Spoilers and comments for Thursday 12/02/2009

Ben Hunter · Post by **Ben Hunter** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 3:14 pm

Today's game takes place on Charles Darwin's 200th birthday. Will the natural selection of the letters and numbers today allow Kate Richardson to pass on her Countdown genes to tomorrow?

Charlie Reams · Post by **Charlie Reams** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 3:28 pm

Ben Hunter wrote:Today's game takes place on Charles Darwin's 200th birthday. Will the natural selection of the letters and numbers today allow Kate Richardson to pass on her Countdown genes to tomorrow?

That's pretty good, and you even resisted a joke about lesbian reproduction. It's almost like this forum is not really a cesspool of homophobia after all!

Mark Kudlowski · Post by **Mark Kudlowski** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 3:39 pm

Equalled contestants (but not DC)

SCABIES in round 1
HALIDES in round 2

Ray Folwell · Post by **Ray Folwell** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 3:40 pm

My wife got CRABWISE in R1

Adam Dexter · Post by **Adam Dexter** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 3:40 pm

Mark Kudlowski wrote:Equalled contestants (but not DC)

SCABIES in round 1
HALIDES in round 2

I had SCABIES too

I wish I could say that without prompting the obvious jokes....

Charlie Reams · Post by **Charlie Reams** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 3:41 pm

Ray Folwell wrote:My wife got CRABWISE in R1

Your wife should get on the show, that's fucking sweet.

Adam Dexter · Post by **Adam Dexter** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 3:41 pm

Ray Folwell wrote:My wife got CRABWISE in R1

Well done Mrs. Folwell!

Allan Harmer · Post by **Allan Harmer** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 3:45 pm

I got DAMPISH in round 2 but didnt get too excited about it.

Craig Beevers · Post by **Craig Beevers** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 3:51 pm

ECBOLIC - no idea whether it was good in OED but came it's seems to be okay in Lexplorer (I think).

Craig Beevers · Post by **Craig Beevers** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 3:53 pm

Ditto with KALMIA

Chris Philpot · Post by **Chris Philpot** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 3:55 pm

(50-1)*(10-(5-4)-1) uses all of the six numbers.

Adam Dexter · Post by **Adam Dexter** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 3:56 pm

DId pretty much the same... thought it was easy really!

Adam Dexter · Post by **Adam Dexter** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 3:57 pm

Adam Dexter wrote:DId pretty much the same... thought it was easy really!

Indeed... only difficulty level of 59%

Peter Mabey · Post by **Peter Mabey** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 3:59 pm

Chris Philpot wrote:(50-1)*(10-(5-4)-1) uses all of the six numbers.

Or else (50+5+1)*(10-4+1)

Matt Morrison · Post by **Matt Morrison** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 4:09 pm

Nice to see a bit of casual family-friendly racism with all this talk of Yorkshire's Kurd tarts.

Martin Gardner · Post by **Martin Gardner** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 4:11 pm

I played blind today... haven't done that in ages. Managed to get 92 excluding the conundrum... or 102 including it, which I had to do visually, for obvious reasons (nobody here to read out the letters). I could only get the first numbers game, the numbers are much harder to do without seeing them, at least for me.

Richard Priest · Post by **Richard Priest** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 4:13 pm

I felt so proud of ANGULAR in rd 13 until John mentioned GRANULAR

Well done Kate, another good performance, looking forward to tomorrow.

Junaid Mubeen · Post by **Junaid Mubeen** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 4:14 pm

I had CRABWISE and HELIPADS as equallers. Only just got the conundrum in time. Well done on your second win, Kate.

Charlie Reams · Post by **Charlie Reams** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 4:25 pm

Junaid Mubeen wrote:I had CRABWISE and HELIPADS as equallers. Only just got the conundrum in time. Well done on your second win, Kate.

Yep, good work again. I hope you octochamp it so I can write a poem which rhymes Kate with 8.

DaveC · Post by **DaveC** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 4:51 pm

Charlie Reams wrote:It's almost like this forum is not really a cesspool of homophobia after all!

You mean most people are scared of their houses!!!!! I knew there were a few weird conditions about but that must be tough.

My ex got CRABWISE having previously had SCABIES. I think she got DAMPISH too, but I dared not ask after she got TESTIER in R11.

Darwin's birthday indeed.

...and I always thought "Homo Erectus" was a happy gay person.

