Thursday 30th September 2021 (Series 84, Preliminary 68)

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Rhys Benjamin
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Thursday 30th September 2021 (Series 84, Preliminary 68)

Post by Rhys Benjamin »

Annedown LXVII and we're still without subtitles or continuity announcements. If some of Ahmed's obscure words are anything to go by yesterday, I'll need to page Jack Worsley to correct them again... I would never have typed out ORTOLAN in a million years...

Countdown recap for Thursday 30 September 2021.

On this day in 1960, The Flinstones arrived. "It's one of the few things from the 1960s that hasn't been cancelled", says Rachel. Don't like the word cancelled.

C1: Champion Ahmed Mohamed (1 win, 111 points.) "Good-looking" and "cute" describes Anne. Meh. "Expert on crowd control" according to Anne, which is a slightly ham-fisted way of saying he used to be a steward.
C2: Challenger Tom Lennon. Presumably no relation to John. From Birmingham. Primary school teacher for 12 years. Now 39 years old. Used to work as a bank clerk. Sometimes referred to as "Mr Lemon" by the kids. Does some Countdown in Maths. Good policy.
DC: Susie Dent and Stanley Johnson. Susie is wearing that polka-dot-sleeve-and-henna-front top yet again. I like it, but don't overdo it..
RR: Rachel Riley.
OT: Other words or solutions.

R01: G D I A L I E T F
R02: T W S I O G L O Y
R03: 50, 4, 1, 3, 7, 6. Target: 606.
TTT: TEMPLEMUD - "The price of Victoria's fruit fell through the floor."
R04: C P L S E A U R O
R05: N F A E S E P H N
R06: 25, 50, 1, 5, 9, 9. Target: 483.
R07: B S O E L A T B I
R08: G P M A U T R I E
R09: 100, 4, 9, 9, 2, 1. Target: 237.
TTT: RITATIRED - "Rita soon tired of the company she was in and started to get this."
R10: D S A E N T R E S
R11: M V I U T S A O W
R12: R N D I O I T M E
R13: G S I O N O K T L
R14: 9, 7, 10, 3, 5, 3. Target: 721.
R15: V E T R E C I P E (conundrum)


And now a brief interlude before our main feature:

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Enjoy the show.

Round 1: G D I A L I E T F

Ahmed: LIGATED (7)
Tom: FAILED (6)
DC: GIFTED (6)
OT: DIGITAL (7)
Score: 7–0 (max 7, jos 7)
Darren-o-meter: 0/1 (0%)

Ahmed gets us up and running on today's edition of the show.

Round 2: T W S I O G L O Y

Ahmed: OLOGIST (7) (try)
Tom: STOOL (5)
DC: IGLOOS (6)
OT: SOOTILY (7)
Score: 14–0 (max 14, jos 14)
Darren-o-meter: 0/2 (0%)

OLOGIST, as in someone who does OLOGY. Debatable, shall we say.

Round 3: 50, 4, 1, 3, 7, 6. Target: 606.

Ahmed: 606. 4 × 3 × 50 + 6 (10)
Tom: 606. 4 × 3 × 50 + 6 (10)
Score: 24–10 (max 24, jos 24)

Easy enough for both contestants.

Teatime teaser: TEMPLEMUD -> PLUMMETED

Round 4: C P L S E A U R O

Ahmed: CAROUSEL (8) (stick with)
Tom: COUPLES (7) (stick with - rejected COUPLERS)
DC: CLOSURE (7) COUPLERS (8)
OT: OPERCULA (8) PALOUSER (8) PARCLOSE (8) POLACRES (8) SCOPULAE (8) SPECULAR (8)
Score: 32–10 (max 32, jos 32)
Darren-o-meter: 0/3 (0%)

Tom rejects COUPLERS which is a bit of a mistake, as it costs him eight points.

Ahmed is asked about his family history of journalism.

Round 5: N F A E S E P H N

Ahmed: PEAHENS (7)
Tom: enshapen (gamble)
DC: PHASE (5)
Score: 39–10 (max 39, jos 39)
Darren-o-meter: 1/4 (25%)

ENSHAPEN^ is very plausible but Ahmed takes the darrenic seven.

Round 6: 25, 50, 1, 5, 9, 9. Target: 483.

Ahmed: 483. 50 × 9 + 25 + 9 − 1​ (10)
Tom: 484.
Score: 49–10 (max 49, jos 49)

How did Tom miss that!?

