Monday 24th May 2021 (Series 83, Preliminary 101)

[Rhys Benjamin]

I don't like Mondays, really. I'm tired, hungover, and sleep deprived.

Countdown recap for Monday 24 May 2021.

Nicktalksaboutfasttalkerswith585wordsperminuteinyesteryear.

C1: Champion Christoper Taylor (1 win, 70 points.) Wearing a shirt without showing off his chest hair today, even if it does look a bit like the Wenzels website.
C2: Challenger Jenny Badger. "All the way from Salford". Civil servant, marathon runner, new mother, born November 2020 - not quite a lockdown baby?
DC: Susie Dent and John Inverdale.
RR: Rachel Riley.
OT: Other words or solutions.

R01: B U W A F E N L I
R02: D S D O O C E T M
R03: 1, 5, 1, 6, 7, 10. Target: 249.
TTT: SETSREAR - "She sets her rear down here and orders a coffee."
R04: G T N A E I W R E
R05: S O G R I O A D S
R06: 100, 4, 8, 6, 3, 8. Target: 739.
R07: R E P N E U I H N
R08: T L G O I T A O Y
R09: 100, 6, 4, 7, 9, 2. Target: 659.
TTT: MERITAIM - "Say "I do" to the herb at the sea."
R10: S D P A E E H R A
R11: T O K U R O P L A
R12: X S M I E E T D I
R13: E U T M A S C E J
R14: 100, 4, 9, 4, 1, 10. Target: 770.
R15: G O T N E A R E R (conundrum)


And now a brief interlude before our main feature:

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Enjoy the show.

Round 1: B U W A F E N L I

Christoper: UNABLE (6)
Jenny: unfail
DC: FINALE (6) BLUEFIN (7)
OT: BANEFUL (7) FIBULAE (7) INFULAE (7)
Score: 6–0 (max 7, jos 7)
Darren-o-meter: 0/1 (0%)

Jenny's UNFAIL^ is, ironically, a big fail. She is thus not off the mark, whereas Christopher is.

Round 2: D S D O O C E T M

Christoper: SCOOTED (7)
Jenny: SCOOTED (7)
DC: MOOTED (6)
OT: OCTODES (7) TOMCODS (7)
Score: 13–7 (max 14, jos 14)
Darren-o-meter: 0/2 (0%)

A seven for each of them keeps the scores six apart.

Round 3: 1, 5, 1, 6, 7, 10. Target: 249.

Christoper: -
Jenny: 249. (6 − 1) × 5 × 10 − 1​ (10)
Score: 13–17 (max 24, jos 24)

Christopher's numbers, which were poor on Friday, remain poor and Jenny takes a four-point lead.

Teatime teaser: SETSREAR -> TERRASSE

Round 4: G T N A E I W R E

Christoper: WEARING (7)
Jenny: RATING (6)
DC: waterine WATERING (8)
OT: WINTERAGE (18)
Score: 20–17 (max 42, jos 32)
Darren-o-meter: 1/3 (33%)

Christopher with a seven regains the lead, whilst John cannot read out whatever Susie wrote down correctly. The computer, however, can take us to a nine.

Round 5: S O G R I O A D S

Christoper: RADIOS (6)
Jenny: DOORS (5)
DC: DROOGS (6)
OT: ARIOSOS (7) DOOSRAS (7) ROSADOS (7)
Score: 26–17 (max 49, jos 38)
Darren-o-meter: 1/4 (25%)

Christopher extends the lead again by 6 points, but once again the studio miss all the sevens, including the cricketing term DOOSRAS.

Round 6: 100, 4, 8, 6, 3, 8. Target: 739.

Christoper: -
Jenny: 739. (100 − 8) × 8 + 3 (10)
Score: 26–27 (max 59, jos 48)

Another poor numbers round from Christopher, and Jenny duly retakes the lead.

John, unsurprisingly, talks about the second-longest place name in the world, which I can actually spell, Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch. Although, I do know that it's not the longest rail station name in mainland GB (because that place is officially Llanfair PG), but it is another long Welsh name...

...it's Rhoose Cardiff International Airport.

Round 7: R E P N E U I H N

Christoper: PUNNIER (7)
Jenny: PUNNIER (7)
OT: NEURINE (7)
Score: 33–34 (max 66, jos 55)
Darren-o-meter: 1/5 (20%)

Both contestants take a straightforward 7 and DC can't even match it.

Round 8: T L G O I T A O Y

Christoper: GLOAT (5)
Jenny: goatily (risk)
OT: GALIOT (6) GALOOT (6) GOATLY (6)
Score: 38–34 (max 72, jos 60)
Darren-o-meter: 1/6 (17%)

Susie and Jenny both get hung up on GOATY/GOATILY, which allows Christopher to regain the lead and the Jos score to be -12.

Round 9: 100, 6, 4, 7, 9, 2. Target: 659.

Christoper: 659. (100 + 9) × 6 + 7 − 2​ (10)
Jenny: 659. 100 × 6 + 7 × 9 − 4​ (10)
Score: 48–44 (max 82, jos 70)

Finally Christopher gets a numbers game, and it's not exactly a particularly straightforward one either.

Teatime teaser: MERITAIM -> MARITIME

Round 10: S D P A E E H R A

Christoper: RESHAPED (8)
Jenny: RESHAPED (8)
DC: SPEARED (7) SPEARHEAD (18)
Score: 56–52 (max 100, jos 88)
Darren-o-meter: 2/7 (29%)

Both contestants take the same eight but fail to spot the nine.

Round 11: T O K U R O P L A

Christoper: KART (4)
Jenny: PLOUT (5)
OT: PARTOOK (7)
Score: 56–57 (max 107, jos 93)
Darren-o-meter: 3/8 (38%)

Another one where DC let the side down, as Jenny's five retakes the lead in this low-scoring game.

Susie answers a viewer's email about animals.

Round 12: X S M I E E T D I

Christoper: demisted (phantom D)
Jenny: EXISTED (7)
DC: ITEMISED (8)
Score: 56–64 (max 115, jos 101)
Darren-o-meter: 4/9 (44%)

Oh dear! Christopher with a phantom D allows Jenny to take an 8-point lead, whilst DC do find the darren finally.

Round 13: E U T M A S C E J

Christoper: STEAM (5)
Jenny: STEAM (5)
DC: MECATES (7)
OT: ACETUMS (7) ACTEMES (7) MUCATES (7)
Score: 61–69 (max 122, jos 108)
Darren-o-meter: 4/10 (40%)

And with only fives from the contestants, it's now on Jenny to win this before the conundrum, given Christopher's poor numbers record...

Round 14: 100, 4, 9, 4, 1, 10. Target: 770.

Christoper: 768.
Jenny: 770. (100 − (4 − 1) × 9 + 4) × 10​ (10)
Score: 61–79 (max 132, jos 118)

And she does so, no issues at all. A bit odd to do 77 × 10 in any case, but a win's a win!

Round 15: G O T N E A R E R

No one buzzes. The answer was GENERATOR.
Final Score: 61–79 (max 142, jos 128)

Rachel offers the solution here, as Jenny picks up a teapot and Christopher's loud shirts are given the chop.

The "contact us" segment has removed the Twitter address, which makes sense given no one runs it, but I am not happy with the show now having zero social media presence.


Further summaries are at:
http://cdb.apterous.org/series.php?series=83