Monday 11th March 2013 (Series 68, Prelim 6)
Posted: Mon Mar 11, 2013 10:19 pm
Countdown recap for Monday 11 March 2013.
C1: Champion Sam McElhinney (2 wins, 163 points) lives in Leeds and is originally from Galway. He's here mainly thanks to spotting the crucial conundrum UNHELPFUL on Thursday less than a second before our very own Philip Jarvis. He also beat Juliette Bains on Friday to earn a third appearance.
C2: Challenger Ian Dobkin is a retired barrister and County Court judge, also from Leeds. One of his interests is ballroom dancing. Watching it on the telly, of course, not anything so frivolous as actually doing it.
DC: Susie Dent and Jon Culshaw.
RR: Rachel Riley.
OT: Other words or solutions.
R01: N S U N E L H O D
R02: S V D N I A Q E I
R03: O S M E A G X N E
R04: T R P M U A I G Z
R05: 75, 25, 100, 5, 10, 3. Target: 427.
TTT: FATCRATE - "A historical object or the truth about Russell, perhaps?"
R06: R J O A E V T I C
R07: A Y E D C A H P S
R08: T N L B U I N D O
R09: T D E L N O E T A
R10: 10, 7, 8, 8, 5, 5. Target: 768.
TTT: BEGADDER - "Pestered to death about the animal."
R11: P T I O M R N I O
R12: F S R E I L C F O
R13: R S A R W E O N E
R14: 6, 4, 1, 5, 6, 2. Target: 639.
R15: T H E I R C O P Y (conundrum)
And now a brief interlude before our main feature:
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Enjoy the show.
Round 1: N S U N E L H O D
C1: SUNNED (6)
C2: UNSHOD (6)
DC: NODULES (7) SHUNNED (7)
OT: LOUDENS (7)
Score: 6–6 (max 7)
I wouldn't have thought UNSHOD was in, but there it is. Both our players get off the mark immediately.
Another guest might mumble "NODULES" while gazing uninterestedly at the far corner of the studio. Not Jon Culshaw. This is Jon Culshaw saying "NODULES".
And this is why Jon Culshaw needs to keep up his regular appearances on the show. One of the best, possibly the best, of all the guests in DC, both on camera and off. Talking of great DC guests, we must be due another visit from Tim Vine some time soon.
Round 2: S V D N I A Q E I
C1: INVADES (7)
C2: DIVANS (6)
DC: DIVINES (7)
Score: 13–6 (max 14)
First blood to Sam with INVADES.
Round 3: O S M E A G X N E
C1: GNOMES (6)
C2: -
DC: MANGOES (7) GENOMES (7) MENAGES (7) AXONEMES (8)
Score: 19–6 (max 22)
Ian blanks completely in this round, but Susie and Jon come up with the superb AXONEMES. An AXONEME is the central strand of a cilium, which is a short microscopic hair.
Round 4: T R P M U A I G Z
C1: IMPART (6)
C2: -
DC: ATRIUM (6) GUITAR (6)
OT: ARMPIT (6) GAZUMP (6)
Score: 25–6 (max 28)
Ian blanks for the second round in a row, which gifts Sam an opportunity to pull further ahead.
Round 5: 75, 25, 100, 5, 10, 3. Target: 427.
C1: 428. 100*5-75+3 (7)
C2: 428. 100*5-75+3 (7)
RR: 427. 75*5+(100/25)*(10+3) (10)
Score: 32–13 (max 38)
Sam picks his favourite selection, 3 large. Both Ian and Sam reach 428 the same way, but Rachel does well to spot 375+52.
Teatime teaser: FATCRATE -> ARTEFACT
Round 6: R J O A E V T I C
C1: VECTOR (6)
C2: VICTOR (6)
DC: OVERACT (7) EVICTOR (7) EROTICA (7)
Score: 38–19 (max 45)
This round is sponsored by Airplane.
Round 7: A Y E D C A H P S
C1: SHAPED (6)
C2: CHASED (6)
DC: APACHES (7)
OT: PSYCHED (7)
Score: 44–25 (max 52)
Susie spots that you can have APACHES - the sense meaning the American Indian people is capitalised, but it also means a street ruffian, and that's allowable.
Round 8: T N L B U I N D O
C1: BLOND (5)
C2: BUILT (5)
DC: UNTOLD (6) INBOUND (7)
OT: BOTULIN (7) UNBLIND (7)
Score: 49–30 (max 59)
Tricky selection, and Sam and Ian share fives.
Round 9: T D E L N O E T A
C1: alotted
C2: NETTLED (7)
DC: TALONED (7) NOTELET (7) TALENTED (8)
OT: DETONATE (8)
Score: 49–37 (max 67)
Sam tries ALOTTED^ but you need two Ls as well as two Ts, so nothing doing there. This means Ian closes the gap.
Round 10: 10, 7, 8, 8, 5, 5. Target: 768.
C1: 765. (8*8+7+5)*10+5 (7)
C2: -
RR: 768. 8*8*(7+5) (10)
Score: 56–37 (max 77)
Ian tries six small. "A bit of a fan of the numbers, then?" asks Rachel. "Not really." Then he declares nothing.
