Defend Countdown (Daily Mail article)

[D Eadie]

we expect them to be dominant because they are the players and they entertain us. We do not expect them to be swamped and become of secondary importance to a gloomy, primary dark blue set,

George, when Jeff starts introducing the set, asking it questions and giving it rounds of applause, then i think you'll have a point.

[Charlie Reams]

we expect them to be dominant because they are the players and they entertain us. We do not expect them to be swamped and become of secondary importance to a gloomy, primary dark blue set,

George, when Jeff starts introducing the set, asking it questions and giving it rounds of applause, then i think you'll have a point.

But he is an artist, you know. And a plumber. And an engine driver. Did I mention he was alive during the War?

[Andy Wilson]

Do I underestimate the power of the media (the answer to this is probably 'yes', as I'm not sure how else you explain the transition from Jade being a fat idiotic pig to a media darling to a vile racist bully to something approaching a saint.)

I think the answer begins with M and ends in ax Clifford.

I agree with the shows time being a little early, but for selfish reasons, as i'm often stuck in college too late to catch it. As regards the weather, I chose to miss Kirk's last game here on Paddy's day as it was the first proper bit of sunshine in ages so i spent the afternoon with a few mates sitting by the banks of the Lee. That one being a pretty interesting episode, with Kirk breaking records and whatnot and seeing as i'd been following his run, i can understand ratings going down the following day if it was sunny across the sea when there wasn't much at stake.

This may have been answered somewhere else already, but, further to Jennifer's post up the way, can anyone explain why the audience interaction has been dropped? I can't recall Jeff asking the audience if they got a conundrum or a teaser yet...

[George Jenkins]

we expect them to be dominant because they are the players and they entertain us. We do not expect them to be swamped and become of secondary importance to a gloomy, primary dark blue set,

George, when Jeff starts introducing the set, asking it questions and giving it rounds of applause, then i think you'll have a point.

But he is an artist, you know. And a plumber. And an engine driver. Did I mention he was alive during the War?

Yes, and I was putting fires out when I was 16 years old in the NFS

[Gary Male]

With the current DC guest, the Daily Mail must be happy that Countdown has upped the extremist right-wing count. Jon Gaunt weighs in at a whopping 15.7 megaWiddicombes.

[George Jenkins]

Charlie, I am very cross with you. when you were listing my talents, you forgot to mention that I am also an electrician and driving instructor. I taught three people in my family and they passed first time. Another of my talents is chess, and the highlight of my career was beating the North Kent Champion in an Inter-club tounament match. When I played at work, ( our lunch breaks) I played against my workmates three at a time, because they weren't strong players.I am certain that you are impressed with all my talents, as I am, and I have more of course. But I don't want to appear to be a boastful chap. that is not my nature.

[Chris Corby]

I don't know about the settings on George's TV but I have been into many homes over the years when the box has been on and wince at the high colour settings. If any programme looks garish turn the colour down, ideally so that it's a few notches above black and white. The blue colour of Countdown on my TV is perfect. Also, if Dale Winton's face appears bright orange on screen, the colour setting is probably about right.

[Joyce Phillips]

This is my first post. I'm a huge Countdown fan, and of course Richard is irreplaceable, but Jeff is by far the best of the new presenters. He seems genuinely interested in the game, the guests and the contestants. Rachel looks fabulous and I'm warming to her personality, but her voice can be grating. If we want Countdown to continue, we need to spread the word and recruit new viewers.

[Jason Larsen]

Joyce, welcome!

If you'd like to tell us all about yourself, there is a welcome thread here!

[Ian Fitzpatrick]

I was at a dinner party last night and Countdown came up in a conversation with an avid watcher, interestingly she didn’t like the new presenters but couldn’t name them, she didn’t like Carol either because she thought she became too bossy after Richard died, she sits down with pencil and paper every afternoon but didn’t seem to be aware of Kirk’s wondrous feats of a few weeks ago nor of Cate’s potential as an octochamp! She didn’t mention the colours of the new set either. So it seems that it’s the daily dose of letters and numbers that are the main draw. She was however very interested to learn of David O’Donnell’s method of putting the vowels in a circle inside a circle of consonants.
Just thought I’d share these findings with you all! Maybe the Daily Mail should recruit me as a researcher.

[Jason Larsen]

That's where Kirk got that idea!

It amazes me that people can actually write 9 letters down and circle them in 30 seconds!

[Gavin Chipper]

That's where Kirk got that idea!

It amazes me that people can actually write 9 letters down and circle them in 30 seconds!

My record stands at 32 seconds. It was 33 for ages but yesterday I topped that.

[Kirk Bevins]

That's where Kirk got that idea!

It amazes me that people can actually write 9 letters down and circle them in 30 seconds!

That's 3 seconds per letter? Could you not beat that Jason? I have to write train numbers down quickly, sometimes I have to write 6 digits in under 2 seconds (otherwise buy a dictaphone).

Also, I never got the idea from David at all. I always write them in a straight line - the only time I don't is if I'm struggling with the conundrum and I put them in a random order (in almost a splodge, not a circle), but I've had that idea for years.

[Jason Larsen]

Kirk, I'm a much better typer than a handwriter.

[Ian Dent]

I use the David O'Donnell method. It took me ages to adjust to the Apterous method.