Colin Murray, the journalist who became the new face of Channel 4's Countdown in 2023, taking over from Anne Robinson, has a private life that includes a former job as a grave digger, a split from his wife Carly Paradis, and a beloved dog named Buddy.
Murray has hosted several TV and radio shows over the years, including BBC Two's Match of the Day and BBC Radio 5 Live's Fighting Talk, the Saturday morning comedy sports panel quiz show. Away from the sets, he lives a low-key life.
Teenage Grave Digger
Before his journalism career began, Murray often worked as a grave digger as a teenager. As Free Library reports, he previously said: "I developed a real interest in plants and stuff when I was a teenager, so I decided I wanted to become a landscape gardener."
"I liked the idea of filling spaces with different colours and watching things grow, so I did a deal with my local graveyard. I helped them out and they gave me a little patch of ground to plant things," he went on. "It was brilliant and the tips were great too. I'd sometimes get pounds 50 a grave which wasn't bad going for a 16-year-old, especially if I had to dig five graves for a Saturday."
Split from Wife Carly Paradis
Murray was previously married to Canadian-British songwriter and composer Carly Paradis. The pair tied the knot in 2012, but in late 2022 it was reported that they had split. Reports at the time suggested they had grown apart shortly after Murray joined Countdown.
Murray hinted around the same time that he was no longer with his wife when asked by Radio Times magazine who controlled the TV remote in his house. He said: "It's just me, so me. I'm [the] master of my domain."
Paradis has an impressive career on her own, working on some of the biggest TV shows' theme tunes. She created the theme song for BBC's Line of Duty and also Netflix's The Innocents. Her work on Line of Duty series six saw her bag a Bafta TV Craft Award in 2022 for best original music. She also played keyboards for Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds for their European tour.
Family Member Buddy
In 2024, Murray revealed the new addition to his family, his dog called Buddy. Since then, the pup has made several appearances on Murray's social media, with the presenter often swooning over his four-legged friend.
Earlier this month, he shared a slew of snaps of Buddy in the Countdown studio. Murray captioned the post: "Taking my best friend to work! Buddy [love heart emoji] Countdown [love heart emoji]." In July, he uploaded a video of Buddy swimming, captioning the post: "Buddy's first swim". His followers flooded the comments section to gush over the dog. One person said: "Living his best life!" Another added: "Doggy Olympics for Buddy!" A third chimed in: "Ahhh how cute he was loving it."
Watch Murray on Countdown at 2:10pm on Channel 4 from Monday to Friday.