Sam gets three away for 7 points, but Rachel spots that 768 is a multiple of 64.
Teatime teaser: BEGADDER -> BADGERED
Round 11: P T I O M R N I O
C1: MONITOR (7)
C2: PORTION (7)
DC: IMPORT (6) IMPRINT (7)
OT: TOMPION (7)
Score: 63–44 (max 84)
A TOMPION is a wooden stopper for the muzzle of a gun, or on a similar theme, a plug for an organ pipe.
Round 12: F S R E I L C F O
C1: CLIFFS (6)
C2: COFFERS (7)
DC: FORCES (6) FROLICS (7) OFFICERS (8)
Score: 63–51 (max 92)
Ian starts something of a comeback with COFFERS. Only twelve points in it now.
Round 13: R S A R W E O N E
C1: WARRENS (7)
C2: warrens (not written down)
DC: SWEARER (7) ANSWERER (8) REASONER (8)
Score: 70–51 (max 100)
In this round Ian follows in the footsteps of such greats as Daniel Pati and Jonathan Rawlinson by failing to declare that he hadn't written his word down. According to the meticulous records kept by Mike Brown and others, in 30 years and over 47,000 letters rounds this is only the seventh time a word's been disallowed for this reason.
I've mentioned before that there are four reasons a word can be disallowed: unacceptable word, not in the selection, misdeclared length, and not written down. But there are ten ways of being given out in cricket. Can you name them all?
Round 14: 6, 4, 1, 5, 6, 2. Target: 639.
C1: -
C2: -
RR: 639. (4+5)*(6*2*6+1) (10)
Score: 70–51 (max 110)
Ian picks six small again in the hope of forcing a crucial, but all we've got is a double blank. Rachel spots 71*9.
Regarding the ten ways of being given out in cricket, no, you can't have "caught at slip", "caught on the boundary", "caught and bowled" and "caught at silly point" all separately. They're all just "caught".
Round 15: T H E I R C O P Y
No one buzzes. The answer was HYPOCRITE.
Final Score: 70–51 (max 120)
The conundrum defeats both our players and the audience (though not Rachel), and it's hardly surprising, since even the great Julian Fell failed to solve the same scramble in his nevertheless record-scoring game.
No more Countdown for the rest of the week, unless the racing's called off in which case we hope to see some of the specials that have been on the shelf for a while. So I'll be back next Monday for Sam's fourth game.
And the ten ways of getting out in cricket? Here they are.
Further summaries are at:
http://www.apterous.org/cdb/series.php?series=68
C1: Champion Sam McElhinney (2 wins, 163 points) lives in Leeds and is originally from Galway. He's here mainly thanks to spotting the crucial conundrum UNHELPFUL on Thursday less than a second before our very own Philip Jarvis. He also beat Juliette Bains on Friday to earn a third appearance.
C2: Challenger Ian Dobkin is a retired barrister and County Court judge, also from Leeds. One of his interests is ballroom dancing. Watching it on the telly, of course, not anything so frivolous as actually doing it.
DC: Susie Dent and Jon Culshaw.
RR: Rachel Riley.
OT: Other words or solutions.
R01: N S U N E L H O D
R02: S V D N I A Q E I
R03: O S M E A G X N E
R04: T R P M U A I G Z
R05: 75, 25, 100, 5, 10, 3. Target: 427.
TTT: FATCRATE - "A historical object or the truth about Russell, perhaps?"
R06: R J O A E V T I C
R07: A Y E D C A H P S
R08: T N L B U I N D O
R09: T D E L N O E T A
R10: 10, 7, 8, 8, 5, 5. Target: 768.
TTT: BEGADDER - "Pestered to death about the animal."
R11: P T I O M R N I O
R12: F S R E I L C F O
R13: R S A R W E O N E
R14: 6, 4, 1, 5, 6, 2. Target: 639.
R15: T H E I R C O P Y (conundrum)
And now a brief interlude before our main feature:
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
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Enjoy the show.
Round 1: N S U N E L H O D
C1: SUNNED (6)
C2: UNSHOD (6)
DC: NODULES (7) SHUNNED (7)
OT: LOUDENS (7)
Score: 6–6 (max 7)
I wouldn't have thought UNSHOD was in, but there it is. Both our players get off the mark immediately.
Another guest might mumble "NODULES" while gazing uninterestedly at the far corner of the studio. Not Jon Culshaw. This is Jon Culshaw saying "NODULES".
And this is why Jon Culshaw needs to keep up his regular appearances on the show. One of the best, possibly the best, of all the guests in DC, both on camera and off. Talking of great DC guests, we must be due another visit from Tim Vine some time soon.
Round 2: S V D N I A Q E I
C1: INVADES (7)
C2: DIVANS (6)
DC: DIVINES (7)
Score: 13–6 (max 14)
First blood to Sam with INVADES.
