Carol Vorderman reveals what happened to Freddie Mercury's secret letters to 'Countdown'

Carol Vorderman has shared how much she enjoyed receiving letters from Freddie Mercury when she presented Countdown.

The Queen star – who died aged 45 in 1991 – was a huge fan of the Channel 4 quiz show, which was then hosted by the late Richard Whiteley and mathematician Vorderman.

Vorderman, 58, said on Twitter: “In today's papers, a story about how the amazing Freddie Mercury loved to watch Richard and I on Countdown. I know he did. He used to write occasionally which we loved. I'm so touched to be reminded of those days.”

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Asked by a fan if she had kept the letters, Vorderman said: “Sadly they were in the office files and I don't know what happened....a long time ago now.”

And she revealed that, “once or twice”, they even read some of Mercury’s letters out on the show – now hosted by Nick Hewer and Rachel Riley.

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Mercury’s former PA Peter Freestone recently told Express Online: "Freddie at home alone with us would be sitting in a mismatched tracksuit on the sofa watching Countdown.

"He loved that show more than any other. It was all about words. He loved words all his life. His whole career was built around those beautiful words he crafted and created in his songs."

But while the Somebody To Love singer was a fan of Vorderman, he was not so keen on the maths sums she presented.

Freestone added: "He hated numbers, he wasn't a fan of that part. He always said, ‘Darling, other people can worry about them."