Spoilers for Friday 6 January 2023 - CoC XVI, Prelim 5

[Philip A]

I can’t wait for this beard-off. The reigning series champion and current single game top scorer Tom Stevenson faces Nick Hewer’s last series champion Adam Latchford.

[Philip A]

This is a first. The host changes midway through an episode (well, only for Round 5).

[Toby McDonald]

R9: (100*50-25*3+1)/6 = 821

[Philip A]

I wonder if they would have given STEALINGS. @Countdown Team could you confirm whether it’s valid or not, please?

[Rhys Benjamin]

Colin, the hype man himself! What a great host he is.

[Philip A]

I thought about the conundrum solution for 1 second, but said the answer just before Adam buzzed in.

A toing and froing of points in that game. The round with 9s available was a tricky test of picking a right one. Another cracking conundrum solve from Adam. Commiserations, Tom. Two lovely, comedic characters.

[Toby McDonald]

Another cracking game, very well played both. Incredible conundrum solve Adam, especially under pressure. Commiserations Tom.

[Gavin Chipper]

Great game. I'd say the first one where the bookies' favourite didn't win.

[Gavin Chipper]

I wonder if they would have given STEALINGS. @Countdown Team could you confirm whether it’s valid or not, please?

I went for that and scored it as it's on Apterous. I don't have the dictionary subcription so didn't go into it any finer.

[John Garcia]

I wonder if they would have given STEALINGS. @Countdown Team could you confirm whether it’s valid or not, please?

I went for that and scored it as it's on Apterous. I don't have the dictionary subcription so didn't go into it any finer.

This might count as STEALING but here is the dictionary definition:

noun
[mass noun]
the action or offence of taking another person's property without permission or legal right and without intending to return it; theft: they argue that copying licensed software is a form of stealing more serious crimes, including the stealing of cattle, earned life sentences I know stealing is wrong

[Rhys Benjamin]

Do we think Richard gets a presenting credit in the wiki then? (We haven't given arith credits for Jo Brand or David O'Doherty, but admittedly one is Cats and the other one I never saw.)

[John Garcia]

I'm just glad I managed to best our two young protagonists in one round with BENZOATE! I can't count how many ingredient labels I've read over a lifetime with that word on them. Pretty sure it was compulsory in every food I ate as a kid to have lashings and lashings of Benzoate served on top.

[Andres Sanchez]

And this was THE OTHER game I had a tough time choosing its victor, it's tough choosing between two wonderful opponents. Both absolutely did their best and kept their game faces on throughout the whole game.

[Martin Hurst]

Well done Adam - the Giant Killer of Countdown!

[Philip A]

Do we think Richard gets a presenting credit in the wiki then? (We haven't given arith credits for Jo Brand or David O'Doherty, but admittedly one is Cats and the other one I never saw.)

I’d say no, since he only did one round.

[Graeme Cole]

I wonder if they would have given STEALINGS. @Countdown Team could you confirm whether it’s valid or not, please?

I went for that and scored it as it's on Apterous. I don't have the dictionary subcription so didn't go into it any finer.

This might count as STEALING but here is the dictionary definition:

noun
[mass noun]
the action or offence of taking another person's property without permission or legal right and without intending to return it; theft: they argue that copying licensed software is a form of stealing more serious crimes, including the stealing of cattle, earned life sentences I know stealing is wrong

I'm surprised STEALINGS is valid on Apterous. The definition for STEALING in Oxford Dictionaries Premium says it's a mass noun. In the past the guidelines have suggested that some "action" mass nouns can be pluralisable, and STEALING is described as an "action", but I still think it would be difficult to pluralise and it doesn't appear in plural form in any of the usage examples. On balance, I don't think Susie would allow it.

[Gavin Chipper]

It's too late now. I'm not going back into the recycling bin to alter my score.

[Philip A]

I went for that and scored it as it's on Apterous. I don't have the dictionary subcription so didn't go into it any finer.

