Rachel Riley describes hate-filled abuse she received from online trolls for speaking out on anti-Semitism

Rachel Riley has recalled the "hideous" feeling of receiving hate-filled abuse for trying to speak out about anti-Semitism.

The countdown presenter, 33, said messages she is sent on Twitter are often indistinguishable from what would be expected from a neo-Nazi.

Ms Riley’s remarks came as she spoke at a Holocaust Memorial Day reception at the House of Commons on Tuesday.

She said: "On Twitter the messages I am sent are often indistinguishable from that you would expect from a neo-Nazi… yet the tweeters are identifiably not neo-Nazis.

"The markers of the red Labour rose coupled with the Palestinian flag, and the hashtag of Get The Tories Out and Jeremy Corbyn For PM along with the standard claim to be against racism in all forms are their signature giveaways."

To chuckles at the packed reception Commons, she joked that her "mum's Jewish and my dad's Man Utd" before outlining some of the abuse she has endured recently.

She said she had been called "not a real Jew, a child bully, a bonkers mad conspiracy theorist, a paedo-protector minion puppet whom my dead grandfather would be disgusted by".

Ms Riley said she has faced calls from critics to be fired from her high-profile role as the numbers whizz on Countdown.

She said she felt she has been targeted for speaking about anti-Semitism in the Labour party.

"You need to know next to nothing to propagate Nazi or Soviet Jew-hating propaganda reframed to fit today's narrative, which spreads like wildfire and is dangerous," Ms Riley said, adding that "knowledge and truth are our only weapons" in trying to tackle the problem.

"But you need to know nearly everything to stop it. The odds are stacked in the anti-Semite's favour."

The presenter said she has been trying to educate herself on the issue, saying that she watched six hours of videos on Christmas Day about the history of anti-Semitism.

Calling for the Labour party to try to help "restack those odds", she said: "No-one should have to risk their safety and jeopardise their career in speaking out against anti-Semitism in Britain in 2019."

Home Secretary Sajid Javid, Dame Margaret Hodge and Holocaust survivor Eva Clarke were among the other speakers at the event organised by the Holocaust Educational Trust.