Tuesday 22nd June 2021 (Series 83, Fourth Quarter Final)

[Rhys Benjamin]

We are into our last quarter final, and we have a great and tight contest on our hands here between the real number 3 seed and the only post-Covid hiatus female octochamp. It's therefore Nick Hewer's last Quarter Final.

Countdown recap for Tuesday 22 June 2021.

Nick starts by talking about technology and unwanted adverts. But first, a word from our sponsors...

C1: Champion Louis Ross (8 wins, 738 points.)
C2: Champion Coral Heath (8 wins, 717 points.)
DC: Susie Dent and Rufus Hound.
RR: Rachel Riley, who appears to be wearing a curtain.
OT: Other words or solutions.

R01: E O U W P D Y T O
R02: E J S I O N P G M
R03: 100, 4, 9, 9, 5, 2. Target: 698.
TTT: DEVILHAS - "The romantic devil has spent all his money on you."
R04: C N E U H G R E L
R05: I E U S C P T R I
R06: 8, 3, 4, 7, 1, 7. Target: 725.
R07: A I E G M R L T E
R08: V L I S B U S I E
R09: 75, 25, 50, 100, 7, 8. Target: 768.
TTT: TONSFREE - "You might take comfort from spotting the answer to this."
R10: C T A K N O S E F
R11: A I I T S D R E A
R12: T E B O R M N A V
R13: E U O D L R E A T
R14: 9, 4, 7, 9, 7, 5. Target: 289.
R15: B E E T T A M A N (conundrum)


And now a brief interlude before our main feature:

SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER

Enjoy the show.

Round 1: E O U W P D Y T O

Louis: DEPUTY (6)
Coral: POUTED (6)
OT: OOTYPE (6) POOTED (6) PTOOEY (6)
Score: 6–6 (max 6, jos 6)
Darren-o-meter: 0/1 (0%)

Flat as a pancake to start us off. Six apiece.

Round 2: E J S I O N P G M

Louis: POSING (6)
Coral: MOPING (6)
DC: PIGEONS (7)
OT: GEOSMIN (7) JINGOES (7) MPINGOS (7)
Score: 12–12 (max 13, jos 13)
Darren-o-meter: 0/2 (0%)

Sixes again, but this time Dictionary Corner can go one better.

Round 3: 100, 4, 9, 9, 5, 2. Target: 698.

Louis: 699. (2 + 5) × 100 − 9 ÷ 9 (7)
Coral: 699. (9 − 2) × 100 − (5 − 4) (7)
RR: 698. ((9 + 5) × 100 − 4) ÷ 2​ (10)
Score: 19–19 (max 23, jos 23)

I thought this was easy, but everyone makes heavy weather of it, and Rachel doesn't even get it until after the break. 101 x 7 - 9... no?

Teatime teaser: DEVILHAS -> LAVISHED

Round 4: C N E U H G R E L

Louis: LUNCHER (7) (try)
Coral: HUNGER (6)
OT: LUCERNE (7)
Score: 26–19 (max 30, jos 30)
Darren-o-meter: 0/3 (0%)

A good risk from Louis opens up the game.

Round 5: I E U S C P T R I

Louis: PRICIEST (8) (stick with)
Coral: PICRITES (8) (try)
DC: PICTURISE (18)
Score: 34–27 (max 48, jos 48)
Darren-o-meter: 1/4 (25%)

We aren't told what Louis was thinking of here, but unless it was PICTURISE it's not valid. PICRITES is allowed by Susie only on the example sentences... which is surely an error? She ruled VASELINE invalid recently for only being an example sentence?

Round 6: 8, 3, 4, 7, 1, 7. Target: 725.

Louis: -
Coral: 722. (8 × 3 × 4 + 7) × 7 + 1​ (7)
RR: 726. (8 + 3) × (4 + 7) × (7 − 1)​ (7)
Score: 34–34 (max 55, jos 55)

Coral undoes the damage with a difficult, and indeed impossible, numbers game eluding Louis.

Rufus reads out a Shakespearean-style poem about the frustration that printers cause, but ends up shouting it like a dalek.

