Channel 4 Countdown star charged with 'stabbing rival contestant at tournament'
John Cowen, 30, was arrested after allegedly attacking a man in his 20s at the Countdown in Blackpool 2024 tournament on September 14
John Cowen, a Countdown champion, has been accused of stabbing a reported rival contestant at an event in Blackpool in September.
The 30-year-old maths graduate, was arrested following an alleged attack at the Countdown in Blackpool 2024 tournament on September 14.
The event, held at the Wainwright Club, is an annual tournament in which former winners from the Channel 4 gameshow battle against each other for the top score.
The Blackpool Gazette reported that police were called to the club and a man in his 20s was taken to hospital for treatment, with Cowen charged with section 18 wounding with intent and possession of a bladed article.
Cowen scored the third highest total of the 2017 TV series of Countdown, as well as spotting the nine-letter word SPREADING. He went to appear in 11 more episodes, managing to win eight consecutive contests before being defeated.
He missed out on joining the 800 club by just one point, but managed to achieve four centuries, and won all eight of his heat games.
Following this success, he went on to appear in the series finals as the third seed in December 2017.
He beat Michael Pfeffer in the quarter-finals, but lost to Bradley Horrocks after giving an incorrect solution to his final selection.
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Two years later, he returned for the Championship of Champions XV series, losing once again to Mr Horrocks in the quarter-final.
Cowen, from Morecambe, Lancashire, is set to appear at Preston Crown Court on Monday to begin his trial.
Countdown airs every day on Channel 4.
