Channel 4 Countdown star charged with stabbing rival at tournament(Image: Channel 4)

Channel 4 Countdown star charged with stabbing rival at tournament

Countdown champion and maths graduate John Cowen won the highest score of the 2017 series of Countdown, appearing in 12 episodes and winning eight consecutive contests

13 Oct 2024, 11:03 by Amelia Ward · Irish Mirror

Countdown champion John Cowen has been charged with stabbing a rival at an event in Blackpool in September.

The 30-year-old maths graduate, who won the highest score of the 2017 series of the Channel 4 gameshow, was arrested after allegedly attacking his rival at the Countdown in Blackpool 2024 tournament, on September 14.

A man in his twenties was taken to hospital for treatment, with Cowen charged with section 18, wounding with intent and possession of a bladed article.

Cowen appeared in 12 episodes of Countdown overall, winning eight consecutive contests. He competed in the Series 77 finals in December 2017, before going on to lose to Bradley Horrocks in semi-final. He lost again to Horrocks in the quarter-final of the Championship of Champions XV series in 2019.

John Cowen is accused of attacking a rival with a knife(Image: Channel 4)

Susie Dent has appeared on Countdown since 1992(Image: Rachel Joseph/ Channel 4)

Former winners of the show are pitted against each other at the Blackpool Countdown event. Although it's not yet confirmed who the alleged victim was, Cowen, of Morecambe, Lancashire, will appear in Preston Crown Court on Monday to start his trial. The Mirror has contacted Lancashire Police for comment.

On his appearance in series 77, Cowen missed on joining the coveted 800 club by just one point, but still managed to achieve four centuries, performing well in the numbers round, in which he interestingly chose six small numbers in each episode. He won all eight of his heat games, making him an octochamp. Cowen also scored the third highest total of the whole series, spotting the nine-letter word 'spreading'.

When appearing on the series final in December 2017, he was the third seed, beating unbeaten player Michael Pfeffer, picking out the nine-letter word 'antinodes', winning 105 - 49. He fell short in the semi finals when facing Bradley Horrocks. The champion lost after giving an incorrect solution to the last six small selection he was given.

Countdown, presented currently by Anne Robinson, Rachel Riley and Susie Dent, was the first programme ever aired on Channel 4, and over 80 series and 7,500 episodes have aired since it started in November 1982. It's one of the world's longest-running gameshows.

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