Round 7: A I E G M R L T E

Louis: MEATIER (7)
Coral: EMIGRATE (8)
DC: TELEGRAM (8) LITREAGE (8) MEGALITRE (18)
Score: 34–42 (max 73, jos 73)
Darren-o-meter: 2/5 (40%)

Two nines in a row here, but another round win for Coral gives her the lead for the first time today in this tight see-sawing game.

Round 8: V L I S B U S I E

Louis: BUSIES (6)
Coral: LIVES (5)
DC: LESS (4) VISIBLES (8)
Score: 40–42 (max 81, jos 81)
Darren-o-meter: 3/6 (50%)

After picking the first consonant, Coral forgets she's picking and there's an awkward pause before she picks the second letter...! Three consecutive darrens here but Rufus, Coral, and Louis cannot get more than 6 between them.

Round 9: 75, 25, 50, 100, 7, 8. Target: 768.

Louis: 768. (100 − (7 − 75 ÷ 25)) × 8​ (10)
Coral: 768. 100 × 8 − (25 + 7​) (10)
Score: 50–52 (max 91, jos 91)

Is this Ariana territory? Either way, it's a numbers game full of straightforwardnesses.

Teatime teaser: TONSFREE -> SOFTENER

Ironic given the starting diatribe.

During the break on Channel 4's first broadcast, we get an advert for Anne Robinson's Countdown... which is a little bit on the scary side, as she ominously tells us nothing has changed "yet".

Round 10: C T A K N O S E F

Louis: COSTEAN (7) (misspelt in the subtitles as -IAN!)
Coral: FAKEST (6) (maybe)
DC: SOCKET (6) TOKENS (6)
OT: CAFONES (7) NACKETS (7) NOCAKES (7)
Score: 57–52 (max 98, jos 98)
Darren-o-meter: 3/7 (43%)

Louis regains the lead with COSTEAN, an excellent spot.

Round 11: A I I T S D R E A

Louis: DIARIST (7)
Coral: DIARIST (7)
DC: RADIATES (8)
OT: DATARIES (8)
Score: 64–59 (max 106, jos 106)
Darren-o-meter: 3/8 (38%)

The same seven for Louis and Coral keeps the gap at 5 points, but Rufus takes us to 8.

Susie gets an email asking about the origin of the word TESTIFY, which, according to a tour guide, means to swear on something whilst crushing a testicle. TEST-ify.

Round 12: T E B O R M N A V

Louis: BOATMEN (7) (try)
Coral: BOATMEN (7)
DC: OVERMAN (7) BROMATE (7) BEVATRON (8)
Score: 71–66 (max 114, jos 114)
Darren-o-meter: 4/9 (44%)

Copy and paste the previous round. Rufus jokes that Dictionary Corner doesn't need two people. Foreshadowing...

Round 13: E U O D L R E A T

Louis: ROULADE (7)
Coral: RELATED (7)
DC: TREDALE (7) LEOTARD (7)
OT: DELEATUR (8)
Score: 78–73 (max 122, jos 121)
Darren-o-meter: 5/10 (50%)

The final letters round and, once again, it's 7s for our contestants, although this time Dictionary Corner don't see the 8.

Round 14: 9, 4, 7, 9, 7, 5. Target: 289.

Louis: 289. 9 × 9 × 4 − 7 × 5​ (10)
Coral: 287.
Score: 88–73 (max 132, jos 131)

Coral's 6 small gamble backfires as it gets Louis across the line, and thankfully Susie's mistake earlier on doesn't change the result!

Round 15: B E E T T A M A N

Coral buzzes on 12 seconds to say ABATEMENT which is correct.
Final Score: 88–83 (max 142, jos 141)

But Coral closes out her Countdown series with a good conundrum spot which means the gap is just 5 points at the end. It means we now know our four semi finalists: Luke Boynton vs Louis Ross, and James Burley vs Adam Latchford. Is this going to be yet another series where there are no seeding upsets? Join us tomorrow.


Further summaries are at:
http://cdb.apterous.org/series.php?series=83

[L'oisleatch McGraw]

Countdown recap for Tuesday 22 Unknown month '06' 2021.

Incidentally, Earth People have been calling that "June" for quite some time now...