Countdown recap for Thursday 2 September 2021.
Rachel talks about contactless payments, which somehow takes Anne by surprise.
C1: Champion Kevin Wenn (1 win, 72 points.) Used to smell for a living. Now tastes for a living.
C2: Challenger Donna Bell. Used to be a croupier but thanks to Covid is now a cleaner. Knows her 35 times table, and Rachel sets up unrealistic expectations for her numbers games.
DC: Susie Dent and Johnny Vaughan.
RR: Rachel Riley.
OT: Other words or solutions.
R01: M I N O C E Y S M
R02: T H E I G M E C U
R03: 50, 4, 3, 6, 8, 3. Target: 733.
TTT: ABITYOUR - "A bit about your life that you'll never get to see."
R04: G I R A K A N S E
R05: A I O U R N R S G
R06: 6, 7, 1, 8, 6, 4. Target: 223.
R07: T M N D A O I O R
R08: V W D L I A E S I
R09: 50, 8, 3, 1, 7, 8. Target: 357.
TTT: HISFAILS - "It sounds like this creature isn't very good at sharing things."
R10: S F S T A I U A N
R11: T P R E E O P T A
R12: R L T E I O B T D
R13: O U E N P T I P L
R14: 25, 75, 50, 1, 8, 7. Target: 360.
R15: W U N D E R V O O (conundrum)
And now a brief interlude before our main feature:
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Round 1: M I N O C E Y S M
Kevin: COMMIES (7) (try)
Donna: MINCES (6)
DC: INCOMES (7)
OT: MESONIC (7) MISNOME (7) OMMINES (7)
Score: 7–0 (max 7, jos 7)
Darren-o-meter: 0/1 (0%)
Kevin is a "leftie tosser" (Johnson, 2012), but takes an early lead.
Round 2: T H E I G M E C U
Kevin: EIGHT (5)
Donna: MIGHT (5)
DC: themic EMETIC (6)
OT: HUMECT (6) METHEG (6) MUCHEE (6) TECHIE (6)
Score: 12–5 (max 13, jos 13)
Darren-o-meter: 0/1 (0%)
8 for 5. Not a cricket score, it's Kevin's declaration.
Round 3: 50, 4, 3, 6, 8, 3. Target: 733.
Kevin: 736. (8 + 6) × 50 + 4 × 3 × 3 (7)
Donna: 729.
RR: 733. (50 − 4) × 6 ÷ 3 × 8 − 3 (10)
Score: 19–5 (max 23, jos 23)
Kevin extends his lead with a 3-away solution whilst Rachel shows us how it's done - the first division on the show in a week.
Teatime teaser: ABITYOUR -> OBITUARY
Round 4: G I R A K A N S E
Kevin: RAKING (6)
Donna: RAKING (6)
DC: SANGRIA (7)
OT: AGINERS (7) ANERGIA (7) EARINGS (7) ERASING (7) GAINERS (7) KAINGAS (7) KANGRIS (7) KINARAS (7) NEGARAS (7) REAGINS (7) REGAINS (7) SARANGI (7) SARKING (7) SEARING (7) SERINGA (7) SINKAGE (7) SNAKIER (7)
Score: 25–11 (max 30, jos 30)
Darren-o-meter: 0/3 (0%)
Kevin and Donna are raking in the points here, whilst Johnny only sees one of approximately a million 7s.
Round 5: A I O U R N R S G
Kevin: AROUSING (8)
Donna: SOURING (7)
OT: GARRISON (8)
Score: 33–11 (max 38, jos 38)
Darren-o-meter: 0/4 (0%)
Maybe I've been watching too much Star Wars but I'm surprised GARRISON wasn't noticed. Kevin's 8 is very AROUSING.
Donna talks about a man who lost £12.7m at her casino, and looked like "a very angry dog".
Donna allows Rachel to pick, hoping that she can conjure up a 35 card.
Round 6: 6, 7, 1, 8, 6, 4. Target: 223.
Kevin: 223. 8 × 7 × 4 − 1 (10)
Donna: 220.
Score: 43–11 (max 48, jos 48)
Kevin with a double-multiplication, which always looks easier on the page than it is in reality.
