Monday 22nd February 2010 (Series 62, Prelim 31)

[Howard Somerset]

Countdown recap for Monday 22 February 2010.

C1: Champion Heather Badcock (3 wins, 267 points.)
C2: Challenger Barney Maunder-Taylor.
DC: Susie Dent and Jenni Falconer.
RR: Rachel Riley.
OT: Other words or solutions.

Having missed seeing most of the last two weeks' programmes, both contestants today are new to me. However, I see that Heather, who is a body pierced and tattooed karaoke loving head of religious education, won her first three games last week. In her fourth game she comes up against Barney, the Jester of Bournmouth, who also finds time for a bit of maths tutoring. Fortunately during this programme at least, the contestants concentrated on playing Countdown, rather than entertaining us with double act of Guns and Roses on karaoke combined with juggling, unicycling and balloon twisting.

Making her debut in dictionary corner this week is Jenni Falconer, a TV presenter who I'd always thought was Carol Smillie until ID looked more closely.

R01: M E B I S P A C E
R02: G N P U O I T L O
R03: R D E S A C T E H
R04: N C L O U E F N O
R05: 50, 75, 8, 6, 3, 1. Target: 700.
TTT: RUBHAIRS - "Put Basil on telly, then edit his photo."
R06: R S D M U A S E I
R07: B E T Q A O L R U
R08: G E S I R A D N M
R09: E O Y S T O N S R
R10: 50, 100, 8, 9, 1, 6. Target: 841.
TTT: SNOWSNAG - "The last performance from a musical bird."
R11: G T I V E I D A K
R12: N P I O A J X M I
R13: T A R I R O G V A
R14: 50, 9, 5, 7, 3, 6. Target: 636.
R15: S T R O N G I C E (conundrum)


And now a brief interlude before our main feature:

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Enjoy the show.

Round 1: M E B I S P A C E

C1: campies
C2: PEACES (6)
DC: SCAMPI (6)
OT: AMICES (6) APICES (6) APIECE (6) BECAME (6) BICEPS (6) CEIBAS (6) ESCAPE (6) PIECES (6) SPECIE (6)
Score: 0–6 (max 6)

Rather strangely, Barney went for an admittedly doubtful PEACES. After some thought, Susie allowed it. Even though PEACE is only shown as a mass noun, she decided that in its definition as a period of no war is could be pluralised. A bit controversial, and at variance with JimDic and the various applications that use it. Even more strangely, Barney could have gone for the rather more obvious homonym PIECES, which has a clearly acceptable plural.
No controversy about Heather's offering, definitely not permitted.
So Barney goes into an immediate rather fortunate lead.

Of the many other available sixes:
An AMICE (pl AMICES) is a cloth worn by a priest
APICES is a plural of APEX
A CEIBA (pl CEIBAS) is a tropical tree
and SPECIE is coinage

Round 2: G N P U O I T L O

C1: POUTING (7)
C2: POUTING (7)
DC: POOTLING (8)
Score: 7–13 (max 14)

Round 3: R D E S A C T E H

C1: CHEATERS (8)
C2: CHEATERS (8)
DC: DETACHES (8) HEADREST (8)
OT: HECTARES (8) TEACHERS (8) SEARCHED (8) STARCHED (8)
Score: 15–21 (max 22)

Numerous easy eights here, so anyone who didn't get at least one of them should hang their head in shame. Now I've stopped hanging my head, I'll get on with the recap.

Round 4: N C L O U E F N O

C1: FLOUNCE (7)
C2: FUNNEL (6)
OT: NUCLEON (7)
Score: 22–21 (max 29)

Heather bounces back for the narrowest of leads...

Round 5: 50, 75, 8, 6, 3, 1. Target: 700.

C1: 700. (8 + 6) x 50 (10)
C2: 700. (8 + 6) x 50 (10)
Score: 32–31 (max 39)

... which she takes through to the first interval after one of the easiest of numbers games.

However, before the interval, Jenni gives a few tips on how to make the hours seen to go quicker while training for a marathon.

