Countdown champion stabbed rival at fans' event

A knife-wielding Countdown champion lunged at a rival player and stabbed him at a fan club tournament, a court has been told.

Jurors at Preston Crown Court heard John Cowen, 31, ran across Wainwright Social Club in Blackpool with a knife in his hand and reached across a table to attack Thomas Carey.

Prosecutor Rosalind Scott Bell said the incident took place on 14 September 2024 at a gathering of the Focal Countdown Group, where former contestants on the Channel 4 words and numbers game play against fans.

Judge Guy Mathieson said he had ruled Mr Cowen unfit to stand trial and told jurors it was a fact-finding hearing in which they will be asked to determine whether he carried out the attack.

CCTV footage capturing Mr Cowen, a Cambridge maths graduate, entering the venue shortly after 11.30 BST was shown in court.

About 30 people were in the club's function room at the time, including Mr Carey.

Mrs Scott Bell said: "The defendant had a knife in his left hand. You can just about make it out, glinting as he walks past the camera.

"He appears to see Mr Carey and he then breaks into a run and he goes straight for him.

"The defendant lunged across the table with his left hand going straight towards Mr Carey.

"Mr Carey was forced back on to the seat behind him and you can just about make out him trying to kick towards the defendant.

"Mr Carey then grabbed the defendant's wrist in an endeavour to stop the assault. By then he had been stabbed.

"He will describe how he had only been at the Wainwright Club for a short while when he heard 'growling'."

The court heard Mr Cowen was pulled away by others in the room and restrained on the ground before police were called.

Mr Carey was treated in hospital for a stab wound to his left bicep.

When Mr Cowen was arrested he was searched and found to have another kitchen knife in his pocket, the prosecution said.

Mrs Scott Bell said the alleged victim had been a member of the fan club since 2011 and knew Mr Cowen from other Countdown events.

Mr Cowen, from Morecambe in Lancashire, was not present in court as jurors were told he is "seriously mental unwell" and in hospital.

He is charged with wounding and two counts of possession of a bladed article in a public place.

Mr Cowen appeared on Countdown in 2017 when he scored the third-highest total score the series.

He competed in a further 11 episodes, winning eight consecutive contests, before he was finally defeated.

The hearing continues.