Friday, 14th November 2008 (Series 59, Game 85)

[Allan Harmer]

Countdown recap for Friday 14 November 2008.

C1: Challenger Peter Oliver. A Solicitor who enjoys cricket and chess - He once came within 30 metres of a grizzly bear in Canada.
C2: Challenger Garry Preston. A coach driver from Eccles in Greater Manchester, who likes John Wayne, Frank Sinatra and Harry Potter books. He is a wildlife photographer and coincidentally snapped a grizzly bear in the Canadian Rockies. The person he would most like to meet is Fanny Craddock, the original TV Chef.
Des quips that he would rather meet the grizzly bear than Fanny Craddock - and I thought Des liked Fanny!
DC: Susie Dent and John Inverdale, who tells us that when he was covering the 2001 World Athletics Championships in Edmonton and was prevented from playing the 9th hole on a golf course because a grizzly bear was feeding her 2 cubs near the green.
CV: Carol Vorderman.
OT: Other words or solutions.

R01: N T C E U I N M A
R02: D A T I V T E S F
R03: N Y S O E O R N H
R04: R U T E J R I E L
R05: 8, 10, 1, 2, 4, 75. Target: 708.
TTT: LOVELUNE - "Forget the portions - It's about the presentation "
R06: N A P O P I R B E
R07: S C N I O E D F B
R08: M U L O L D E S A
R09: G Q N O A A T M D
R10: 1, 8, 2, 4, 9, 75. Target: 673.
TTT: ALUTEGUN - "Try and avoid getting a kick out of it."
R11: R R G E I O T D S
R12: M E G U K T I A S
R13: S T S E A E R N R
R14: 5, 6, 1, 7, 8, 75. Target: 775.
R15: B U M B L E B U G (conundrum)


And now a brief interlude before our main feature:

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Enjoy the show.

On with the 'bear necessities'

Round 1: N T C E U I N M A

C1: MINUTE (6)
C2: INMATE (6)
DC: MANNIE (6) UNMEANT (7)
OT: UNCINATE (8) ANCIENT (7) NEMATIC (7) TUNICAE (7)
Score: 6–6 (max 8)
MANNIE is a Scottish man.
UNCINATE means shaped like a hook
NEMATIC is a chemical term relating to the state of a liquid crystal
TUNICAE are membranous sheaths enveloping or lining an organ

Round 2: D A T I V T E S F

C1: FATED (5)
C2: FATTIES (7)
DC: DATIVES (7) DAFTEST (7) STATIVE (7)
OT: DAFTEST (7) STATIVE (7)
Score: 6–13 (max 15)
John advises that DATIVES are tenses in language.
John Douglas in the SPOILERS corrects John by advising that DATIVES are cases of nouns, pronouns or words that are linked grammatically.

Round 3: N Y S O E O R N H

C1: SHORN (5)
C2: SOONER (6)
DC: HERONS (6) ONSHORE (7)
OT: NOONERS (7) NOSHERY (7) HENRYS (6)
Score: 6–19 (max 22)

What a lovely evocative word NOSHERY is!
Gary the coach driver gets into gear and overtakes Peter to go into an early lead.

Round 4: R U T E J R I E L

C1: TRIER (5)
C2: terrier
DC: RETIRE (6) RETILE (6)
OT: ETRIER (6) RUTILE (6) URETER (6)
Score: 11–19 (max 28)
ETRIER is a rope ladder
RUTILE is a mineral containing titanium dioxide

Round 5: 8, 10, 1, 2, 4, 75. Target: 708.

C1: 708. (75x10) = 750 - ((4+1) x 8) = 710 - 2 (10)
C2: 709.
Score: 21–19 (max 38)
Peter the cricketer puts a few quick runs on the board and is right back in the game.

John tells us that he ate donkeys' testicles in Beijing and that there were some things on the menu he wouldn't try!.
This leads on to John telling us about some titanic food eating world records.
47 cheese sandwiches in 10 minutes by Joey Chestnut.
80 chicken nuggest in 5 minutes
48 doughnuts in 8 mins
65 hard boiled eggs in 6 minutes 40 seconds
50.5 hot dogs in 12 minutes which led to them spilling out of his nose.
This record for hot dogs was recently broken by the aforementioned Joey Chestnut who managed 66 in 12 minutes

Des has been trying to get a word in and finally tells of the eating competition on the QMII where the leader was disqualified because her dessert was late and she ate the Phillipino waiter. Big groans all round and this is Des's third pop at eating on cruise ship in about 5 minutes.

Teatime teaser: LOVELUNE -> NOUVELLE

After the break John adds a rider to the hot dog record by letting us know that Joey put on a stone in weight in those 12 minutes.