Round 3: O S M E A G X N E
C1: GNOMES (6)
C2: -
DC: MANGOES (7) GENOMES (7) MENAGES (7) AXONEMES (8)
Score: 19–6 (max 22)
Ian blanks completely in this round, but Susie and Jon come up with the superb AXONEMES. An AXONEME is the central strand of a cilium, which is a short microscopic hair.
Round 4: T R P M U A I G Z
C1: IMPART (6)
C2: -
DC: ATRIUM (6) GUITAR (6)
OT: ARMPIT (6) GAZUMP (6)
Score: 25–6 (max 28)
Ian blanks for the second round in a row, which gifts Sam an opportunity to pull further ahead.
Round 5: 75, 25, 100, 5, 10, 3. Target: 427.
C1: 428. 100*5-75+3 (7)
C2: 428. 100*5-75+3 (7)
RR: 427. 75*5+(100/25)*(10+3) (10)
Score: 32–13 (max 38)
Sam picks his favourite selection, 3 large. Both Ian and Sam reach 428 the same way, but Rachel does well to spot 375+52.
Teatime teaser: FATCRATE -> ARTEFACT
Round 6: R J O A E V T I C
C1: VECTOR (6)
C2: VICTOR (6)
DC: OVERACT (7) EVICTOR (7) EROTICA (7)
Score: 38–19 (max 45)
This round is sponsored by Airplane.
Round 7: A Y E D C A H P S
C1: SHAPED (6)
C2: CHASED (6)
DC: APACHES (7)
OT: PSYCHED (7)
Score: 44–25 (max 52)
Susie spots that you can have APACHES - the sense meaning the American Indian people is capitalised, but it also means a street ruffian, and that's allowable.
Round 8: T N L B U I N D O
C1: BLOND (5)
C2: BUILT (5)
DC: UNTOLD (6) INBOUND (7)
OT: BOTULIN (7) UNBLIND (7)
Score: 49–30 (max 59)
Tricky selection, and Sam and Ian share fives.
Round 9: T D E L N O E T A
C1: alotted
C2: NETTLED (7)
DC: TALONED (7) NOTELET (7) TALENTED (8)
OT: DETONATE (8)
Score: 49–37 (max 67)
Sam tries ALOTTED^ but you need two Ls as well as two Ts, so nothing doing there. This means Ian closes the gap.
Round 10: 10, 7, 8, 8, 5, 5. Target: 768.
C1: 765. (8*8+7+5)*10+5 (7)
C2: -
RR: 768. 8*8*(7+5) (10)
Score: 56–37 (max 77)
Ian tries six small. "A bit of a fan of the numbers, then?" asks Rachel. "Not really." Then he declares nothing.
Sam gets three away for 7 points, but Rachel spots that 768 is a multiple of 64.
Teatime teaser: BEGADDER -> BADGERED
Round 11: P T I O M R N I O
C1: MONITOR (7)
C2: PORTION (7)
DC: IMPORT (6) IMPRINT (7)
OT: TOMPION (7)
Score: 63–44 (max 84)
A TOMPION is a wooden stopper for the muzzle of a gun, or on a similar theme, a plug for an organ pipe.
Round 12: F S R E I L C F O
C1: CLIFFS (6)
C2: COFFERS (7)
DC: FORCES (6) FROLICS (7) OFFICERS (8)
Score: 63–51 (max 92)
Ian starts something of a comeback with COFFERS. Only twelve points in it now.
Round 13: R S A R W E O N E
C1: WARRENS (7)
C2: warrens (not written down)
DC: SWEARER (7) ANSWERER (8) REASONER (8)
Score: 70–51 (max 100)
In this round Ian follows in the footsteps of such greats as Daniel Pati and Jonathan Rawlinson by failing to declare that he hadn't written his word down. According to the meticulous records kept by Mike Brown and others, in 30 years and over 47,000 letters rounds this is only the seventh time a word's been disallowed for this reason.
I've mentioned before that there are four reasons a word can be disallowed: unacceptable word, not in the selection, misdeclared length, and not written down. But there are ten ways of being given out in cricket. Can you name them all?
Round 14: 6, 4, 1, 5, 6, 2. Target: 639.
C1: -
C2: -
RR: 639. (4+5)*(6*2*6+1) (10)
Score: 70–51 (max 110)
Ian picks six small again in the hope of forcing a crucial, but all we've got is a double blank. Rachel spots 71*9.
Regarding the ten ways of being given out in cricket, no, you can't have "caught at slip", "caught on the boundary", "caught and bowled" and "caught at silly point" all separately. They're all just "caught".
Round 15: T H E I R C O P Y
No one buzzes. The answer was HYPOCRITE.
Final Score: 70–51 (max 120)
The conundrum defeats both our players and the audience (though not Rachel), and it's hardly surprising, since even the great Julian Fell failed to solve the same scramble in his nevertheless record-scoring game.
No more Countdown for the rest of the week, unless the racing's called off in which case we hope to see some of the specials that have been on the shelf for a while. So I'll be back next Monday for Sam's fourth game.
And the ten ways of getting out in cricket? Here they are.
Further summaries are at:
http://www.apterous.org/cdb/series.php?series=68