were still making use of their Welsh and the opportunities they had had to use Welsh during lockdown.{{cite web |url=https://www.boomcymru.co.uk/cynnwys/iaith-ar-daith-dolig/?lang=en |title=Iaith ar Daith 'Dolig |trans-title=Language Road Trip: Christmas |publisher=Boom Cymru |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20210131125652/https://www.boomcymru.co.uk/cynnwys/iaith-ar-daith-dolig/?lang=en |archivedate=31 January 2021 |accessdate=31 January 2021 }}

In 2023, Vorderman appeared in I'm a Celebrity... South Africa.{{Cite web |date=2023-03-26 |title=I'm A Celebrity Unveils Line-Up For Upcoming All Stars Series In South Africa |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/im-a-celebrity-south-africa-all-stars-series-unveils-line-up_uk_641feb28e4b03793a8b004ec |access-date=2023-03-26 |website=HuffPost UK}} On 16 June 2023, she appeared as herself in Episode 1 of the BBC One comedy Queen of Oz. Vorderman is seen and heard on her radio programme questioning the outrageous antics of spoiled spare to the British crown, Princess Georgiana, played by Catherine Tate.

After leaving the BBC in 2023, Vorderman was an occasional guest host on LBC. In January 2024, two months after her BBC departure, she was to present her own show from 4pm to 7pm on Sunday afternoons. She said "I'll be using my voice – as you might expect – to cause a commotion. I won't be shy to say things that others won't and I'll hold the corrupt to account without fear or favour."{{cite news| last=Topping | first=Alexandra | title=Carol Vorderman vows to 'cause a commotion' with LBC radio show |newspaper=The Guardian | date=11 January 2024 | url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2024/jan/11/carol-vorderman-vows-to-cause-a-commotion-with-lbc-radio-show}} Vorderman announced on 11 October 2024 that she would leave LBC following a "health scare".

Vorderman has had newspaper columns in The Daily Telegraph, and in the Daily Mirror on Internet topics. She has written books on Detox diets. Her No. 1 bestseller was Detox For Life, produced in collaboration with Ko Chohan and Anita Bean and published by Virgin Books, which sold over a million copies. Many school textbooks have been published under her name, chiefly by Dorling Kindersley in series such as English Made Easy, Maths Made Easy, Science Made Easy and How to Pass National Curriculum Maths.

Vorderman expanded her business ventures, launching a number of Sudoku products. In March 2007, she launched a brain-training game called Carol Vorderman's Mind Aerobics together with BSkyB. Also in 2007, she released a video game for PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable in the United States entitled Carol Vorderman's Sudoku. In 2007, Vorderman did TV commercials for the frozen food chain Farmfoods – advertising "Chippy Chips for £1" and "Cadbury's Cones for 99p".{{Cite web|url=http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0903436/otherworks|title=Carol Vorderman|publisher=IMDb|access-date=2019-08-07}}

In the autumn of 2008, soon after she completed her final regular Countdown show, Vorderman announced a new commercial venture, her own property development and sales company that would specialise in overseas holiday and retirement homes in the Caribbean, including the Bahamas, and Spain. It was called Carol Vorderman Overseas Homes Limited.{{Cite web |title=CAROL VORDERMAN OVERSEAS HOMES LIMITED overview – Find and update company information – GOV.UK |url=https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/06368114 |access-date=2024-02-06 |website=find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk |language=en}} She saw the company as a natural extension of her own experiences in buying and selling properties over recent years and was aiming at a target market of "families aged 35 plus".{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/overseasproperty/3360326/Property-overseas-Would-you-buy-a-villa-from-Carol-Vorderman.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101119153831/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/overseasproperty/3360326/Property-overseas-Would-you-buy-a-villa-from-Carol-Vorderman.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=19 November 2010 |title=Property overseas: Would you buy a villa from Carol Vorderman|work=The Daily Telegraph|date=5 February 2008 |access-date=8 August 2010 | first=Phil | last=McNeill |location=London}} However, due to the 2008 financial crisis, the venture proved short-lived. During March 2009 Vorderman publicly withdrew her name from the firm, which suspended trading soon afterwards. On 2 March 2010, Vorderman publicly launched her new commercial venture of an online mathematics coaching system for 4- to 12-year-old children under the name of the MathsFactor.{{cite web|url=http://www.debretts.com/people/biographies/browse/v/6960/Carol+Jean.aspx |title=Carol Vorderman Authorised Biography – Debrett's People of Today, Carol Vorderman Profile |publisher=Debretts.com |date=24 December 1960 |access-date=24 September 2013}}

