It's been a brilliant 12 months recapping Wednesdays and (within 6 weeks of starting) Thursdays. It's just brilliant to be able to recap a show that I've cared about all my life and this is almost like a sort of ambition fulfilled for me.
So, I'd personally like to thank Charlie for creating this website and to Kai and Jon for giving up their slots to give me my chance to shine for once. So, enjoy this momentous recap, and at the end I'll give you my personal top 3 from the last 12 months.
Countdown recap for Thursday 7 October 2010.
C1: Champion Michael Chadwick (4 wins, 380 points.) An Apterite from Tooting, London. His best score so far was his 111 he got against Jude Bell yesterday.
C2: Challenger Elle Chilton-Knight. Originally from Halifax, West Yorkshire, but has since lived in Essex, and is now studying politics and sociology at Newcastle University. Her ambition is not to embarrass herself on national TV. She also has an audible section of the crowd giver her support today as well.
DC: Susie Dent and Matt Le Tissier.
RR: Rachel Riley.
OT: Other words or solutions.
R01: S I T D A N U I R
R02: Q E I S F E L S A
R03: N O E P A S W N O
R04: R E I M L T O E R
R05: 100, 9, 5, 7, 10, 9. Target: 926.
TTT: TENTPLAY - "It's clearly obvious as to who owns the licence"
R06: Y L I E N G O A S
R07: G O A T E N V P I
R08: O A R S M E A C P
R09: T O S E A M O R C
R10: 25, 50, 5, 10, 1, 8. Target: 626.
TTT: SUPEROIL - "Very risky, rather like Beryl herself"
R11: L E R U D Z A U W
R12: T N D R E O T E M
R13: B A S I H C D A E
R14: 50, 75, 9, 7, 8, 5. Target: 656.
R15: H E W S P R I D E (conundrum)
And now a brief interlude before our main feature:
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Enjoy the show.
Round 1: S I T D A N U I R
C1: STRAIN (6)
C2: NUDIST (6)
DC: STRAND (6) distain
RR: UNITARDS (8)
OT: SATURNIID (18)
Score: 6–6 (max 18)
Elle shows a bit of bare-faced cheek to begin with. DC can't get past, although they miss DISTRAIN after checking up on the illegal distain, leaving Rachel to steal the show with a brilliant 8, leaving the even more brilliant 9 alone.
A SATURNIID is any of several large, brightly coloured moths of the family Saturniidae, comprising the giant silkworm moths.
Round 2: Q E I S F E L S A
C1: FALSIES (7)
C2: EASELS (6)
Score: 13–6 (max 25)
Round 3: N O E P A S W N O
C1: WEAPONS (7)
C2: SPAWN (5)
Score: 20–6 (max 32)
Double darrenic delights for our champion,.....
Round 4: R E I M L T O E R
C1: TRIREME (7)
C2: LOITERER (8)
Score: 20–14 (max 40)
...., but our challenger comes back in with a darren of her own.
Round 5: 100, 9, 5, 7, 10, 9. Target: 926.
C1: 926. (9 x 100) + 10 + 7 + 9 (10)
C2: 926. (9 x 100) + 10 + 7 + 9 (10)
Score: 30–24 (max 50)
Matt talks about his Guernsey roots, and about the fact that he's the only Le Tissier to have left the island
Interestingly, I'm off to Guernsey's next door neighbour, Jersey, in just over a week's time for a short break.
Teatime teaser: TENTPLAY -> PATENTLY
Round 6: Y L I E N G O A S
C1: SEALING (7)
C2: SEALING (7)
DC: GASOLINE (8)
Score: 37–31 (max 58)
Why does this round seem to remind me of the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster
Round 7: G O A T E N V P I
C1: VETOING (7)
C2: ovating
DC: PINOTAGE (8)
Score: 44–31 (max 66)
Elle's dubious 7, is just that, while DC get a 2nd consecutive darren.
Round 8: O A R S M E A C P
C1: CAMERAS (7)
C2: CORPSE (6)
DC: CAMPERS (7) COMPARES (8)
OT: MESOCARP (8)
Score: 51–31 (max 74)
Michael snaps in with a flashy 7, and his lead goes up to a score.
