Countdown host Nick Hewer has announced his time is up on the gameshow, and he will be quitting the series after a decade.

The 76-year-old host announced his retirement from Countdown in a heart-warming statement declaring he was going to ‘smell the flowers and get a dog’.

Nick returned to filming the series today after shielding due to coronavirus, with Rachel Riley explaining he had been temporarily replaced earlier this year as he was considered ‘vulnerable’.

But to mark his return, Nick tweeted that the time had come for him to say goodbe to the show permanently.

‘I’ve decided it’s a good time to step down at the end of my contract in the New Year.

‘But let me now take the opportunity to say that it’s been a privilege and a pleasure to take the helm of Countdown, first broadcast back in 1982 and still a Guinness record holder,’ he continued.