(If they're any later, I'll be as bad as Mike. (No offence, Mike. 
))Enjoy.
Countdown recap for Thursday 30 September 2010.
C1: Champion Heather Driver (3 wins, 224 points.) From Elgin, Moray, but born in Bradford, West Yorkshire. She works as a homemaker and carer. She currently lives with her 3 children, her granddad and her 2 cats, Squidge and Thingy.
C2: Challenger Martha Stevenson. From Bishopbriggs, Glasgow. The most dangerous thing she has ever done is ride pillion on a motorbike driven by her friend's father when she was a teenager.
DC: Susie Dent and Dr. Phil Hammond.
RR: Rachel Riley.
OT: Other words or solutions.
R01: R T S E A O N U T
R02: W S L E I T P E D
R03: Y M C O E A T K B
R04: E O D S A E R W U
R05: 25, 7, 7, 10, 5, 8. Target: 488.
TTT: SENDPIES - "Send pies out to those who need them"
R06: I A E S H T O R S
R07: N D L I E A V M F
R08: G C R M E S N A O
R09: D S J E I E H D I
R10: 75, 5, 5, 6, 10, 4. Target: 583.
TTT: RISELATE - "If you rise late, you won't be this type of bird"
R11: M N E A T R U G E
R12: R P F O A T E V R
R13: N P G A O L I D A
R14: 100, 7, 7, 5, 9, 9. Target: 158.
R15: K E T R I S T I C (conundrum)
And now a brief interlude before our main feature:
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Round 1: R T S E A O N U T
C1: NUTTERS (7)
C2: TREASON (7)
DC: TAUNTERS (8) OUTSTARE (8)
Score: 7–7 (max 8)
Both contestants seem happy with their 7's to start with, whereas DC are happy with both available 8's.
Round 2: W S L E I T P E D
C1: SWIPED (6)
C2: EDITS (5)
DC: PEEWITS (7) EPISTLE (7)
OT: SWEETLIP (8)
Score: 13–7 (max 16)
Martha causes giggles galore when asking Rachel for an "O", as opposed to a vowel, which led to Rachel thinking that she was just saying "vowel" in a very strong Scottish accent.
As it is, Heather's 6 gives her an early lead.Round 3: Y M C O E A T K B
C1: CAMEO (5)
C2: MEAT (4)
DC: BOCKETY (7)
Score: 18–7 (max 23)
Martha's 4 of MEAT is trumped by Heather's offering of 5 in CAMEO, which is then trumped by my offering of COMBAT for 6, which is then darrenically trumped by DC's 7 of BOCKETY.
Round 4: E O D S A E R W U
C1: SWORD (5)
C2: ERASED (6)
DC: AROUSED (7) DRAWEES (7)
OT: OARWEED (7)
Score: 18–13 (max 30)
Martha gets back in it with her 6, although if Heather altered how she said SWORD, then she could have matched ERASED with SOARED.
OARWEED is any of various brown seaweeds, especially a kelp of the genus Laminaria, with long broad fronds, common below the low-water mark.
Round 5: 25, 7, 7, 10, 5, 8. Target: 488.
C1: 485. ((7 - 5) x 25 x 10) - (8 + 7) (7)
C2: 488. Mistake in working.
RR: 488. (((7 x 10) - 5) x 7) + 25 + 8 (10)
Score: 25–13 (max 40)
A tricky numbers to start the day with. Martha uses the 5 twice, Heather gets 2 away, I get 1 away with (7 x 7 x 10) - (8 - 5), whereas Rachel gives us the answer after Dr. Phil's anecdote.
Dr. Phil talks about the time when he bought a replacement washing machine, but it got delivered to the wrong house and had been signed for by some builders and allowed the neighbour's perfect washing machine to be taken out.
Teatime teaser: SENDPIES -> DISPENSE
Round 6: I A E S H T O R S
C1: SHORTS (6)
C2: SHORTIES (8)
OT: HOARIEST (8) HOARSEST (8) HOISTERS (8) HORSIEST (8)
Score: 25–21 (max 48)
Martha gets back in with that very Scottish offering of SHORTIES. Heather must be kicking herself after getting SHORTS, but that's the way the cookie crumbles, or should I say SHORTIE.