A MESOCARP is the middle layer of pericarp (the walls of a ripened ovary or fruit), as the fleshy part of certain fruits.
Round 9: T O S E A M O R C
C1: COASTER (7)
C2: COMATOSE (8)
Score: 51–39 (max 82)
But Elle isn't lying down easily and comes back in with a darrenic 8. Interesting that she gets COMATOSE immediately after CORPSE.
Susie's Call My Bluff has Jeff back in the hotseat. What is the correct definition of NIPPITATE?
Is it:
a) Doing something "on the hoof".
b) A good strong ale.
c) Another version of "nip and tuck".
After originally ruling out a), Jeff decides to go for a), which as usual for Jeff, is wrong.
It is b).Round 10: 25, 50, 5, 10, 1, 8. Target: 626.
C1: 625.
C2: 626. ((8 + 5) x 50) - 25 + 1 (10)
Score: 51–49 (max 92)
All of a sudden, Elle has given herself a real shout of winning as her 2 large solution can't be matched by Michael.
Teatime teaser: SUPEROIL -> PERILOUS
Round 11: L E R U D Z A U W
C1: RAZED (5)
C2: wurzel
DC: LURED (5) AZURE (5)
OT: WAULED (6)
Score: 56–49 (max 98)
Ooooooh, is that possibly another turning point. Whether or not she was thinking of Mr. Gummidge, there's no wurzel in the dictionary, well not the OED2r anyway.
Round 12: T N D R E O T E M
C1: MENTORED (8)
C2: TETRODE (7)
DC: TORMENTED (18)
Score: 64–49 (max 116)
Michael extends his lead further, but both players were probably a bit TORMENTED at missing that 9, well more than missing SATURNIID anyway.
Round 13: B A S I H C D A E
C1: ABASHED (7)
C2: CHIDES (6)
OT: ACEDIAS (7) DIABASE (7)
Score: 71–49 (max 123)
And Michael has wrapped it up and win #5 is his.
A DIABASE is a dark igneous rock consisting essentially of augite and feldspar; an altered dolerite.
Round 14: 50, 75, 9, 7, 8, 5. Target: 656.
C1: 655. (9 x 75) - (5 + 8 + 7) (7)
C2: 659.
MLT: 656. ((75 - (8 - 7)) x 9) - (50 / 5) (10)
Score: 78–49 (max 133)
Not even 2 large can restore some pride for Elle, but we are treated to a mathematical masterclass, not by Rachel.
But, by "Le God" himself. (But his beloved Saints will lose to the Mighty Terriers in 9 days time. 
)Round 15: H E W S P R I D E
C2 buzzes on 19 seconds to say WHISPERED which is correct.
Final Score: 78–59 (max 143)
Elle gets her deserved consolation of the conundrum, but Michael weathered the storm and now has 5 wins to his name. I think he definitely has enough skill to become an octochamp, but whether he'll do it remains to be seen.
Mike will inform you all tomorrow.
So, I've now entered Year 2 as a recapper, and I still enjoy it as much, if not more than when I started. It's a brill experience, and it's something I enjoy, so I take a lot of time and care with my recaps. I hope you all enjoy reading them as much as I do writing them.
Before I go, I thought I'd leave you with my top 3 recaps from my first year as a recapper:
In 3rd Place: Actually my worst in terms of emotion, but one of the best in terms of drama, Jonathan Wynn's brief stint on the show back in July: http://www.c4countdown.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=3891
2nd Place: Oliver Garner's magnificent comeback in his 8th preliminary game, back in January: http://www.c4countdown.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=3289
1st Place: Not too surprising: The semi-final of Series 61, now immortalised in Countdown legend by a single word: SLEEPSUIT. Chris Davies v Innis Carson from last December: http://www.c4countdown.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=3174
Here's to another 12 months
See you next week, bye bye.
Statistics Corner
Michael:
Total score - 78
Raw score - 99
Total % of max - 55
Raw % of max - 69
Total average score per round - 5.2
Raw average score per round - 6.6
Number of maxes - 4
Elle:
Total score - 59
Raw score - 96
Total % of max - 41
Raw % of max - 67
Total average score per round - 3.9
Raw average score per round - 6.4
Number of maxes - 5
Further summaries are at:
http://www.apterous.org/cdb/series.php?series=63