Stanley plugs his new books, including "The Virus", "The Warning" (yikes!), and "From an Antique Land", taken from one of Shelley's books, and it's set in Cambodia and it's "almost a love story". He talks about wanting to grind his novels in reality, and says he researched Cambodia and has travelled there 13 times. He then also went to the Birmingham Motor Show and used a 500cc motorbike to drive to India (he aimed for China, but got stuck). Basically a 1960s Jeremy Clarkson?

Round 7: B S O E L A T B I

Ahmed: BOATIES (7)
Tom: ISOLATE (7) (not written down)
DC: BIOBLAST (8)
OT: BASTIBLE (8) BIBELOTS (8) BILOBATE (8) BISTABLE (8) BOBTAILS (8)
Score: 56–17 (max 57, jos 57)
Darren-o-meter: 1/5 (20%)

The max and jos games are off, with BIOBLAST a wonderful spot from Dictionary Corner, and it gets an "argh" from Stanley.

Round 8: G P M A U T R I E

Ahmed: PRIMAGE (7)
Tom: MATURE (6)
DC: UMPIRAGE (8)
Score: 63–17 (max 65, jos 65)
Darren-o-meter: 2/6 (33%)

Ahmed once again lets another point go as Susie spots the darrenic UMPIRAGE.

Round 9: 100, 4, 9, 9, 2, 1. Target: 237.

Ahmed: 237. 100 × 2 + 9 × 4 + 1​ (10)
Tom: 237. (100 + 9 + 9) × 2 + 1​ (10)
Score: 73–27 (max 75, jos 75)

Tom describes his solution as "slightly" different. So what's "very" different then?

Teatime teaser: RITATIRED -> IRRITATED

Round 10: D S A E N T R E S

Ahmed: ASSENTED (8)
Tom: STRANDS (7)
OT: ASSENTER (8) ASSERTED (8) DEARESTS (8) DEARNESS (8) EARNESTS (8) ESSARTED (8) ESTRANES (8) SARSENET (8) STANDEES (8) STANDERS (8) STERANES (8)
Score: 81–27 (max 83, jos 83)
Darren-o-meter: 2/7 (29%)

ASSENTED is the only eight spotted by the studio, oddly. The gap is 54 points now, and winning the next round with anything more than a 2 will win the game for Ahmed.

Round 11: M V I U T S A O W

Ahmed: VOMITUS (7)
Tom: WAITS (5)
OT: OUTSWAM (7) OUTSWIM (7)
Score: 88–27 (max 90, jod 90)
Darren-o-meter: 2/8 (25%)

That'll do. Horrible word, but Ahmed has wrapped this game up with four rounds to go.

Susie Dent's Crime and Punishment, Part II, including ostracising and subpoena. Incidentally, Susie got a shout-out from Michael Atherton and Mark Butcher on Sky Sports Cricket this morning for her word of the day.

Round 12: R N D I O I T M E

Ahmed: MORINITE (8)
Tom: RIOTED (6) (not written down)
OT: REDITION (8) RETINOID (8)
Score: 96–27 (max 98, jos 98)
Darren-o-meter: 2/9 (22%)

Ahmed extends his lead with - surprise - a mineral term.

"Ahmed, do you go to bed every night with a dictionary?"

Round 13: G S I O N O K T L

Ahmed: STOOLING (8) (try)
Tom: lootings
DC: STOOKING (8)
OT: KILOTONS (8)
Score: 104–27 (max 106, jos 106)
Darren-o-meter: 2/10 (20%)

Ahmed is the "trying" player but it's actually Tom's word that's invalid, and Tom's now going to have to hope to escape the "15 round scores under 30" wiki category.

Round 14: 9, 7, 10, 3, 5, 3. Target: 721.

Ahmed: 720. 9 × 10 × (5 + 3) (7)
Tom: 713.
Score: 111–27 (max 113, jos 113)

Tom has a bit of fun for this 6 small, and it's impossible, but surely 720 was fairly straightforward here.

Round 15: V E T R E C I P E

Ahmed buzzes on 0.25 seconds to say RECEPTIVE which is correct.
Final Score: 121–27 (max 123, jos 123)

"What kept you?" says Anne. Instabuzz from Ahmed to win the conundrum easily.

Join us again tomorrow. Goodbye. ;)


Further summaries are at:
http://cdb.apterous.org/series.php?series=84
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Peter Mabey
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Re: Thursday 30 September 2021 (Series 84, Preliminary 68)

Post by Peter Mabey »

A very different solution for R9: (100-2x9)x(4-1)-9 :)
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