Mwynhewch.
Countdown recap for Tuesday 1 March 2011.
C1: Challenger Nick Adigu-Burke. From Manchester. He works as a web designer and is also known as "The Gingerbread Man".
He enjoys boxing, football and horse racing. Amongst his other achievements are winning a biscuit dunking tournament on the radio. For you statisticians out there, Nick had a pink wafer and his opponent had a fig roll, and the event lasted over 2 hours 
C2: Challenger Raghd Rostom. From Dorset, but originally from Damascus, the capital of Syria, although she has lived in the UK for virtually all her life. She is currently on her gap year before going to Cambridge University, where she is studying Natural Sciences.
DC: Susie Dent and Mark Durden-Smith.
RR: Rachel Riley.
OT: Other words or solutions.
R01: I E O U C G R V N
R02: C R N E O E H S W
R03: A E U I D Y L P F
R04: O A G N N I U K L
R05: 75, 3, 1, 1, 3, 5. Target: 392.
TTT: ISPURELY - "Is purely an illness you want to avoid"
R06: L S I E A P S D S
R07: E I E A D L T S H
R08: D B T G E I A E R
R09: I E U E S J V S N
R10: 75, 100, 25, 5, 4, 5. Target: 553.
TTT: MUSHTRIP - "Win the races using old motorbikes"
R11: I O A E R T R B R
R12: A U O C D M Z M G
R13: A O I E P T L S R
R14: 75, 100, 7, 7, 8, 5. Target: 732.
R15: R O L L V E R G E (conundrum)
And now a brief interlude before our main feature:
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Enjoy the show.
Round 1: I E O U C G R V N
C1: COVERING (8)
C2: COVERING (8)
Score: 8–8 (max 8)
A nice COVERING here by our contestants gets us off to a good start on this Dydd Mawrth.
Round 2: C R N E O E H S W
C1: CHEWERS (7)
C2: CROWNS (6)
DC: ENCORES (7)
RR: WRENCHES (8)
OT: WENCHERS (8)
Score: 15–8 (max 16)
As some Somerset man once said, Rachel proves yet again that she's more than just cleavage and legs (not that we're getting to see much of it so far this week
) as she beats the contestants and DC, but importantly, Nick breaks the deadlock in this one with his 7.Round 3: A E U I D Y L P F
C1: PLAYED (6)
C2: PLAYED (6)
DC: UPFIELD (7)
Score: 21–14 (max 23)
DC go darrenic in this one with a sporting term to please both Jeff and Mark.
Round 4: O A G N N I U K L
C1: lanking
C2: LOANING (7)
OT: ANKLING (7)
Score: 21–21 (max 30)
And Raghd draws level after Nick's 7 really needs a W instead of an L to give it some proper use.
Round 5: 75, 3, 1, 1, 3, 5. Target: 392.
C1: 392. ((75 + 3) x 5) + 1 + 1 (10)
C2: 392. ((75 + 3) x 5) + 1 + 1 (10)
Score: 31–31 (max 40)
And these contestants numbers skills are as good as their letters skills, and at the end of the first exciting half, you can't tell who's the favourite in this one....
Mark talks about his moment of TV history. While he hosted The Big Breakfast's less successful successor, RI:SE, he left the programme during mid-transmission to relieve himself, as he put it. He then talks about interviewing Gwyneth Paltrow in France, after complaining that English people weren't asking her out on dates, and so via a motorbike ride, he asked out, before being escorted out by some guards.
Teatime teaser: ISPURELY -> PLEURISY
Round 6: L S I E A P S D S
C1: PASSED (6)
C2: PASSED (6)
DC: PALSIES (7)
OT: APSIDES (7) ASEPSIS (7) DASSIES (7) DISPELS (7) LASSIES (7) PALSIED (7) PLEIADS (7) PASSELS (7) SAPLESS (7)
Score: 37–37 (max 47)
The contestants make do with 6, although there were plenty of weird and wonderful 7's hidden away.
ASEPSIS is absence of the microorganisms that produce sepsis or septic disease.
A DASSIE (or HYRAX or even the ROCK RABBIT
) is any of several species of small mammals of the order Hyracoidea, of Africa and the Mediterranean region, having short legs, ears, and tail, and hooflike nails on the toes.A PLEIAD is any group of eminent or brilliant persons or things, especially when seven in number.
