EXCLUSIVE: 'I couldn't walk for seven months' - Carol Vorderman on the health scares that changed her life

Countdown is, of course, where we all were introduced to Carol Vorderman. But it may surprise people to know that it was almost two decades ago that she left the Channel 4 words and numbers gameshow.

In recent years, Carol has trodden a completely new path for herself - although she is just as witty and intelligent as she’s always been, she’s become as well known for her political interjections and opinions as for her TV career.

But in 2024 Carol, 65, hit a wall, and found herself hospitalised - and forced to confront where that highly successful career was going.

Speaking in the latest issue of woman&home, Carol says, ‘Becoming ill was a blessing because it reset things in my life. I hit burnout and ended up in hospital in September 2024.

'I had chest pains and thankfully my heart was fine, but doctors said I had nothing left in the tank, so I had to give up my LBC show. I was sad but thought, “Next time it could be my heart.” I call that my wake-up call before my next wake-up call.

‘I had some travel vaccines in December 2024, and they triggered chronic rheumatoid arthritis. I couldn’t walk for seven months, and I would cry in pain. Eventually, doctors found the right medication, but I couldn’t work at all during that time, and it made me realise I was addicted to work.

"I had to say no to things for the first time, so it acted as an intervention. I’m no longer working seven days a week, I’ve got a social life again, and I’m trying new things. I’m writing my first novel and developing a one-woman show, and I’m excited.’

And for Carol - who has children Katie, 33, a nanotechnology scientist and Cameron, 29, a driving instructor - grabbing those new chances is key, and something she encourages others to do.

‘If you’re anxious about taking opportunities, they will pass you by. You’ve got to live for now and go for what’s in front of you. I have never taken anything for granted. Every day I say to myself, ‘B****y hell, I’m lucky.’ I would never have thought as a teenager living in north Wales that I would have the life I’ve had. It hasn’t all been roses by any stretch of the imagination, but life isn’t. Things happen and you have to learn to make the most of it,’ she says.

And being in the public eye as a woman in her 60s, there are the inevitable questions about how she looks as good as she does - and it is not a topic she shies away from.

‘I don’t look as good as I did in my 40s, but I don’t think I look bad for my age. I have Botox and all of those things, and I’m probably going to have a facelift in the next couple of years. I have no issue with any treatments. It’s my money, I’ve earned it, so I’ll spend it on what I like. I am accepting of myself, but I also want to look good, and those two things can go together. I don’t think you should feel embarrassed to admit that, and if it’s right for you, then great – if it’s not, then that’s also fine. Being accepting is kind.’ Wise words indeed.