DC

Charlie Reams · Post by **Charlie Reams** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 5:14 pm

DaveC wrote:
Charlie Reams wrote:It's almost like this forum is not really a cesspool of homophobia after all!
You mean most people are scared of their houses!!!!! I knew there were a few weird conditions about but that must be tough.

I think this joke was better the first time...

Brian Moore · Post by **Brian Moore** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 5:46 pm

Ray Folwell wrote:My wife got CRABWISE in R1

I was actually playing crabwise scales while the letters came up ... once the C came up, I was so hoping for an S. Didn't have to wait long.

Kirk Bevins · Post by **Kirk Bevins** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 6:39 pm

There was a DC beater with DETRUSOR in round 4. I missed all the 8s in rounds 1 and 2 (terrible start) but made up for it with the aforementioned 8, GRANULAR and GENIPAP which I'm annoyed DC mentioned.

Martin Gardner · Post by **Martin Gardner** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 7:56 pm

Charlie Reams wrote:
Ben Hunter wrote:Today's game takes place on Charles Darwin's 200th birthday. Will the natural selection of the letters and numbers today allow Kate Richardson to pass on her Countdown genes to tomorrow?
That's pretty good, and you even resisted a joke about lesbian reproduction. It's almost like this forum is not really a cesspool of homophobia after all!

Well technically homo- just means "the same", when you get rid of the sexual bit. It's sort of implied in "homophobia" that it's "fear" of same-sex relations, but there is no link to that in the actual word "homophobia".

Kate Richardson · Post by **Kate Richardson** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 8:23 pm

In my younger days when I was a greenham common woman I used to call myself k8, this was the early 1980's before mobile telephones had been heard of

Yorkshire curd tart is very nice, it takes a while in our house 'cos we make our own curds (curdle milk by heating it up with lemon juice then strain for a day) it's a bit weird really, my twin was always the cook when we were kids, but my yorkshire grandmother was a renowned baker so I feel like I'm morphing into her.

Liked crabwise by the way.

Today was my favourite date because Phil was so nice, although nothing spectacular happened. Tomorrow on the other hand.......

Kirk Bevins · Post by **Kirk Bevins** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 8:30 pm

Kate Richardson wrote:
Today was my favourite date because Phil was so nice, although nothing spectacular happened. Tomorrow on the other hand.......

...the studio catches fire?

Kate Richardson · Post by **Kate Richardson** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 9:50 pm

Just caught the game on 4oD, I was out plotting the revolution tonight (well planning may day in manchester with the trades council and refugees) a bit of inside information....Susie initially said "I don't think brassie is a word" then looked it up and discovered it was a golf club.

So...I've outfoxed dictionary corner twice !!!

If anyone wants any other recipes by the way I've got a fantastic cookbook inherited from my mum which is a 1950's women's institute recipe book, it's fab (take a quantity of potatoes starts one). And if you ever want to know how many threepenny bits makes a ounce in weight, it's all there for you.

Me and sara make our own flavoured vodkas as well, using fruit from my sister's allotment and supermarket vodka, it's very nice

Lesley Jeavons · Post by **Lesley Jeavons** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 10:25 pm

lol Kate, you come in here to talk about your Countdown stint and you're off on about food again! I love your enthusiasm.

And, I haven't said yet, you're doing fine too, my lass, and well done on 2-0 against DC.

Matt Morrison · Post by **Matt Morrison** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 11:46 pm

Yeah Kate - that post you made about playing the game in the right spirit and not only enjoying it if you win - you're going to look a right hypocrite if you end up becoming an octochamp

Charlie Reams · Post by **Charlie Reams** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 12:07 pm

Modesty Blaze

Kate Richardson wrote:So...I've outfoxed dictionary corner twice !!!

Number Crunching
Number of times Kate Richardson outfoxes Dictionary Corner: 2
Number of times Dictionary Corner outfoxes Kate Richardson: Lots.

Kathleen Batlle · Post by **Kathleen Batlle** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 4:31 pm

Sorry you didn't make it Phil and congratulations to Kate, again! I was, however, very interested in your roller disco and hope it's successful. When I was a kid, in the 50's, my friends and I had the time of our lives at the roller skating rink in Chelmsford Corn Exchange (not there now). They didn't call the music 'disco' then, but they played the old 78's and I can remember whizzing around that rink every Sat morning to songs like "How much is that doggie in the window". Wow, Phil, you brought it all back to me. Couldn't do it now, not with 2 titanium/stainless steel knees, but I wouldn't mind trying!