This might count as STEALING but here is the dictionary definition:

noun
[mass noun]
the action or offence of taking another person's property without permission or legal right and without intending to return it; theft: they argue that copying licensed software is a form of stealing more serious crimes, including the stealing of cattle, earned life sentences I know stealing is wrong

I'm surprised STEALINGS is valid on Apterous. The definition for STEALING in Oxford Dictionaries Premium says it's a mass noun. In the past the guidelines have suggested that some "action" mass nouns can be pluralisable, and STEALING is described as an "action", but I still think it would be difficult to pluralise and it doesn't appear in plural form in any of the usage examples. On balance, I don't think Susie would allow it.

Plurals of mass nouns which are actions have caused confusion, see this ticket: https://www.apterous.org/ticket_view.ph ... 225#p85604

Although to be fair, STEALING is another word for THEFT, which is countable. Googling suggests stealings has merits as well. I reckon she’d allow it but a Countdown ruling would be useful to be sure.

[Thomas Cappleman]

Great finish to what Colin was right to call a great week of Countdown, well done to all involved

[David Williams]

STEALING is another word for THEFT, which is countable.

But there are two senses of THEFT, one countable, one not. You can commit several (countable) thefts, but the crime you will be convicted of is theft (mass noun). I'd suggest that STEALING is only a synonym for the latter.

Taken all in all that has to be one of the best programmes I've ever seen, and Richard Osman maybe the best celebrity guest. Even Anne Robinson would have struggled to spoil it.

[Gavin Chipper]

Taken all in all that has to be one of the best programmes I've ever seen, and Richard Osman maybe the best celebrity guest. Even Anne Robinson would have struggled to spoil it.

Since you normally fast forward all of the non-Countdown stuff, how would you know?

[Countdown Team]

I wonder if they would have given STEALINGS. @Countdown Team could you confirm whether it’s valid or not, please?

We'd not allow STEALINGS, in the same way we'd not allow THIEVINGS.

[JackHurst]

Cracking episode! Commiserations to Tom. Great win for Adam - he outplayed by Adam on the day both in terms of performance and tactics.

Nice Conundrum.

[Tom S]

Thanks folks for all of the nice comments about the game! The right man definitely won, and whilst I consider myself to be quite a tactical player, Adam's tactics were definitely superior! Here's a little run-through of the game from my perspective...

Was stuck on 6s for the 1st round. Nitratic was my risk, but didn't see Titanic...

Similar situation in R2. Taenial was my risk.

Had played a few apterous games with Adam in the run-up, and kept on being bettered by him on 4 large. Decided to go for it to convey an aura of confidence (like the S86 final). Although bettered again I was- the only 4L trick I knew was the 937.5 trick, and whilst I knew of the 302 trick, I didn't know how to/or think to do it. Whether intentional or not, Adam putting his pen down after about 10 secs was a great move on his part- led me to think that I was missing something easy, so was looking for 300 and keeping the 11 aside, but couldn't see how to make the 11 (though I realise it was now possible -((75 x 7 + 25) / 50).

Nothing really to mention about Rs 4-8, although it was a pleasure to be part of Countdown history with Richard's stint in the chair. Also, think Adam would have gone for Yawniest had I been within 10 of him.

Was genuinely a bit indecisive about what to go for in R9, but knew that I didn't want to go 4L again! Originally went for 6 small, but they had to do a retake, so decided to go for 3 large the second time around, which was picked up on. Both me and Adam had 822 NWD.

Wasn't 100% sure that Slangiest was in, but was definitely going for a 9- even if I was ahead by 50. They did cut out my request for a nap though before picking the letters for R11!

Saw Repulled (not in) originally for R12, but never saw Repulsed. Preludes was the only valid 8 that I had.