Vorderman had maintained a long-standing endorsement of the debt consolidation company FirstPlus, an association that ceased in 2007. In 2006, the charity Credit Action attempted to highlight the potential dangers of debt consolidation, calling on Vorderman to stop giving First Plus credibility. Her agent responded that Vorderman had no intention of curtailing the contract for a service which was perfectly legal and offered by an excellent company.{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2008/jul/30/channel4|author=Zoe Williams|title=Your number is up, Carol|work=The Guardian|location=UK|date= 30 July 2008|access-date=30 July 2008}} When interviewed by The Daily Telegraph in November 2008 Vorderman herself responded with:

{{blockquote|The secured loans market was criticised and it was pertinent to pick me out, because I was a face. I advertised FirstPlus for 10 years. We had something like £1.5billion out on loan and until a matter of months ago there were no repossessions. When that programme [BBC's Real Story] was made, [there were] no repossessions. Did they say that? Funnily enough, no.}}

File:Air Marshall Julian Young with Dawn McCafferty and Carol Vorderman (Vorderman cropped).jpg Carol Vorderman]]

On 18 September 2010, Vorderman, a Catholic, co-presented events leading up to the Papal Vigil in Hyde Park, alongside author Frank Cottrell Boyce.[https://web.archive.org/web/20100903093035/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/celebritynews/7928559/Carol-Vordermans-countdown-to-the-Popes-visit.html "Carol Vorderman's countdown to the Pope's visit"], The Daily Telegraph, 6 August 2010[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-11354357 "Papal visit: Pope expresses his 'deep sorrow' for abuse"], BBC News, 18 September 2010 On 2 June 2012, Vorderman named a Class 91 (91110) "Battle of Britain Memorial Flight" at the National Railway Museum as part of the Railfest 2012 Event. In 2014, Vorderman qualified for a private pilot's licence and announced that she planned to fly solo around the world.{{cite news| url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/aviation/10954486/Commencing-countdown-Carol-Vorderman-takes-to-the-skies.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/aviation/10954486/Commencing-countdown-Carol-Vorderman-takes-to-the-skies.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live| title=Commencing countdown: Carol Vorderman takes to the skies| work=The Daily Telegraph|location=London| date=9 July 2014| access-date=23 August 2015}}{{cbignore}} She named her plane Mildred after Mildred, Mrs Victor Bruce, a British record-breaking racing motorist, speedboat racer and aviator in the 1920s and 1930s, who Vorderman has described as "my heroine. She's one of the most incredible women of the last century".{{Cite web|title=Carol Vorderman will talk to plane Mildred if she gets lonely on world flight|url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/carol-vorderman-talks-plane-mildred-8498295|last=Williams|first=Kathryn|date=2015-01-22|website=walesonline|access-date=2020-05-21}}

On 20 November 2014, Vorderman accepted the appointment of ambassador to the Royal Air Force Air Cadets, and was granted the honorary rank of group captain in the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (Training Branch).{{London Gazette |issue= 61078 |date= 16 December 2014 |page= 24243 |supp= y }}{{cite news |last1=Perry |first1=Keith |title=High flyer Carol Vorderman honoured by RAF |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/celebritynews/11243710/High-flyer-Carol-Vorderman-honoured-by-RAF.html |access-date=24 February 2024 |work=The Telegraph |date=20 November 2014 |language=en |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141121025224/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/celebritynews/11243710/High-flyer-Carol-Vorderman-honoured-by-RAF.html |archive-date=21 November 2014}} In 2017, her honorary commission was extended to 19 November 2020.{{London Gazette |issue= 62096 |date= 31 October 2017 |page= 20012 |supp= y }} Vorderman has also taken up learning the Welsh language and has been using the Say Something in Welsh online course. In early 2020, she said "I've been learning Welsh ... and I love it. It's taken me back to my roots".{{Cite web |last=Griffiths |first=Sian |date=26 January 2020 |title=Carol Vorderman returns to her roots and takes a crash course in Welsh |url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/article/carol-vorderman-returns-to-her-roots-and-takes-a-crash-course-in-welsh-pmr0m06xc |access-date=21 January 2023 |website=The Times}}

Vorderman is a Catholic.{{Cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/celebritynews/7928559/Carol-Vordermans-countdown-to-the-Popes-visit.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/celebritynews/7928559/Carol-Vordermans-countdown-to-the-Popes-visit.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Carol Vorderman's countdown to the Pope's visit|last=Walker|first=Tim|work=The Daily Telegraph|location=London|date=2010-08-06|language=en}}{{cbignore}} She was first married in 1985{{citation needed|date=November 2023}} at age 24 to Christopher Mather, a Royal Navy officer, but the marriage lasted only twelve months. Her second marriage was to management consultant Patrick King in 1990 at the age of 30.{{citation needed|date=November 2023}} Vorderman had two children with King, Katie (b. 1992) and Cameron (born 1997); the couple separated in 2000.{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/940334.stm |title=WALES | Vorderman and husband separate |publisher=BBC News|date=24 September 2000 |access-date=24 September 2013}}