Round 7: N D L I E A V M F
C1: INFLAMED (8)
C2: INFLAMED (8)
Score: 33–29 (max 56)
A good darrenic spot by both leaves the game still nicely poised.
Round 8: G C R M E S N A O
C1: mongers
C2: ROMANCES (8)
OT: CRAGSMEN (8) MEGARONS (8)
Score: 33–37 (max 64)
Another brilliant 8 by Martha sees her go into the lead for the first time today.
P.S. Despite Susie's claims to the contrary, mongers is a no-no.
A CRAGSMEN is a person accustomed to or skilled in climbing crags.
A MEGARON is an Ancient Greek building or semi-independent unit of a building, generally used as a living apartment and typically having a square or broadly rectangular principal chamber with a porch, often of columns in antis, and sometimes an antichamber or other small compartments.
Round 9: D S J E I E H D I
C1: DISHED (6)
C2: eejits
OT: EDDIES (6) SIDDHI (6)
Score: 39–37 (max 70)
Oh dear, Martha sees a phantom T in the selection giving the lead back to Heather.
An EDDY (plural EDDIES) is a current at variance with the main current in a stream of liquid or gas, especially one having a rotary or whirling motion, or a small whirlpool.
In Buddhism, SIDDHI means any occult power acquired through discipline.
Susie's Origin Of Words talks about the origin of the U.S. state of California.
Round 10: 75, 5, 5, 6, 10, 4. Target: 583.
C1: 585. Mistake in working.
C2: -
RR: 583. (((75 x 4) - 6) x (10 / 5)) - 5 (10)
Score: 39–37 (max 80)
Another tricky numbers appears with Martha blanking out, Heather blanking out after learning that 75 x 6 is 450, leaving Rachel to show us simpletons how it's done.
Teatime teaser: RISELATE -> EARLIEST
Round 11: M N E A T R U G E
C1: MANURE (6)
C2: MATURE (6)
DC: NUMERATE (8) ARGUMENT (8)
Score: 45–43 (max 88)
More giggles abound with the contestants' offerings, but yet again DC come up trumps with more brilliant 8's.
Round 12: R P F O A T E V R
C1: PARROT (6)
C2: REPORT (6)
DC: FOREPART (8)
Score: 51–49 (max 96)
Yet again, DC get the 8, while the contestants stick on 6.
Round 13: N P G A O L I D A
C1: LOPING (6)
C2: ALONG (5)
DC: GONADAL (7) DIAGONAL (8)
Score: 57–49 (max 104)
An unusual 6 for Heather extends her lead to 8, while Dr. Phil turns on the laughter with GONADAL, combined with the darrenic 8.
Round 14: 100, 7, 7, 5, 9, 9. Target: 158.
C1: 158. (9 x 7) - 5 + 100 (10)
C2: 145.
Score: 67–49 (max 114)
And Heather wraps up half-octochampdom, as Martha can't even get within 10 in a not too hard numbers game.
Round 15: K E T R I S T I C
C1 buzzes on 5.25 seconds to say TRICKIEST which is correct.
Final Score: 77–49 (max 124)
The conundrum might not have been the TRICKIEST, but Heather probably had her TRICKIEST test to date, despite the slightly lop-sided final score. Martha gave plenty of giggles and was definitely more than a match for Heather, but it was the numbers that proved to be her downfall in the end. But, after the last 3 weeks of expert word-spotting by Daniel and Eoin, it was nice to see the lighter side of Countdown again.
So, Heather maintains the #8 spot in the table. Will she climb any higher
Mike will tell all next month, which has actually just become this month, as I'm writing this.I'll be back next week with the 1st Year Anniversary Special of the Robinson Recap.
Till then, bye bye.
Statistics Corner
Heather:
Total score - 77
Raw score - 88
Total % of max - 62
Raw % of max - 71
Total average score per round - 5.1
Raw average score per round - 5.9
Number of maxes - 4
Martha:
Total score - 49
Raw score - 63
Total % of max - 40
Raw % of max - 51
Total average score per round - 3.3
Raw average score per round - 4.2
Number of maxes - 3
Further summaries are at:
http://www.apterous.org/cdb/series.php?series=63
Never even heard of it, I thought she got it mixed up with ELOPING. 