Was umming and ahing over Ozonate. I wasn't confident that it was in- had Beaten otherwise, but knew I had to try and keep ahead before the conundrum because I hadn't got any of the previous ones, so wasn't expecting to get it. Adam said that he had a 5 bar Ozonate, so definitely another tactical win on his part. Interestingly, it is valid in Merriam Webster, though.

Also had seen Foreshot in R13- also in Merriam Webster, too...

I wasn't nervous during Round 14, but I similarly wasn't 100% confident, and was unable to bet my life that 617 was 8 away from 625 haha!

Was stuck on Trebochet by the time Adam buzzed in for the conundrum- a great spot! I reckon I probably would have been able to get to Brochette within the 30 secs, but it would have been a Minacious-esque guess. Never heard of the word before, and would have thought that it was a smaller version of a Brochure or something like that...

Glad that we put on a game that I, as a viewer, would have even been excited watching having not known the outcome...

Over and out! Tom

[Adam S Latchford]

Some lovely comments. Really enjoyed that game - with the drama and everything gotta be a contender for one of the best games ever!

Will give you a little round by round breakdown like Tom did to see both perspectives.

R1: Saw titanic pretty quickly but expected tom to hit it which made me briefly worry about it being capitalised...
R2: Was toying with alatine for so long, glad i stuck.
R3: Saw it before the clock started. Was quite glad tom did go 4 large against me as I felt I had an edge there but totally get why he did it, I was always going 2 large twice in this game *unless game play made me change)

R4: I think i was considering exolirus which after looking into it, i've never played, isn't close to any word and I have no idea why...
R5: If i was under 10 ahead, or I was behind, I was going yawniest. I felt it was good but 17 ahead just felt like it was a silly risk at round 5. Tricky really.
R6: Went into the 1000s and thought nah let's not be a prick again

R7: Didn't love unpotted but declaration order made it.
R8: Picked to brick it with groupie
R9: As soon as Rachel started her solution I saw it. If there was a 75 and I didn't have to make the 75 i'm convinced I'd have seen it. Never mind

R10: ...
Well.
Teazlings and teaseling are in. Brutal really, but let's be fair made the game even better TV. Fair play for slangiest Tom
R11: Repulsed very quick spot, knew it was max. Perfect really to calm me down.
R12: didn't have a 6. Completely blanked everything. Went the 7 hoped Tom would join me. I didnt know benzoate.
R13: I think i played this perfectly tbh. 1 behind and 8 behind are the same thing. I'm pretty certain i'm matching a 1 large or a 2 large vs tom no matter what came out (obviously i can lose that round but I backed myself) so I might as well.
R14: Gotta get one last head dance before I finish - could have been my last appearance
R15: Saw it as I buzzed. Butchered the pronunciation

What a game though, loved it, came across really well.
Richard Osman perfect guest, Colin Murray did a great job hosting it.
Tom was a great competitor. Lovely guy, did such a good job in the previous series. The whole rhetoric of being an underdog suited me tbh - think we're well matched generally!

Loved the opportunity and really glad to see its gone over well within the community

Cheers all

[Tracey Anne Mills]

A great game by you both !

[Bradley Horrocks]

A great game to round off a phenomenal week of Countdowning.

[Ryan Lam]

Posting my thoughts a bit late partly because I was busy on Saturday. End-of-week vibes, TGIF, you name it, and to top off, both the players for this match are in the Daily Chat with a larger than normal crowd, yay! Richard has also been such an excellent first guest, that tada! He's been made temporary host after the First Teatime Teaser! Stressful one round in R4 especially when you have two Grand Champions in the chairs, but it shows he would make an excellent host if Colin (or Jimmy in Catsdown) was ever unavailable in future! We've got our most recent champion, Tom Stevenson back after two weeks (in reality, three) and the champion three series before that, Adam Latchford. Congratulations on buying your first house especially in difficult times like this, hope your investment would be worth it in the long-term!

R5: If i was under 10 ahead, or I was behind, I was going yawniest. I felt it was good but 17 ahead just felt like it was a silly risk at round 5. Tricky really.