After meeting at a Christmas party in 1999, Vorderman and Des Kelly lived together in London from 2001, also using their other house in Glandore, West Cork, Ireland. After five years together, Vorderman and Kelly separated in December 2006, publicly announcing the amicable split in January 2007,{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6298567.stm |publisher=BBC News | title=Vorderman splits from her partner | date=25 January 2007 | access-date=28 April 2010}} and after a brief reconciliation in Bristol, according to reports.{{cite web|url=http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/showbiz/a77636/carol-vorderman-reunites-with-ex.html |title=Carol Vorderman reunites with ex |work=Digital Spy|date=13 October 2007 |access-date=8 August 2010}}{{cite news| url=http://property.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/property/buying_and_selling/article2785802.ece |work=The Times |location=UK| title=Moving on Carol Vorderman | first=Lucy | last=Denyer | date=4 November 2007 | access-date=28 April 2010}}{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}

Vorderman shares her Bristol home with her two children.{{cite news|url=http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/woman/life/carol-vorderman-many-women-dread-turning-50-but-irsquom-having-a-blast-16089911.html|title=Home life|newspaper=Belfast Telegraph|access-date=15 November 2014}}{{Cite web |title= |url=https://x.com/carolvorders/status/1906363770688913477?s=46&t=fHvncVy4KqmaJFSOgyhlKg}} Vorderman lived with or very near to her mother all her life, until her mother's death in 2017.{{Cite news|url=http://ca.hellomagazine.com/celebrities/2017032737628/carol-vorderman-mum-terminal-cancer-mothers-day/|title=Carol Vorderman reveals mum has terminal cancer|work=HOLA|access-date=2017-04-04|language=en}} On 6 June 2020, she complained in a number of UK newspapers of being harassed by photographers in the road outside her home.{{Cite web|last=Earnshaw|first=Jessica|date=2020-06-06|title=Carol Vorderman breaks down in tears after being 'harassed' outside home: 'Frightened me'|url=https://www.express.co.uk/celebrity-news/1292189/Carol-Vorderman-tears-harassed-photographers-video-Twitter-news-latest-update|access-date=2020-06-06|website=Daily Express|language=en|archive-date=6 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200606133328/https://www.express.co.uk/celebrity-news/1292189/Carol-Vorderman-tears-harassed-photographers-video-Twitter-news-latest-update|url-status=dead}}{{Cite web|date=2020-06-06|title=Carol Vorderman posts tearful video after 'frightening' experience with paparazzi outside home|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/carol-vorderman-crying-twitter-photographers-paparazzi-countdown-radio-show-a9552441.html|access-date=2020-06-06|website=The Independent|language=en}} Vorderman in 2022 declared a lack of interest in traditional monogamy, preferring to have "special friends" with benefits.{{cite news| last=Topping | first=Alexandra | title=Carol Vorderman: a personality unleashed after quitting BBC | newspaper=The Guardian | date=10 November 2023 | url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2023/nov/10/carol-vorderman-personality-unleashed-after-quitting-bbc}}

In 2009, Vorderman mocked the Labour Party's education policies,{{cite news |last=Midgley |first=Neil |date=6 March 2009 |title=Carol Vorderman blasts Labour "lies" on maths teaching |work=The Daily Telegraph |location=London |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/4948832/Carol-Vorderman-blasts-Labour-lies-on-maths-teaching.html |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=28 April 2010 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/4948832/Carol-Vorderman-blasts-Labour-lies-on-maths-teaching.html |archive-date=12 January 2022}}{{cbignore}} as part of her work heading a task force established by the Conservative Party to look at the teaching of mathematics.{{cite web |date=2 February 2009 |title=UK | Education | Vorderman heads maths task force |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7864202.stm |access-date=24 September 2013 |publisher=BBC News}} David Cameron commented, "Carol has got a passion for maths. We have all seen that on Countdown with her brilliant mental arithmetic and she is going to lead this task force so we can get the answers right."{{cite news |last=Sugden |first=Joanna |date=2 February 2009 |title=Carol Vorderman to help Tories with sums |work=The Times |location=UK |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/education/article5640769.ece |access-date=28 April 2010}}{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} In an appearance on Question Time in March 2010, Vorderman was critical of all three major parties for hypocrisy in taking donations from non-domiciled taxpayers.{{cite news |title=Carol Vorderman takes on MPs over donations |work=Question Time |publisher=BBC |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/question_time/8551991.stm |access-date=11 August 2013}}