Johnny, for the third time, has made a human and talks about being an eccentric dad, and gives a list of eccentric dad things that people have rung into his radio show to tell him, before landing on his own dad.
Round 7: T M N D A O I O R
Kevin: RATION (6)
Donna: MAROON (6)
DC: TANDOORI (8) DOMINATOR (18)
OT: ADMONITOR (18)
Score: 49–17 (max 66, jos 66)
Darren-o-meter: 0/5 (0%)
TANDOORI would be an excellent spot if A wasn't the final letter, and thus we have a nine.
Round 8: V W D L I A E S I
Kevin: SAILED (6)
Donna: DAILIES (7)
DC: LADIES (6) VALISE (6)
OT: LIAISED (7) SEDILIA (7)
Score: 49–24 (max 73, jos 73)
Darren-o-meter: 0/6 (0%)
An excellent seven from Donna (as in daily newspaper) which gets her back in the game.
Round 9: 50, 8, 3, 1, 7, 8. Target: 357.
Kevin: 357. 7 × 50 + 8 − 1 (10)
Donna: 357. 7 × 50 + 8 − 1 (10)
Score: 59–34 (max 83, jos 83)
thank u, next
Teatime teaser: HISFAILS -> SAILFISH
Johnny interrupts Susie's definition of SAILFISH, and Anne eventually tells him "you could have said nothing". #TeamAnne
Round 10: S F S T A I U A N
Kevin: SUSTAIN (7)
Donna: unfasts (try)
DC: FUSTIAN (7) faustian (capitalised)
OT: ISSUANT (7) SUNFAST (7)
Score: 66–34 (max 90, jos 90)
Darren-o-meter: 0/7 (0%)
Johnny is very unhappy at the lack of FAUSTIAN^, not that anyone else cares.
Round 11: T P R E E O P T A
Kevin: REPEAT (6)
Donna: TREETOP (7)
DC: OPERETTA (8)
Score: 66–41 (max 98, jos 98)
Darren-o-meter: 1/8 (13%)
TREETOP is all there and it's all one world, and thus Donna refuses to go down without a fight.
Acronyms that are folk etymologies, including some of the rude ones (which she can't mention now, booooo). She talks of "backronyms" such as "Gentlemen Only, Ladies Forbidden" - words that weren't acronyms but have retroactively become ones. Her examples of backronyms are golf, posh, and tip. Johnny interrupts the posh backronym and Susie carries on regardless as if Johnny doesn't exist. #TeamSusie
Round 12: R L T E I O B T D
Kevin: BOTTLED (7)
Donna: BOTTLED (7)
DC: BLOTTER (7) BLOTTED (7)
OT: LIBRETTO (8)
Score: 73–48 (max 106, jos 105)
Darren-o-meter: 2/9 (22%)
DC finally let a point slip, whilst all the other words used so far employ the double T.
Round 13: O U E N P T I P L
Kevin: TIPPLE (6)
Donna: TIPPLE (6)
DC: UNPOLITE (8)
Score: 79–54 (max 114, jos 113)
Darren-o-meter: 3/10 (30%)
Three darrens in a row to finish, with UNPOLITE from Johnny. However, Donna's only able to match Kevin, giving Kevin a second win.
Round 14: 25, 75, 50, 1, 8, 7. Target: 360.
Kevin: 351.
Donna: 359. 7 × 50 + 8 + 1 (7)
RR: 360. (50 + 1) × 7 + 75 ÷ 25 (10)
Score: 79–61 (max 124, jos 123)
A similar solution is required to the 357 round, but this time only Rachel sees it.
Round 15: W U N D E R V O O
No one buzzes. Johnny gives the answer, which was OVERWOUND.
Final Score: 79–61 (max 134, jos 133)
I managed to get that conundrum on 7 seconds - not a great scramble as WUND is right there already. Neither contestant gets it, though, so it's over to Johnny Vaughan to tell us how it's done.
Only one more day of Johnny Vaughan... silver linings, I suppose. We'll get through it together, I'm sure. Join us tomorrow. Goodbye.
Further summaries are at:
http://cdb.apterous.org/series.php?series=84