Round 6: N A P O P I R B E

C1: NAPPER (6)
C2: BOPPER (6)
DC: PROPANE (7)
OT: NAPPIER (7) BONIER (6) BORANE (6) NIPPER (6) ORPINE (6) PARPEN (6) PEPINO (6) PEROBA (6) RAPINE (6) RAPPEN (6)
Score: 27–25 (max 45)
NAPPIER means frizzy, like a black person's hair

Round 7: S C N I O E D F B

C1: SCONE (5)
C2: CONFIDES (8)
DC: BODICES (7)
OT: BODICES (7) SECONDI (7)
Score: 27–33 (max 53)

Round 8: M U L O L D E S A

C1: ALLUDES (7)
C2: MOULDS (6)
DC: SLALOM (6) MODULES (7)
OT: MEDULLAS (8) SLALOMED (8) ALUDELS (7) MALLEUS (7) MEDULLA (7)
Score: 34–33 (max 61)

It is interesting that DC got SLALOM but missed SLALOMED
ALUDELS are openended pear shaped earthenware pots which are stacked on top of each other and used in chemical processes such as sublimation.
MALLEUS is a small bone in the ear.

Round 9: G Q N O A A T M D

C1: GONAD (5)
C2: GONAD (5)
DC: DOGMAN (6)
OT: TAONGA (6)
Score: 39–38 (max 67)

Both contestants hestitantly spit out GONADS whilst thinking they are talking bollocks!or maybe what John ate in Beijing.
TAONGAN is a Maori word for something prized, like a Countdown Teapot.

Susie tells us that the term Credit Crunch originated in 1966 and defines financial terms such as stagflation which is a combination stagnation and inflation. John chimes in with 'That means things are too deer!'. Everyone groans and Carol matches it with 'Not enough doe'
Susie then tells about more stock-broking terms.

Round 10: 1, 8, 2, 4, 9, 75. Target: 673.

C1: 673. 9 x 75 = 675 - 2 (10)
C2: 673. (8 + 1) x 75 = 675 - 2 (10)
Score: 49–48 (max 77)

Teatime teaser: ALUTEGUN -> UNGULATE

Round 11: R R G E I O T D S

C1: STIRRED (7)
C2: GORIEST (7)
DC: EDITORS (7) STEROID (7) STODGIER (8)
OT: Lots of sevens including TODGERS (7)
Score: 56–55 (max 85)

Round 12: M E G U K T I A S

C1: GAMIEST (7)
C2: GAMIEST (7)
DC: AGEISM (6)
OT: MISTAKE (7) SIGMATE (7)
Score: 63–62 (max 92)

Round 13: S T S E A E R N R

C1: STERNER (7)
C2: RESEATS (7)
DC: EASTERN (7) TEASERS (7) NESTERS (7)
OT: ASSENTER (8) ASSERTER (8) RARENESS (8) REASSERT (8) SARSENET (8) STERANES (8) TERRANES (8) TERRASSE (8) + Many seven letter words
Score: 70–69 (max 100)
SARSENET is a fine silk fabric used for lining in dressmaking.
STERANES are polycyclic hydrocarbons found in crude oils.
TERRANES is a geological term for fault-bound areas.

Round 14: 5, 6, 1, 7, 8, 75. Target: 775.

C1: 765.
C2: 769. 5+6=11x75=825 - (7x8) = 769 (5)
CV: 775. 75 - 1 x (8 - 6) = 148 + 7= 155 x 5 (10)
Score: 70–74 (max 110)
Well done to Carol for getting a tricky numbers solution, which leaves Gary marginally in front with all to play for on the Conundrum.

Round 15: B U M B L E B U G

C1 buzzes on 16 seconds to say BUBBLEGUM which is correct.
Score: 80–74 (max 120)

Peter, the chess player, manages to get a sticky Conundrum and it is checkmate for Gary who led for most of the way.

This was an entertaining game between two equally matched contestants.
Peter will probably not be an Octochamp but he will be chuffed to win a game or two. Martin, Charlie, Junaid, Kai and Debbi will not be quaking in their boots affter this.

Further summaries are at:
http://www.apterous.org/cdb/series.php?series=59

[Lee Simmonds]

Great recap Alan. Was that your debut?

[Allan Harmer]

Great recap Alan. Was that your debut?

Lee - Thank you very much.

It is my second one - I am doing alternate Friday's with Joseph Bolas and did my first one on Fri 31st Oct.

Cheers! Allan

[Howard Somerset]

The C2 challenger's name is spelt Garry. That's not a criticism, Allan. A few people spelt your name wrongly when you first appeared. And I only have to look in a mirror to find one of them.

The reason I mention this is that there was a Garry Preston (again double R) who appeared on the show back in 1989. It's unlikely that it's the same person, as usually the only people brought back are those who made their first appearances as children, and this Garry looks rather too old to have been a child in 1989. Maybe he's a relative, and the Garry spelling is a family trait.

Great recap, once again, BTW.

[Allan Harmer]

[quote="Howard Somerset"]The C2 challenger's name is spelt Garry. That's not a criticism, Allan. A few people spelt your name wrongly when you first appeared. And I only have to look in a mirror to find one of them.

Thanks for spotting that Howard. I have made the correction.

Allan

[Mike Brown]

The reason I mention this is that there was a Garry Preston (again double R) who appeared on the show back in 1989. It's unlikely that it's the same person, as usually the only people brought back are those who made their first appearances as children, and this Garry looks rather too old to have been a child in 1989. Maybe he's a relative, and the Garry spelling is a family trait.

The Garry Preston from Series 18 was also from Eccles. I don't recall what age he was, but I suspect they are one and the same.