File:Boris Johnson St David’s Day celebration - 49603639986.jpg in February 2020]]

In 2023, Vorderman was critical of the Conservative administration, labelling it a "despicable government", and described herself as being politically independent.{{cite news |last=Govan |first=Chloe |date= 23 August 2023 |title=Carol Vorderman's 'fearless' government criticism earns her spot on influential women list |work=The Daily Express |location=London |url = https://www.express.co.uk/celebrity-news/1805248/carol-vorderman-criticism-government-vogue-25-list/amp |access-date = 29 August 2023}} In 2022, Vorderman was praised by The Herald as the "real leader of the opposition" after criticising members of the government for exploiting their positions for personal gain.{{cite news |title=How Carol Vorderman became the real Leader of the Opposition |url=https://www.heraldscotland.com/life_style/arts_ents/23291798.carol-vorderman-became-real-leader-opposition/ |access-date=5 February 2023 |work=HeraldScotland |date=1 February 2023 |language=en}}

In November 2023, the BBC objected to Vorderman's social media postings reflecting her personal opinions; she said that she would "not be silenced" by the BBC's new social media guidelines, and resigned from her weekly BBC Radio Wales show. She immediately made several posts criticising several people and policies of the Conservative government in power at the time. She has referred to the government as "a lying bunch of greedy, corrupt, destructive, hateful, divisive, gaslighting crooks". In late 2023, she became the face of tactical voting initiative StopTheTories.vote.{{Cite web |last=Vorderman |first=Carol |title=Carol Vorderman's diary: I'm counting down to Tory wipeout |url=https://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/politics/64170/carol-vordermans-diary-im-counting-down-to-tory-wipeout |access-date=2024-02-06 |website=www.prospectmagazine.co.uk |language=en}}{{Cite news |last=Walker |first=Peter |last2= |first2= |date=2023-09-23 |title=Coogan and Vorderman back tactical voting calls at Lib Dem conference |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2023/sep/23/coogan-and-vorderman-back-tactical-voting-calls-at-lib-dem-conference |access-date=2024-02-06 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}

In August 2024 she delivered the Alternative MacTaggart Lecture at the Edinburgh Television Festival, saying "Our industry is [full] of snobbery – regional snobbery, class snobbery and educational snobbery – and don't even get me started on the political issues...Working class people feel they are not represented, their situation is not represented, the lack of opportunities and lack of money and jobs is not represented...What [social media] gives everyone, in towns and cities outside the wealthy south-east, the opportunity to do, is to see and hear views they recognise, in language they recognise."{{Cite web |last=Rackham |first=Annabel |title=Carol Vorderman says TV industry is 'a mess' |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwy58kgl74zo |access-date=2024-08-28 |website=BBC |date=23 August 2024 |language=en}}

Vorderman was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to broadcasting in the 2000 Birthday Honours.United Kingdom: {{London Gazette |issue=55879 |date=19 June 2000 |pages=23 |supp=1 }} She was elected an Honorary Fellow of Bangor University in North Wales{{cite web|url=http://www.bangor.ac.uk/about/hon_fellows.php.en?menu=27&catid=5362&subid=0 |title=Bangor University Fellow |publisher=Bangor.ac.uk |date=10 June 2009 |access-date=23 September 2011}} and, in 2000, received an Honorary MA from the University of Bath.{{cite web|url=http://www.bath.ac.uk/ceremonies/hongrads/|title=Honorary Graduates 1989 to present|publisher=Bath.ac.uk|access-date=15 November 2014|archive-date=19 December 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151219000643/http://www.bath.ac.uk/ceremonies/hongrads/|url-status=dead}}

Vorderman was voted UK Female Rear of the Year in 2011.{{cite web|url=http://www.rearoftheyearcompetition.com/past-winners/|title=Past Winners of Rear of the Year Competition|publisher=Rear of the Year Limited|access-date=25 March 2017|archive-date=7 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180407225536/http://www.rearoftheyearcompetition.com/past-winners/|url-status=dead}} In 2014, she became the first celebrity to win the award twice. In November 2021, she was awarded an Honorary Fellowship of the Institution of Engineering and Technology in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the engineering profession.{{Cite web|url=https://www.theiet.org/media/press-releases/press-releases-2021/press-releases-2021-october-december/1-november-2021-carol-vorderman-amongst-iet-s-honorary-fellows-2021-line-up|title = Carol Vorderman amongst IET's Honorary Fellows 2021 line-up|date=1 November 2021}}