Neil Zussman · Post by **Neil Zussman** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 4:35 pm

Charlie Reams wrote:Modesty Blaze
Kate Richardson wrote:So...I've outfoxed dictionary corner twice !!!
Number Crunching
Number of times Kate Richardson outfoxes Dictionary Corner: 2
Number of times Dictionary Corner outfoxes Kate Richardson: Lots.

Number of dictionaries Dictionary Corner has access to: 2
Number of dictionaries Kate had access to: 0
Number of words per dictionary for Dictionary Corner: Lots/2
Number of words per dictionary for Kate: 2/0 = Undefined= (for the purposes of my argument) Infinity > Lots/2.
Sorry Charlie.

Gary Male · Post by **Gary Male** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 4:39 pm

Charlie Reams wrote:Modesty Blaze
Kate Richardson wrote:So...I've outfoxed dictionary corner twice !!!
Number Crunching
Number of times Kate Richardson outfoxes Dictionary Corner: 2
Number of times Dictionary Corner outfoxes Kate Richardson: Lots.

Number of times what Dictionary Corner offers makes any difference to the game: 0.

I'm not entirely sure what side of the argument that's meant to support.

Kirk Bevins · Post by **Kirk Bevins** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 5:56 pm

Neil Zussman wrote:
Charlie Reams wrote:Modesty Blaze
Kate Richardson wrote:So...I've outfoxed dictionary corner twice !!!
Number Crunching
Number of times Kate Richardson outfoxes Dictionary Corner: 2
Number of times Dictionary Corner outfoxes Kate Richardson: Lots.
Number of dictionaries Dictionary Corner has access to: 2
Number of dictionaries Kate had access to: 0
Number of words per dictionary for Dictionary Corner: Lots/2
Number of words per dictionary for Kate: 2/0 = Undefined= (for the purposes of my argument) Infinity > Lots/2.
Sorry Charlie.

So? I played with a dictionary at university as I was in dictionary corner adjudicating two friends playing the board game. They said of course I was going to get long words because I had a damn dictionary. Round 1 I beat both contestants with PICOTEES and it was only then that it hit one of the contestants who realised that I actually had to spot the word first so even with a dictionary it took skill. Just having a dictionary doesn't mean someone is going to beat you without one.

Kate Richardson · Post by **Kate Richardson** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 6:31 pm

I think the voices in your head help a bit too (not the voices in my head, they just keep telling me about phantom letters)

Neil Zussman · Post by **Neil Zussman** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 6:57 pm

Kirk Bevins wrote:
Neil Zussman wrote: Number of dictionaries Dictionary Corner has access to: 2
Number of dictionaries Kate had access to: 0
Number of words per dictionary for Dictionary Corner: Lots/2
Number of words per dictionary for Kate: 2/0 = Undefined= (for the purposes of my argument) Infinity > Lots/2.
Sorry Charlie.
So? I played with a dictionary at university as I was in dictionary corner adjudicating two friends playing the board game. They said of course I was going to get long words because I had a damn dictionary. Round 1 I beat both contestants with PICOTEES and it was only then that it hit one of the contestants who realised that I actually had to spot the word first so even with a dictionary it took skill. Just having a dictionary doesn't mean someone is going to beat you without one.

Kate was proud to have beaten dictionary corner, something not too many contestants do. Charlie was being a killjoy. I attempted to give a reason why his killjoying(?) was based on incomplete evidence.
Obviously Susie knows lots of words, I'm not disputing that. But she does have a couple of advantages, however small you may feel they are- (a) she has a dictionary, and thus will never have to stick with a 'safe 7' instead of risking a 'dodgy 8' which turns out to be valid. (b) She is under a lot less pressure- if her mind goes blank, she has the guest to help her, as well as everyone whispering in her earpiece. And if all else fails, she can say 'we had nothing better than the contestants' and noone will be any the wiser. If the contestant messes up a round, they have nowhere to hide. (c) Susie is more used to the studio conditions, and hence it is less likely that her mind actually will go blank.

Having said all that, of course Susie is doing a marvellous job, and I don't want to detract from that at all.

Kai Laddiman · Post by **Kai Laddiman** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 8:18 pm

Kate Richardson wrote:I think the voices in your head help a bit too

All they say in my head is "Come on, dude, one more sniff and it's PARTAY TIME!"

Matt Morrison · Post by **Matt Morrison** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 8:21 pm

Kai Laddiman wrote:
Kate Richardson wrote:I think the voices in your head help a bit too
All they say in my head is "Come on, dude, one more sniff and it's PARTAY TIME!"