A PASSEL is a group or lot of indeterminate number.
Round 7: E I E A D L T S H
C1: HEADIEST (8)
C2: HEADIEST (8)
DC: DILATES (7)
OT: HEADTIES (8)
Score: 45–45 (max 55)
A very good 8 spot by both players here.
Round 8: D B T G E I A E R
C1: ABRIDGE (7)
C2: BEADIER (7)
OT: DEBITAGE (8) GAITERED (8)
Score: 52–52 (max 63)
7 is the order of the day in the studio, but 8 is the best and both available are left alone.
DEBITAGE is lithic debris and discards found at the sites where stone tools and weapons were made.
Round 9: I E U E S J V S N
C1: venues (declared as 7)
C2: VENUES (6)
DC: SIEVES (6) SEVENS (6) ENVIES (6) ENSUES (6)
OT: JUSSIVE (7) VENUSES (7)
Score: 52–58 (max 70)
AARGH
The deadlock breaks again, but it's Nick who makes the fatal error of declaring VENUES as a 7, which gives Raghd her first lead of the match.JUSSIVE is an adjective meaning to express a mild command.
Susie's Origins Of Words has a Royal Wedding theme with the origin of the phrase, "tying the knot".
Round 10: 75, 100, 25, 5, 4, 5. Target: 553.
C1: 554. (100 x 5) + 75 - 25 + 4 (7)
C2: 554. (100 x 5) + 75 - 25 + 4 (7)
Score: 59–65 (max 77)
A 50/50 selection by Raghd gives everyone an easy 7 points, and that's as good as it gets.
Teatime teaser: MUSHTRIP -> TRIUMPHS
Round 11: I O A E R T R B R
C1: BARTER (6)
C2: BARRIER (7)
DC: RAREBIT (7)
OT: ARBITER (7) ORBITER (7) RORTIER (7) TERROIR (7) TARRIER (7)
Score: 59–72 (max 84)
Plenty of 7's around as Raghd manages to put a bit more daylight between herself and Nick here. A note also for the nice Welsh find by DC there.
Round 12: A U O C D M Z M G
C1: DAGO (4)
C2: COMMA (5)
DC: DOGMA (5)
OT: GUMMA (5)
Score: 59–77 (max 89)
A very awful bunch here, but Nick can't score again and Raghd's lead stretches to 18. Is that enough
A GUMMA is a rubbery tumour characteristic of advanced syphilis, occurring especially on the skin, liver, brain or heart.
Round 13: A O I E P T L S R
C1: POLARISE (8)
C2: PORTALS (7)
DC: EPILATORS (18)
Score: 67–77 (max 107)
Maybe not....., Nick's 8 means we could be in for a very exciting finish as the gap shrinks to 10.
Mark actually finds the 9, although it took Susie to inform him that he had used all the letters. 
Round 14: 75, 100, 7, 7, 8, 5. Target: 732.
C1: 732. (100 x 8) - 75 + 7 (10)
C2: 734.
Score: 77–77 (max 117)
WOAH! Nick solves the 2 large and the scores are once again level. Even more surprising is the fact that Rachel says that she didn't solve it that way
But, either way, this fantastic match is now heading for possibly many conundrums...... Ooooooooh, how exciting this show is.
Round 15: R O L L V E R G E
C1 buzzes on 3.25 seconds to say GROVELLER which is correct.
Final Score: 87–77 (max 127)
And Nick completes an amazing comeback and retains his place in the champions' chair. Spare a thought for Raghd though, as with 3 rounds to go, she looked home and dry, but this can be cruel, but it has been exciting too today. One of the best games in a while between 2 non-Apterites, and it's a shame that one has to go, but Nick and his sky-blue cloth cap will return tomorrow.
As will I with Robinson Recap 2: Recap Harder tomorrow.
Till yna, hwyl fawr.
Statistics Corner
Nick:
Total score - 87
Raw score - 97
Total % of max - 69
Raw % of max - 76
Total average score per round - 5.8
Raw average score per round - 6.5
Number of maxes - 6
Raghd:
Total score - 77
Raw score - 97
Total % of max - 61
Raw % of max - 76
Total average score per round - 5.1
Raw average score per round - 6.5
Number of maxes - 7
Further summaries are at:
http://www.apterous.org/cdb/series.php?series=64