File:Carol Vorderman Waddington Airshow 2011 - 2.jpg

Vorderman is a patron of the Cleft Lip and Palate Association (CLAPA){{cite web |url=http://www.clapa.com/about_us/124/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110708162235/http://www.clapa.com/about_us/124/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=8 July 2011 |title=Patron of CLAPA |publisher=Clapa.com |access-date=23 September 2011 }} (her older brother, Anton, was born with a cleft lip and palate). In 2005, she was the winner of Ant and Dec's Gameshow Marathon. As part of its 50th anniversary celebrations ITV ran a series of the nation's favourite game shows featuring celebrities competing to become Gameshow Marathon winner and raise money for the charity of their choice. As series winner Vorderman won £60,000 for CLAPA.{{cite web |url=http://www.clapa.com/about_us/124/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110708162235/http://www.clapa.com/about_us/124/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=8 July 2011 |title=Won £60,000 for CLAPA |publisher=Clapa.com |access-date=23 September 2011 }} In November 2011, she appeared in the music video in aid of CLAPA for New Vorder's Carol O Carol, a song written by Jim Salveson in 1999 about his love for Vorderman, and directed by Tim Cocker.{{cite web|url=http://www.xfm.co.uk/onair/shows/manchester/carol-o-carol|title=Tribute song by Tim Cocker|work=XFM|access-date=15 November 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130313184702/http://www.xfm.co.uk/onair/shows/manchester/carol-o-carol|archive-date=13 March 2013}}

Vorderman appeared in a short film, Run for the future, promoting prostate cancer awareness, and took part in a charity run held every year on the Bristol Downs to raise funds for the BUI prostate appeal. She also took part in the Great North Run on several occasions, to raise money for Marie Curie Cancer Care in memory of Richard Whiteley's sister Helen, who died of cancer.{{cite news|last=Davies |first=Gareth A |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/athletics/2322231/Carol-Vorderman-My-Great-North-Run.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/athletics/2322231/Carol-Vorderman-My-Great-North-Run.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Great North Run |work=The Daily Telegraph |location=UK |date=29 September 2007 |access-date=23 September 2011}}{{cbignore}} Vorderman is an active supporter and advocate of the RAF Association charity, appearing at airshows and taking part in other fundraising events.{{cite web |url=http://www.rafa.org.uk/news-headquarters.asp?id=902&start=0 |title=Wings appeal |publisher=Rafa.org.uk |date=21 August 2011 |access-date=23 September 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110930030547/http://www.rafa.org.uk/news-headquarters.asp?id=902&start=0 |archive-date=30 September 2011 }}{{cite web |url=http://www.thisislincolnshire.co.uk/Carol-Vorderman-winging-way-Waddington-pilot-hits/story-12843858-detail/story.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110701210912/http://www.thisislincolnshire.co.uk/Carol-Vorderman-winging-way-Waddington-pilot-hits/story-12843858-detail/story.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=1 July 2011 |title=RAF Waddington airshow |publisher=Thisislincolnshire.co.uk |date=28 June 2011 |access-date=23 September 2011 }}

• Dirty, Loud and Brilliant, 1988 {{ISBN|0340426195}}
• Carol Vorderman's Pop Music Times Tables, 1990
• Carol Vorderman's How to Write a Perfect Letter, 1991
• How Mathematics Works, 1996
• Carol Vorderman's Guide to the Internet (written with Rob Young), 1998
• 30-Day Cellulite Plan, 2004 {{ISBN|978-0753509173}}
• Carol Vorderman's How to Do Sudoku, 2005
• Carol Vorderman's Massive Book of Sudoku, 2005
• Eat Yourself Clever, 2008
• Carol Vorderman's Guide to Maths
• Carol Vorderman's Detox Diet, 2009 {{ISBN|978-0753516812}}
• It All Counts, 2010 {{ISBN|978-0755360079}}
• Now What? On a Mission to Fix Broken Britain, 2024 {{ISBN|9781035421244}}

• List of I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! (British TV series) contestants
• List of Strictly Come Dancing contestants

{{reflist}}

{{Commons category|Carol Vorderman}}

• {{IMDb name|0903436}}
• [http://www.debretts.com/people/biographies/browse/v/6960/Carol+Jean.aspx Debrett's People of Today]
• [http://www.biogs.com/famous/vorderman.html Carol Vorderman at Biogs.com]
• [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pyeWb8z1dw8&t=777s]

{{Use British English|date=January 2013}}

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