Countdown host Anne-Marie Imafidon and her remarkable relatives
Countdown to the family of prodigies! GCSEs by ten, Oxford at 15… Anne-Marie Imafidon has stepped in for Rachel Riley on TV but she is not the only star amongst her remarkable relatives
Anne-Marie Imafidon, 31, is the first black co-presenter on Channel 4 show, standing in for Rachel Riley on maternity leaveAnne-Marie speaks six languages and started an Oxford degree at 15, becoming one of the youngest to be awarded a master’s by the university at just 20Her sister Christiana, now 28, studied at Durham Uni at 11; and sister Samantha, 24, works for Microsoft; she passed maths and statistics GCSE exam aged sixTwins Peter and Paula, 21, passed GCSE maths aged six. A year later, they became the youngest to pass it at A-level
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She started a degree at Oxford aged 15 and was awarded a masters by 20. So it is little wonder Anne-Marie Imafidon has become Countdown’s maths expert.
And, as she and her four siblings all passed GCSE maths before the age of ten, her family has a strong claim to be the brainiest in Britain.
Anne-Marie, 31, has become the first black co-presenter on the Channel 4 show, standing in for Rachel Riley on maternity leave.
She is hoping to inspire children to aim as high as she and her siblings did. ‘Countdown is an institution and I love maths,’ she said.
‘If I am able to inspire just one more arithmetician or a mathematician by being my authentic self on screen then I am happy to be able to take up that space and show a different side of what arithmeticians can look like.’
Anne-Marie Imafidon, 31, has become the first black co-presenter on the Channel 4 show, standing in for Rachel Riley on maternity leave. As she and her four siblings all passed GCSE maths before the age of ten, her family has a strong claim to be the brainiest in Britain
Anne-Marie (pictured) is hoping to inspire children to aim as high as she and her siblings did. ‘Countdown is an institution and I love maths,’ she said
Their father, Nigerian-born Professor Chris Imafidon, believes the formula for their success is simple, but the UK education system has continued to get it wrong.
He said: ‘All we need to know is what makes a child tick and allow them to explore that inclination.
‘When we saw one of our children show interest towards music, for example, we allowed her to engage with it without age being a factor.’
Anne-Marie speaks six languages and started an Oxford degree at 15, becoming one of the youngest to be awarded a master’s by the university at just 20.
Her father said: ‘Anne-Marie was seven when we started giving her harder work – but she was never told the questions weren’t for her age group. She needed to go beyond the pace and scope of the curriculum.’
The failure of the education system to inspire others meant Professor Imafidon had mixed feelings when she joined Countdown last month.
‘On Countdown people seem to freeze when it comes to numbers. They think maths is a difficult concept and it just becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy,’ he said.
The rest of the family is equally remarkable. Anne-Marie’s sister Christiana, now 28, became a record-breaker when she studied at Durham University at 11.
She is working in financial technology, with degrees from Oxford and the University of Pennsylvania.
Samantha, 24, who works for Microsoft, passed her maths and statistics GCSE exam aged six.
Three years later in 2007, she became the UK’s youngest child to start secondary school.
Twins Peter and Paula, 21, passed GCSE maths aged six. A year later, they became the youngest to pass it at A-level.
Anne-Marie with Countdown host Anne Robinson (centre), and Susie Dent of ‘Dictionary Corner’. ‘If I am able to inspire just one more arithmetician or a mathematician by being my authentic self on screen then I am happy to be able to take up that space and show a different side of what arithmeticians can look like,’ said Anne-Marie
They broke another record in 2009 by, aged eight, passing the University of Cambridge’s advanced mathematics exam.
And the only ‘rebellion’ Professor Imafidon faced was in his children’s different learning styles.
He said: ‘No two read the same subject – they were allowed to choose what they went into.
‘Because they were rewarded, they never saw what they were doing as studying – it was like they were pursuing their passion, whether it be in maths, musical instruments or sports.’