Letters: What a TITANIC start for Adam in R1 as Tom is forced to concede for only the second time ever! The second third of the game saw both contestants tied with the same declarations which doesn't happen very often (although Adam did have YAWNIEST, commiserations)! After the second teaser, both have a nine in R10! Argh, teaslings isn't in which is brutal as Tom take the lead with a one point gap now with SLANGIEST, in a similar fashion to how Stu came back against James (he did mention there were gasps behind-the-scenes the moment it happened) yesterday! Oh man, it's literally game on now!

R12: Completely blanked everything. Went the 7 hoped Tom would join me.

Unlucky to both as they had ozonate in R12 (Don't we all hate the ODO when words invalid there are valid in another Dictionary? ). Finally, even with Adam risking foreshot in R13 and not being in, it would not have mattered as explained by Colin quite well, because a Crucial Conundrum would happen if both get points on the numbers.

Had played a few apterous games with Adam in the run-up, and kept on being bettered by him on 4 large..Whether intentional or not, Adam putting his pen down after about 10 secs was a great move on his part- led me to think that I was missing something easy...

Numbers: Tom goes with Four Large in R3 and with most of us in the Daily Chat only having 310 or 312, Adam has it with his wacky solution, forcing Tom to shrug and go "Ok, I give up!" after the former puts pressure on him! (By the way, Adam did have some negative comments directed at him on social media after that solve was broadcast; to those authors of the posts, please get a life.) Adam on the other hand goes with something more gentle (as per what he mentioned, "let's not be a prick"), 2 Large in both his selections and both were easy here (with Tom checking very hard in R14 to make sure his solution is absolutely correct). Good solve from Rachel in R9 as most of us had no idea how to get to the perfect solution within the time limits.

Was stuck on Trebochet by the time Adam buzzed in for the conundrum- a great spot! I reckon I probably would have been able to get to Brochette within the 30 secs, but it would have been a Minacious-esque guess. Never heard of the word before, and would have thought that it was a smaller version of a Brochure or something like that...

Conundrum: Second crucial conundrum and a consecutive one. Who will take the day? Adam buzzes in with BROCHETTE and it is correct!! What a game, that's all I can say. I never would have gotten the conundrum in that short span of time!! Marvellous! Unlucky to Tom who did not have it with victory slipping out of his hands just like that!

First off, I must say thank you to both Tom and Adam for your active participation not only on the Daily Chat, but here as well with your post-game thoughts. Bad luck Tom, and with that both players in Series 86 have fizzled out, but you made this episode very worth watching not because of you facing another Grand Champion, but because of your calibre and your capability of what you have done in the last half a year. I've thoroughly enjoyed watching all your episodes, enjoy your newly found fame of being the best player in terms of win-loss ratios in rounds and here's to seeing you on the Wiki and Apterous in many years to come! It'll definitely be a record so hard to beat that I guess I may never see it happen again in my lifetime!

James is facing Adam on 17 January in another Grand Champion showdown, and what a week it has been! We've still got two more to go, so hoped all of you have rested well over this first full weekend of the year and get ready for more action on Monday with the next pair! We've got the sole Series 79 contestant who's had to wait for four years just for this, Martin May up against another 1000 point player in his Heats, Luke Johnson-Davies whose total stint lasted more than a year thinking back! The last six yet to play, let's see who will face the formidable Ahmed the day before that!