Teatime teaser: RUBHAIRS -> AIRBRUSH

Round 6: R S D M U A S E I

C1: MASSED (6)
C2: DREAMS (6)
DC: MISREADS (8)
OT: SIDEARMS (8) RADIUSES (8) SURMISED (8)
Score: 38–37 (max 47)

Round 7: B E T Q A O L R U

C1: TROUBLE (7)
C2: BLOATER (7)
DC: EQUATOR (7) BAROQUE (7) QUOTABLE (8)
Score: 45–44 (max 55)

Round 8: G E S I R A D N M

C1: DREAMING (8)
C2: READINGS (8)
DC: GANDERS (7)
OT: MARGINED (8) GRADINES (8) SMEARING (8)
Score: 53–52 (max 63)

A GRADINE is a low step at the back of an altar.

Round 9: E O Y S T O N S R

C1: STONERS (7)
C2: SOONEST (7)
DC: OYSTERS (7)
OT: OSTENSORY (18)
Score: 60–59 (max 81)

OSTENSORY, the niner which everyone missed, is a receptacle which displays the consecrated host for veneration during mass. That's the third word with religious connections today which I've missed.

Susie returns to her Call My Bluff style, this time offering three definitions for Box and Cox, which Jeff fails to answer correctly.

Round 10: 50, 100, 8, 9, 1, 6. Target: 841.

C1: 841. 8 x 100 + 50 - 9 (10)
C2: 841. 8 x 100 + 50 - 9 (10)
Score: 70–69 (max 91)

And so, following another pretty easy numbers game, we go into the second interval with Heather still hanging onto that slenderest of leads. Nothing between them in the second half.

Teatime teaser: SNOWSNAG -> SWANSONG

Round 11: G T I V E I D A K

C1: DATIVE (6)
C2: DIET (4)
Score: 76–69 (max 97)

Heather now widens her lead a little with a Darren 6.

Round 12: N P I O A J X M I

C1: PIANO (5)
C2: AXIOM (5)
DC: MOPANI (6)
Score: 81–74 (max 103)

A MOPANI is an African tree.

Round 13: T A R I R O G V A

C1: RATIO (5)
C2: GROAT (5)
DC: AVIATOR (7)
Score: 86–79 (max 110)

Darrens available in all three letters games in the third half, but only one is seen by a contestant.

Round 14: 50, 9, 5, 7, 3, 6. Target: 636.

C1: -
C2: 636. (7 + 5) x (50 + 3) (10)
Score: 86–89 (max 120)

Heather misses this one, so it's Barney who takes the advantage going into a crucial conundrum.

Round 15: S T R O N G I C E

C1 buzzes on 3 seconds to say RECOSTING which is incorrect.
C2 does not buzz.
And nobody in the audience is successful either.
The answer was ESCORTING.
Score: 86–89 (max 130)

A not unreasonable guess from Heather, but unfortunately for her an incorrect one.
So the controversal decision in round one proved decisive. Heather is unlucky to go out, while Barney lives to fight another day.

My apologies for the delay in bringing you this recap. Having seen the previous Monday's recap, I thought it wise to spend yesterday taking advice from a solicitor about suing for libel. Even though I see last week's recap has been edited, my time wasn't wasted, as I'll now be offering my solicitor to Dinos. Hopefully I'll be more on time with my next offering in a fortnight's time. In the meantime, there should be no delay with next Monday's recap, as Kai should have plenty of time on his hands, assuming that the use of computers is permitted at his young offenders' institution.

Statistics Corner

Heather:
Total score - 86
Raw score - 86
Total % of max - 66.2
Raw % of max - 66.2
Total average score per round - 5.7
Raw average score per round - 5.7
Number of maxes - 6

Barney:
Total score - 89
Raw score - 99
Total % of max - 68.5
Raw % of max - 76.2
Total average score per round - 5.9
Raw average score per round - 6.6
Number of maxes - 7


Further summaries are at:
http://www.apterous.org/cdb/series.php?series=62

[James Robinson]

Barney:
Total score - 99
Raw score - 89

I seem to recall that a raw score can't be smaller than the total score, Howard.

[Howard Somerset]

Barney:
Total score - 99
Raw score - 89

I seem to recall that a raw score can't be smaller than the total score, Howard.

Well observed, James. They need to be interchanged. Thanks.