Clare Balding to host Saturday night show on BBC One

Balding proved a popular host during the BBC's Olympic coverage

Clare Balding, who recently announced plans to front Channel 4's horseracing coverage from next year, is to host a new Saturday night show on BBC One.

The 41-year-old will present Britain's Brightest, a entertainment show which uses puzzles and challenges to find the most brilliant brain from 24 hopefuls.

"I am fascinated by the brain - how it works and how it can be improved."

"The quest to find Britain's Brightest will inspire all of us," said Balding, the face of the BBC's Olympic coverage.

"I have always said that 'facts are my friend', but knowing things doesn't make you clever," she added.

"I am so excited to be given the opportunity to explore and test intelligence in a format that will be fun, informative and entertaining."

Last week it was announced that Balding will replace Aled Jones as host of BBC Radio 2's Sunday morning show in January.

She was also a guest host on Have I Got News For You earlier this month.

At the time of her appointment to Channel 4 in August, she said she was "delighted" she could combine her new work "with expanded and varied programming at the BBC".

The BBC lost the rights to horseracing - Balding's specialist sport - earlier this year.

The presenter, who fronted Channel 4's Paralympic coverage last month, launched her biography My Animals and Other Family in September.