Armstrong, 38, is reportedly due to take a screen test in the next few weeks for the role on the Channel 4 words and numbers quiz.

His age, smooth image and occasionally racy comic material are all said to appeal to producers, who want to make the Leeds-based show more attractive to a younger audience.

Armstrong has also proved a hit with viewers during his regular appearances as guest host on the BBC1 quiz Have I Got News For You.
Other famous faces who have been linked with the Countdown job include Michael Palin, Rory Bremner and Rick Wakeman.

The show's bosses began searching for their fourth host in three years when present incumbent Des O'Connor announced his departure over the summer.

O'Connor, 76, succeeded 66-year-old Des Lynam in the host's role in late 2006.

Lynam had taken over in 2005 following the death of the show's only previous anchor, inimitable Yorkshireman Richard Whiteley.

Countdown, which is filmed at the Yorkshire Television studios on Kirkstall Road, was the first programme broadcast on Channel 4 when the station launched in 1982.

Its fans were rocked in July when long-serving maths queen Carol Vorderman quit in a row over pay, just days after O'Connor revealed that he was standing down.