Rachel Riley and Anne Robinson on Countdown
Anne is said to have found Rachel ‘too loud’ (Picture :Channel 4)

Countdown presenter Anne Robinson reportedly had Rachel Riley’s microphone turned off on set because she found her ‘too loud’ while sharing small talk with contestants.

Following Anne’s appointment as the new host of the Channel 4 programme – taking over from Nick Hewer – there have been rumours of a rift between her and maths whizz Rachel, who has been on the show since 2009.

It was recently claimed that there is a ‘young and old divide’ on set, with Rachel admitting that she’s struggled to bond with her new colleague because Covid restrictions have meant they haven’t ‘really done much team bonding’.

New claims have emerged that Anne found Rachel’s tendency to chat to Countdown players ‘hugely distracting’, with a former producer of Anne’s saying that she ‘has tinnitus and cannot bear excess sound’.

‘She felt she couldn’t do her job properly, or bond with the contestants to help them to relax, before the cameras started rolling,’ they said, according to The Sun.

‘Poor old Rachel didn’t work it out for a couple of days, and was babbling away quite happily before realising no one could hear her.’

Rachel Riley, Anne Robinson and Susie Dent on Countdown
It has been claimed there are ‘two camps’ on the set of Countdown (Picture: Rachel Joseph/Channel 4/PA)

They added that ‘when Anne said she wanted silence’, Rachel reportedly spoke out and said ‘that she disagreed’ in front of the crew.

During a recent interview with Press Association, Rachel explained that because she worked with former Apprentice star Nick for a decade on Countdown, they got to know each other very well, saying that Anne is ‘a completely different character’.

Meanwhile, a source in MailOnline recently alleged that ‘the tension between Rachel and Anne is being openly discussed’, stating that ‘it is very much Rachel and Susie [Dent] against Anne – a case of two camps’.

Prior to her stint on Countdown, Anne was best known for her harsh presenting style on The Weakest Link, which she fronted from 2000 to 2012.

Metro.co.uk has contacted reps for Rachel, Anne and Channel 4 for comment.

Countdown airs weekdays at 2.10pm on Channel 4.

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