C1: Champion Jonathan Liew (7 wins, 663 points) is a sports journalist for the Telegraph, and is one game away from becoming this series' sixth octochamp.
C2: Challenger Tricia Lockhart is a retired teacher from Great Kingshill near High Wycombe, who plays on apterous.
DC: Susie Dent and Pam Ayres.
RR: Rachel Riley.
OT: Other words or solutions.
R01: U A O T M S N K E
R02: T L I A H D O A S
R03: 4, 2, 1, 8, 5, 10. Target: 347.
TTT: TYREBEAD - "It's how you might feel about thirty pieces of silver."
R04: X T R I E O C I N
R05: U E E P Q G R T O
R06: 25, 4, 10, 8, 2, 2. Target: 302.
R07: I A E D R N G M F
R08: I A E S L R V O R
R09: 4, 3, 3, 4, 9, 5. Target: 332.
TTT: ACIDSTIR - "It sounds like something a croupier might suffer from."
R10: T P W A E A I S C
R11: E A E N D H T M T
R12: G S R U O A E V H
R13: A I E R D B N J O
R14: 25, 10, 3, 1, 7, 3. Target: 554.
R15: S N O O P Y E M U (conundrum)
And now a brief interlude before our main feature:
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
Enjoy the show.
Round 1: U A O T M S N K E
C1: AMOUNTS (7)
C2: AMOUNTS (7)
DC: MUSKET (6)
OT: SEAMOUNT (8)
Score: 7–7 (max 8)
Our contestants open with equalling AMOUNTS. There was one eight available, SEAMOUNT, which is a mountain underwater.
Round 2: T L I A H D O A S
C1: DAHLIAS (7)
C2: SHOAL (5)
OT: SHITLOAD (8)
Score: 14–7 (max 16)
DAHLIAS was a good spot by Jonathan, but a chance for either contestant to make it onto one of those out-take shows passes by.
Round 3: 4, 2, 1, 8, 5, 10. Target: 347.
C1: 347. (10+1)*4*8-5 (10)
C2: 348.
Score: 24–7 (max 26)
Jonathan's obviously been practising 6 small, as he's picked it every time so far and has usually won with it.
Teatime teaser: TYREBEAD -> BETRAYED
Round 4: X T R I E O C I N
C1: TRICE (5)
C2: CORNET (6)
DC: INCITER (7)
OT: CITRINE (7) EXCITON (7) NERITIC (7) ONEIRIC (7)
Score: 24–13 (max 33)
Tricia gains back some ground, though, with CORNET.
Round 5: U E E P Q G R T O
C1: TORQUE (6)
C2: guipere
DC: TOUPEE (6)
OT: PROTEGE (7)
Score: 30–13 (max 40)
Tricia knows this one's risky. She knows it's a lace - who says apterites don't know the meaning of the obscure words they offer? However, GUIPURE would have been what she was thinking of here, and sadly the letters aren't there in either case.
Round 6: 25, 4, 10, 8, 2, 2. Target: 302.
C1: 302. (8+4)*25+2 (10)
C2: 302. (10+2)*25+2 (10)
Score: 40–23 (max 50)
No trouble with this one. Next please.
Round 7: I A E D R N G M F
C1: DREAMING (8)
C2: DREAMING (8)
DC: FIREMAN (7)
OT: DEFAMING (8) MARGINED (8)
Score: 48–31 (max 58)
For all you "why does Jonathan keep picking six consonants" people out there, there are only two letters you can add to DREAMING to make a nine, and both are consonants.
Round 8: I A E S L R V O R
C1: RIVALS (6)
C2: SALVER (6)
DC: OVARIES (7) OVERSAIL (8) VALORISE (8)
Score: 54–37 (max 66)
Susie and Pam get to outshine the contestants here as they find both eights.
Round 9: 4, 3, 3, 4, 9, 5. Target: 332.
C1: 330. 9*4*(5+4)+3+3 (7)
C2: 334. Mistake in working.
OT: 332. (9+5)*(3+3)*4-4 (10)
Score: 61–37 (max 76)
Tricia makes a mistake somewhere after landing on 315, and I get the impression Jonathan's two-away solution was a very late one, as he could have added 3*3 instead of 3+3 for one away. Even Rachel can't find any of the five possible solutions for this one.
Teatime teaser: ACIDSTIR -> CARDITIS
Round 10: T P W A E A I S C
C1: ASPECT (6)
C2: PACIEST (7)
DC: ASEPTIC (7)
Score: 61–44 (max 83)
Although Jonathan is dominating the numbers in this game so far, it looks like Tricia has the edge on the letters.
Round 11: E A E N D H T M T
C1: THEMED (6)
C2: HEADMEN (7)
OT: DENTATE (7) METHANE (7)
Score: 61–51 (max 90)
This is a good apto-spot from Tricia. Once you know HEADMEN it's not too difficult to spot it again, being a common prefix and a common suffix bolted on to each other.
Round 12: G S R U O A E V H
C1: AUGERS (6)
C2: GROUSE (6)
OT: GHERAOS (7) SEVRUGA (7)
Score: 67–57 (max 97)
Jonathan's word AUGERS are large corkscrew-like tools for boring holes in wood.
Round 13: A I E R D B N J O
C1: BANDIER (7)
C2: BANDIER (7)
DC: JOINDER (7) DIBORANE (8)
OT: DEBONAIR (8)
Score: 74–64 (max 105)
BANDIER for both Jonathan and Tricia. Susie enrages Penelopes nationwide by offering the obscure word over its more well-known anagram, and pronouncing it wrong.
Round 14: 25, 10, 3, 1, 7, 3. Target: 554.
C1: 553. (7*3+1)*25+3 (7)
C2: 553. (7*3+1)*25+3 (7)
RR: 554. (25*7+10)*3-1 (10)
Score: 81–71 (max 115)
Jonathan's numbering skills at this late stage aren't quite enough to clinch the game before the conundrum. Can Jonathan go into the quarter-finals undefeated, or will he become only the second person to have an octorun denied in round 121?
Round 15: S N O O P Y E M U
Jonathan buzzes on 3 seconds to say EPONYMOUS which is correct.
Final Score: 91–71 (max 125)
Jonathan takes his eighth win, with an octototototal of 754. We'll see him in the finals in a couple of weeks, where we might see how his 6 small skills stack up against those of Dylan or Callum. Tricia actually beat Jonathan on the letters rounds though, so she can be proud of her performance today.
Further summaries are at:
http://cdb.apterous.org/series.php?series=69