All nine preliminary matches have now been broadcast, and the 30th Birthday Championship moves on apace. We bid farewell to the worthy adversaries who are no longer in contention, and look forward to watching as the remaining 32 contestants are whittled down to 16.
The first game in this next phase of the championship sees Series 47 contestant and Series 66 semi-finalist Peter Lee take on Series 63 quarter-finalist Tom Rowell. This was the last episode of the show to be recorded in the Granada Studios in Quay Street, Manchester, before the move to MediaCity, at Salford Quays.
Nick Hewer begins by extending “a particular welcome to all those students who are perhaps ducking lectures or heading for the bar - you shouldn’t be doing it, but we’re very grateful to see you.”
Well said, that man. Now, on with the show!
C1: Peter Lee (10 wins, 12 games, 1194 points), a senior meteorological officer from Donaghmede, a suburb of Dublin, is in the champion’s chair. He notched up a remarkable 132 points in his special game against Dave Taylor, shown in September 2012. This was the highest score of the year, as Nick Hewer points out, before remarking: “You have a cool manner, and, apparently, the female viewers have taken you to their bosom.”
C2: Tom Rowell (8 wins, 9 games, 841 points) is a prison worker from Husbands Bosworth, a village in Leicestershire. When asked about his opponent’s track record, he comments: “132 is a lot of points.” (Rumour has it that Tom is the first contestant in this championship to have had a song written especially to cheer him on, but this cannot be corroborated.)
DC: Susie Dent and Martin Lewis.
RR: Rachel Riley.
OT: Other words or solutions.
R01: C L X S A E U T E
R02: N R D I A O N U A
R03: F G K E A I D J T
R04: B S R O A T I C O
R05: 75, 7, 3, 8, 1, 5. Target: 554.
TTT: MORALDUO – “Malcolm was in debt to the lady, but I think this stinks.”
R06: E A D T C I W R U
R07: L T S M R I E O E
R08: A E L T M O S P A
R09: Y L S M E I N O Z
R10: 100, 9, 9, 4, 2, 6. Target: 360.
TTT: HEARDOVE – “If you can hear a dove, it’s probably up here somewhere.”
R11: G P R I A E M D A
R12: N F R E I G T O R
R13: N S H R E E A D T
R14: 8, 4, 7, 10, 6, 9. Target: 634.
R15: P A R O T I T I S (conundrum)
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Round 1: C L X S A E U T E
C1: LUXATES (7)
C2: SULCATE (7)
OT: CELESTA (7) ELUATES (7) EXALTES (7) EXCUSAL (7) LATEXES (7)
Score: 7–7 (max 7)
Both contestants score with words picked from the fields of medicine, botany and zoology.
Round 2: N R D I A O N U A
C1: ANDIRON (7)
C2: DURIAN (6)
Score: 14–7 (max 14)
Tom’s fetid fruit is pipped by Peter’s super seven. An andiron is either “a metal stand, typically one of a pair, for supporting wood burning in a fireplace” (ODE3), or “a steam presser that someone from the East End of London uses” (The Dictionary According to Martin Lewis).
Round 3: F G K E A I D J T
C1: FIDGET (6)
C2: GIFTED (6)
Score: 20–13 (max 20)
The contestants find both available maxes, leaving DC with nothing to add. Martin remarks: “This is not a normal Dictionary Corner week. We are playing with the big boys.”
Round 4: B S R O A T I C O
C1: ABORTS (6)
C2: COBRAS (6)
DC: ROBOTICS (8)
Score: 26–19 (max 28)
Six apiece for Peter and Tom, as Dictionary Corner finds ROBOTICS
and I find ACROBATICS 
.Round 5: 75, 7, 3, 8, 1, 5. Target: 554.
C1: 554. (75-7)*8 + (3-1)*5 (10)
C2: 554. 75*7 + 8*3 + 5 (10)
Score: 36–29 (max 38)
The contestants stay seven points apart after two hits to the target.
Teatime teaser: MORALDUO -> MALODOUR
Round 6: E A D T C I W R U
C1: crudité
C2: CURATED (7)
DC: TRADUCE (7)
Score: 36–36 (max 45)
Tom closes the gap by spotting one of two anagrammatic sevens. Peter’s declaration is disallowed because crudités is listed in ODE3 as a plural noun, defined as “mixed raw vegetables served as an hors d’oeuvre, typically with a sauce into which they may be dipped”). The dictionary doesn’t permit a single crudité - or just one cornflake, for that matter.
Round 7: L T S M R I E O E
C1: MOLESTER (8)
C2: MOTLIER (7)
DC: TIRESOME (8)
Score: 44–36 (max 53)
Peter takes the lead again by equalling Dictionary Corner’s tiresome eight.
Round 8: A E L T M O S P A
C1: MALTOSE (7)
C2: MALTOSE (7)
DC: TAMALES (7)
OT: AMPLEST (7) APOSTLE (7) MALATES (7) MALTASE (7) OATMEAL (7) PALATES (7) PALMATE (7) PELOTAS (7)
Score: 51–43 (max 60)
The contestants offer identical words, with Peter wisely steering clear of ‘palmates’. Meanwhile, Dictionary Corner plucks ‘tamales’ off the Mexican menu.
Round 9: Y L S M E I N O Z
C1: SOLEMN (6)
C2: SMILEY (6)
OT: ISOZYME (7)
Score: 57–49 (max 67)
Peter is solemn while Tom is smiley, and there’s everything still to play for.
In ‘Origins of Words’, Susie talks about words that mean two or more completely different things. She explores the evolution of two “woody words”: beam and clog.
Round 10: 100, 9, 9, 4, 2, 6. Target: 360.
C1: 360. (100 - 9) × 4 - (6 - 2) (10)
C2: 360. (100 - (9 - (6 + 2) + 9)) * 4 (10)
Score: 67–59 (max 77)
One large, five small, no sweat.
Teatime teaser: HEARDOVE -> OVERHEAD
Round 11: G P R I A E M D A
C1: DIAGRAM (7)
C2: PARADIGM (8)
OT: RAMPAGED (8)
Score: 67–67 (max 85)
It’s neck and neck again. Is this a paradigm shift in the game? How do you pronounce ‘paradigm’, anyway? Don’t ask Martin.
Round 12: N F R E I G T O R
C1: FOREIGN (7)
C2: FOREIGN (7)
OT: FRONTIER (8)
Score: 74–74 (max 93)
The contestants get as far as foreign, but stop short of the frontier.
Round 13: N S H R E E A D T
C1: THREADS (7)
C2: HEADREST (8)
DC: HEARTENS (8)
OT: ADHERENTS (18)
Score: 74–82 (max 111)
A non-hyphenated eight takes Tom into the lead for the first time in this game.
Round 14: 8, 4, 7, 10, 6, 9. Target: 634.
C1: 634. 9 × 7 × 10 + 4 (10)
C2: 634. 9 × 7 × 10 + 4 (10)
Score: 84–92 (max 121)
Rachel announces that she is going to do her “last Elmo impression of the week”. What does she mean? See http://www.sesamestreet.org/muppets/elmo
Tom asks for six small numbers. One of them is a 10, which is jolly useful.
Round 15: P A R O T I T I S
That looks like it’s already a word! Who’s going to buzz?
No one buzzes. The answer was TOPIARIST.
Final Score: 84–92 (max 131)
Victory is Tom’s - and if you listen carefully, you might just hear the Tom Rowell Anthem ringing out across the land.
Peter has been a great contestant, and I’m sure he will be missed by many viewers, male and female!
Further summaries are at:
http://www.apterous.org/cdb/series.php?series=-16