Susie Dent

Susie Dent MBE

Lexicographer, Countdown

Best known for presiding over Dictionary Corner, Susie examines the baffling origins and surprising meanings of words and phrases. The author of over a dozen books on words and language, she also hosts the Something Rhymes with Purple podcast and regularly appears on TV and radio including on The One Show, Would I Lie to You?, Woman's Hour, and, of course, Countdown's comedy sister show, 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown.

Biography

Susie Dent is a writer and broadcaster on language. For over thirty years she has been the resident word expert on C4's Countdown, and regularly appears on the sister show 8 out of 10 Cats does Countdown. She has contributed to discussions on Radio 4's Woman's Hour, Word of Mouth, Saturday Live, More or Less, Today, and on Radio 5 Live's Breakfast and Drive programmes, and has made guest appearances on TV programmes including BBC Breakfast, Newsnight, This Morning, Test the Nation, Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway, Not Going Out, and The One Show. Susie hosts the podcast Something Rhymes with Purple alongside Gyles Brandreth and discusses everything from the evolution of language to culture and communication.

In her weekly columns in Radio Times, The Week Junior, the I newspaper, and Why Now, Susie answers notes and queries about words and phrases. She has written for the Independent on Sunday, the Telegraph, and the Times, and is the author of several books, including An Emotional Dictionary: Real Words for How You Feel, from Angst to Zwodder.

A spokesperson for Oxford University Press, Susie has been a judge on the Costa Book Awards and on the Academy Excellence Awards and regularly delivers key-note speeches on language and communication.

"Everyone was so happy with how the session went – the audience absolutely loved it and we’ve heard from eBay that it was the highlight of the day!"

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