That's an incredibly young age to pick up such an incredibly expensive habit.

Kai Laddiman · Post by **Kai Laddiman** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 8:26 pm

Matt Morrison wrote:
Kai Laddiman wrote:
Kate Richardson wrote:I think the voices in your head help a bit too
All they say in my head is "Come on, dude, one more sniff and it's PARTAY TIME!"
That's an incredibly young age to pick up such an incredibly expensive habit.

At least I still live with my parents

Ben Hunter · Post by **Ben Hunter** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 9:01 pm

Kai Laddiman wrote:
Kate Richardson wrote:I think the voices in your head help a bit too
All they say in my head is "Come on, dude, one more sniff and it's PARTAY TIME!"

Put that sherbet down, boy.

Charlie Reams · Post by **Charlie Reams** » Sat Feb 14, 2009 12:03 am

Neil Zussman wrote:
Charlie Reams wrote:Modesty Blaze
Kate Richardson wrote:So...I've outfoxed dictionary corner twice !!!
Number Crunching
Number of times Kate Richardson outfoxes Dictionary Corner: 2
Number of times Dictionary Corner outfoxes Kate Richardson: Lots.
Number of dictionaries Dictionary Corner has access to: 2
Number of dictionaries Kate had access to: 0
Number of words per dictionary for Dictionary Corner: Lots/2
Number of words per dictionary for Kate: 2/0 = Undefined= (for the purposes of my argument) Infinity > Lots/2.
Sorry Charlie.

My point was only to highlight the rather tragic self-congratulation, not to give some kind of objective comparison of DC and Kate Richardson. I'm pretty sure you're not really suggesting that she would beat them in the long run anyway.

Kate Richardson · Post by **Kate Richardson** » Sat Feb 14, 2009 12:34 am

"tragic self-congratulaltion" charlie ???

wait for the even more tragic denoument dear boy

Charlie Reams · Post by **Charlie Reams** » Sat Feb 14, 2009 12:37 am

Kate Richardson wrote:"tragic self-congratulaltion" charlie ???

wait for the even more tragic denoument dear boy

I don't think I said anything about self-congratulaltion, and I'm not a boy. Otherwise excellent.

Kate Richardson · Post by **Kate Richardson** » Sat Feb 14, 2009 1:40 am

but you look like a boy and younger than me, or....are you dorian gray.....perchance ???

Lesley Jeavons · Post by **Lesley Jeavons** » Sat Feb 14, 2009 9:35 am

Charlie Reams wrote:
Kate Richardson wrote:"tragic self-congratulaltion" charlie ???
I don't think I said anything about self-congratulaltion, and I'm not a boy. Otherwise excellent.

Errr, Charlie, scroll up mate:

Charlie Reams wrote:My point was only to highlight the rather tragic self-congratulation,

Nicky · Post by **Nicky** » Sat Feb 14, 2009 9:41 am

Charlie Reams wrote: I'm not a boy.

Charlie Reams in sex-change shock! You heard it here first!

Phil Reynolds · Post by **Phil Reynolds** » Sat Feb 14, 2009 10:49 am

Lesley Jeavons wrote:
Charlie Reams wrote:
Kate Richardson wrote:"tragic self-congratulaltion" charlie ???
I don't think I said anything about self-congratulaltion, and I'm not a boy. Otherwise excellent.

Errr, Charlie, scroll up mate:
Charlie Reams wrote:My point was only to highlight the rather tragic self-congratulation,

Self-congratulation is not the same as self-congratulaltion.

Matt Morrison · Post by **Matt Morrison** » Sat Feb 14, 2009 2:00 pm

Phil Reynolds wrote:
Charlie Reams wrote:My point was only to highlight the rather tragic self-congratulation,
Self-congratulation is not the same as self-congratulaltion.

Grrrr, we're back to typo fascism.

Mike Brown · Post by **Mike Brown** » Sun Feb 15, 2009 12:50 pm

Kate Richardson wrote:Yorkshire curd tart is very nice, it takes a while in our house 'cos we make our own curds (curdle milk by heating it up with lemon juice then strain for a day) it's a bit weird really, my twin was always the cook when we were kids, but my yorkshire grandmother was a renowned baker so I feel like I'm morphing into her.

Morrisons sells them and although I'm sure they're not a patch on home-made ones, I still rather like them. Very nice drenched in hot custard. What is it with all these food references at the moment? I blame Jeff!