Progress:
Preliminary 1 (02 January 2023): Florence Cappleman-Lynes (Series 84 Runner-Up) vs Leo Smith (Series 82 Semi-Finalist) (100 - 69)
Preliminary 2 (03 January 2023): Dinos Sfyris (Series 80 Grand Champion) vs Elliott Mellor (Series 80 Runner-Up) (88 - 110)
Preliminary 3 (04 January 2023): Ahmed Mohamed (Series 84 Grand Champion) vs Edward Byrne (Series 86 Runner-Up) (121 - 76)
Preliminary 4 (05 January 2023): Stu Harkness (Series 84 Semi-Finalist) vs James Haughton (Series 81 Grand Champion) (97 - 111)
Preliminary 5 (06 January 2023): Tom Stevenson (Series 86 Grand Champion) vs Adam Latchford (Series 83 Grand Champion) (95 - 97)
Preliminary 6 (09 January 2023): Martin May (Series 79 Runner-Up) vs Luke-Johnson Davies (Series 82 Grand Champion)
Preliminary 7 (10 January 2023): Steve Hyde (Series 85 Semi-Finalist) vs Dan Byrom (Series 85 Grand Champion)
Preliminary 8 (11 January 2023): Matt O'Connor (Series 85 Runner-Up) vs Sam Cappleman-Lynes (Series 82 Runner-Up)
Quarter-Finals 1 (12 January 2023): Florence Cappleman-Lynes (Preliminary 1 Winner) vs (Preliminary 8 Winner)
Quarter-Finals 2 (13 January 2023): Elliott Mellor (Preliminary 2 Winner) vs (Preliminary 7 Winner)
Quarter-Finals 3 (16 January 2023): Ahmed Mohamed (Preliminary 3 Winner) vs (Preliminary 6 Winner)
Quarter-Finals 4 (17 January 2023): James Haughton (Preliminary 4 Winner) vs Adam Latchford (Preliminary 5 Winner)
Semi-Finals 1 (18 January 2023): (Quarter-Finals 1 Winner) vs (Quarter-Finals 4 Winner)
Semi-Finals 2 (19 January 2023): (Quarter-Finals 2 Winner) vs (Quarter-Finals 3 Winner)
Championship Final (20 January 2023): (Semi-Finals 1 Winner) vs (Semi-Finals 2 Winner)

[Howie Myers]

I'm only now catching up after a hectic few days, but I have to say that this was one of the best games I've seen.
Congratulations to Adam, commiserations to Tom.
2 brilliant players!

[Philip A]

TIL Adam Latchford is the first player to defeat two members of the 1,000 club – back-to-back as well. Giant killer indeed.

[Thomas Carey]

TIL Adam Latchford is the first player to defeat two members of the 1,000 club – back-to-back as well. Giant killer indeed.

After this game, he was moaning about the CoC draw making it impossible for him to play both Elliott and Luke to collect them all

[Adam S Latchford]

TIL Adam Latchford is the first player to defeat two members of the 1,000 club – back-to-back as well. Giant killer indeed.

After this game, he was moaning about the CoC draw making it impossible for him to play both Elliott and Luke to collect them all

Yeah I'm still salty cos I'm the only one who can since Luke B's retirement (i guess maybe the person who beat him first time around?)- how else am i supposed to become countdown immortal?

[Gavin Chipper]

TIL Adam Latchford is the first player to defeat two members of the 1,000 club – back-to-back as well. Giant killer indeed.

After this game, he was moaning about the CoC draw making it impossible for him to play both Elliott and Luke to collect them all

Yeah I'm still salty cos I'm the only one who can since Luke B's retirement (i guess maybe the person who beat him first time around?)- how else am i supposed to become countdown immortal?

Did Luke B retire then? Is that why he's not in the tournament? I did think it would be strange for him not to be invited.

[Philip A]

After this game, he was moaning about the CoC draw making it impossible for him to play both Elliott and Luke to collect them all

Yeah I'm still salty cos I'm the only one who can since Luke B's retirement (i guess maybe the person who beat him first time around?)- how else am i supposed to become countdown immortal?

Did Luke B retire then? Is that why he's not in the tournament? I did think it would be strange for him not to be invited.

Yeah I think Luke Boynton has since moved on from Countdown. He’s done very well in poker so maybe he’s switched his attention back to that. I don’t blame him at all for not participating.

[Gavin Chipper]

Cool. I don't think I'd heard any of this.