So, let's enjoy.
Countdown recap for Wednesday 26 June 2013.
C1: #1 Seed Giles "The Farnham Firestorm" Hutchings (9 wins, 1,074 points.) An Apteforumite and college student from Farnham, Surrey. He defeated the #8 seed Peter Fenton 109-86 in his quarter-final 12 days ago.
C2: #4 Seed Joe "The Stockport Sparkler" McGonigle (9 wins, 824 points.) A croupier from Stockport, Greater Manchester. He defeated the #5 seed Sam McElhinney 108-83 in his quarter-final yesterday.
DC: Susie Dent and Myleene Klass.
RR: Rachel Riley, who actually hid her Manchester United shirt she got from Ryan Giggs in the previous episode under the numbers tray.
OT: Other words or solutions.
R01: S R V I A L I O A
R02: M T P E E N I A O
R03: 75, 3, 5, 9, 7, 4. Target: 852.
TTT: INSERTLP - "It's nothing to do with an album, it's about the group"
R04: F E C I T O R I S
R05: D T N U G E O J X
R06: 75, 4, 10, 3, 3, 6. Target: 108.
R07: T R C H I E U N O
R08: W E S U L I T A R
R09: 25, 10, 5, 4, 9, 6. Target: 869.
TTT: RIPTIDES - "A lively performance given by a ghost, perhaps?"
R10: B N G E A N S O D
R11: K L S Y A O I N R
R12: F E M E G A M O P
R13: R D N U G I L A E
R14: 25, 9, 2, 10, 1, 6. Target: 945.
R15: T I N Y B E I N G (conundrum)
And now a brief interlude before our main feature:
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Enjoy the show.
Round 1: S R V I A L I O A
C1: RAVIOLI (7)
C2: RIVALS (6)
DC: SALIVA (6)
OT: SOLARIA (7) VARIOLA (7)
Score: 7–0 (max 7)
I personally would've thought RAVIOLIS would have been good, given the mass noun food rule, but thinks seems to have turned around now and Giles seems to be on top of it by sticking with the singular.
VARIOLA is another name for smallpox.
Round 2: M T P E E N I A O
C1: PTOMAINE (8)
C2: TAMPON (6)
Score: 15–0 (max 15)
The Countdown favourite of PTOMAINE appears yet again and Giles gets it to give himself a 15-love lead already.
Clearly the Wimbledon coverage has go to me. 
Round 3: 75, 3, 5, 9, 7, 4. Target: 852.
C1: 852. (75 - 4) x (9 + 3) (10)
C2: 849.
Score: 25–0 (max 25)
A few ways to get this one, but Joe can't see any of them, and he's still stuck on zero.
Teatime teaser: INSERTLP -> SPLINTER
Round 4: F E C I T O R I S
C1: FORTIES (7)
C2: STRIFE (6)
DC: ORIFICES (8)
Score: 32–0 (max 33)
Giles gets into the thirties with his FORTIES, while DC go darrenic with some ORIFICES.
Round 5: D T N U G E O J X
C1: TONGUED (7)
C2: TONGUED (7)
Score: 39–7 (max 40)
Joe gets off the mark with a TONGUED offering.
Round 6: 75, 4, 10, 3, 3, 6. Target: 108.
C1: 108. (3 x 10) + 75 + 3 (10)
C2: 108. 4 x 3 x (6 + 3) (10)
Score: 49–17 (max 50)
Simplicity in the numbers game is what we like best.
Myleene talks about her 2 daughters, Hero and Ava, and how her job has helped them meet super famous celebrities such as Jackie Chan and Jose Carreras.
Round 7: T R C H I E U N O
C1: NEUROTIC (8)
C2: CHUNTER (7)
DC: TOUCHIER (8)
OT: NOTCHIER (8) UNHEROIC (8)
Score: 57–17 (max 58)
Another great 8 from Giles and you'd have to say, the game already looks out of sight for Joe, even at this stage.....
Round 8: W E S U L I T A R
C1: RITUALS (7)
C2: SALTIER (7)
DC: WAILERS (7)
OT: LAWSUIT (7) LUSTIER (7) REALIST (7) RETAILS (7) SALTIRE (7) SALUTER (7) TULWARS (7) WAITERS (7) WARIEST (7) WASTREL (7)
Score: 64–24 (max 65)
Sevens aplenty here.
A TULWAR is any of several Indian sabres.
Round 9: 25, 10, 5, 4, 9, 6. Target: 869.
C1: 870. (9 x 4 x 25) - (5 x 6) (7)
C2: 866.
RR: 869. (((5 x 9) - 10) x 25) - 6 (10)
Score: 71–24 (max 75)
Hmmm, Giles seemed to be visibly struggling there with a not too difficult numbers game, but he does get nearer than Joe and goes 47 clear with 6 rounds to go.
Teatime teaser: RIPTIDES -> SPIRITED
Round 10: B N G E A N S O D
C1: DOGBANES (8)
C2: BANGED (6)
DC: BONDAGE (7) bondages
OT: NOSEBAND (8)
Score: 79–24 (max 83)
Joe must have wondered if he BANGED his head this morning with all the beaters that Giles has thrown at him today. DOGBANES being another brilliant one.
Round 11: K L S Y A O I N R
C1: NOSILY (6) - thought about snarkily
C2: SLINKY (6)
OT: RYOKANS (7) SARKILY (7) SNAKILY (7)
Score: 85–30 (max 90)
Giles stays safe with his 6, while Joe's risky 6 proves to be as safe as Giles'. A few 7's left alone though.
A RYOKAN is a traditional Japanese inn or small hotel whose floors are covered with tatami.
Susie's Origins Of Words talks about the origin of the words "harrow" and "hearse".
Round 12: F E M E G A M O P
C1: APOGEE (6)
C2: MOPE (4)
DC: megamop
OT: GEMMAE (6)
Score: 91–30 (max 96)
A super spot to seal his place in the grand final for Giles.
A GEMMA (plural GEMMAE) is a cell or cluster of cells, or a leaflike or budlike body, that separates from the parent plant to form a new organism, as in mosses and liverworts.
Round 13: R D N U G I L A E
C1: READING (7)
C2: INDULGER (8)
DC: DRAGLINE (8)
Score: 91–38 (max 104)
Another slightly surprising miss from Giles, but an impressive spot from Joe there. What was slightly funnier that you guys didn't see was that Rachel thought Joe said ENDULGIA
Round 14: 25, 9, 2, 10, 1, 6. Target: 945.
C1: 951. ((25 - 1) x (6 - 2) x 10) - 9 (5)
C2: -
RR: 945. (((2 + 6) x 10) + 25) x 9 (10)
Score: 96–38 (max 114)
Another not super difficult numbers game stumps our semi-finalists, with Giles struggling to get to 6 away, but at least the game was wrapped up ages ago.
Round 15: T I N Y B E I N G
C1 buzzes on 2.25 seconds to say BENIGNITY which is correct.
Final Score: 106–38 (max 124)
But, he more than makes up for it with a super impressive conundrum spot.
So, Giles gets his 10th century on the spin, and although he had a few wobbles, noticeably the last letters game and the final 2 numbers games, he still managed to win convincingly enough to make the other 2 semi-finalists quiver in their boots you'd think.
Those other 2 semi-finalists will be in combat tomorrow, them being the #2 seed, Andy Platt and the #3 seed, Eileen Taylor.
Join me tomorrow to see if the People's Champion can crack the People's Slaphead (sorry, AP) and reach the final.
Till then, bye bye.
Statistics Corner
Giles:
Total score - 106
Raw score - 113
Total % of max - 85
Raw % of max - 91
Total average score per round - 7.1
Raw average score per round - 7.5
Number of maxes - 10
Joe:
Total score - 38
Raw score - 87
Total % of max - 31
Raw % of max - 70
Total average score per round - 2.5
Raw average score per round - 5.8
Number of maxes - 4
Further summaries are at:
http://www.apterous.org/cdb/series.php?series=68