C1: Champion Lee Graham (5 wins, 432 points.)
C2: Challenger John Williams.
DC: Susie Dent and Kate Humble.
RR: Rachel Riley.
OT: Other words or solutions.
In this week’s Friday ‘cap, it’s time for five-time winner and all-round nice guy Lee to take on the challenge from John Williams from Slaithwaite, near Huddersfield. Let’s see how he does...
R01: T R D B A E I P E
R02: L R S E U O L M E
R03: T G N A E I G S T
R04: T S H U I O I N P
R05: 100, 1, 1, 4, 10, 2. Target: 602.
TTT: ITSOHUGE - "These are really hard, much harder than normal."
R06: B C W L E U O T S
R07: V R R L I A I I R
R08: M S G N E I A V X
R09: E A O R A W H Y K
R10: 100, 2, 8, 9, 10, 8. Target: 837.
TTT: MINDWILL - "It has sales all year round, but sells nothing."
R11: P G F N O E I F D
R12: T M S Q A O E O N
R13: U A E C D N D M R
R14: 50, 25, 100, 75, 3, 8. Target: 412.
R15: D I V A N S A L E (conundrum)
For fast and effective pain relief, choose Ibuleve.
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The show opens with Jeff reminding a still high-pitched Rachel that she needs to ‘choose’ between the delights of the rhyming pair of Wayne Rooney and George Clooney. She plumps for ‘the white Pele’, on the grounds that he ‘brings her joy most weekends’. Ooh, er.
Round 1: T R D B A E I P E
C1: REBATED (7)
C2: BERATED (7)
DC: PIRATED (7) PARTIED (7) PREDATE (7)
OT: BEADIER (7) BEARDIE (7) DEBATER (7) DIPTERA (7) PEATIER (7) TAPERED (7) TRIBADE (7)
Score: 7–7 (max 7)
A decent start for our combatants. As usual, PREDATE is mispronounced by Dictionary Corner.
Round 2: L R S E U O L M E
C1: RESUME (6)
C2: MORSEL (6)
DC: SMELLER (7)
OT: MULLERS (7)
Score: 13–13 (max 14)
A good spot from Kate ‘n’ Suze. A MULLER is a stone used for grinding artists’ pigments on a slab.
Round 3: T G N A E I G S T
C1: GESTATING (18)
C2: STATING (7)
Score: 31–13 (max 32)
A brilliant niner from Lee gives him a handy eighteen-point lead.
Round 4: T S H U I O I N P
C1: POINTS (6)
C2: POINTS (6)
DC: POINTS (6)
OT: PINOUTS (7)
Score: 37–19 (max 39)
No surprise, perhaps, that no one spots the darrenic PINOUTS. A PINOUT is a diagram of an integrated circuit board.
Round 5: 100, 1, 1, 4, 10, 2. Target: 602.
C1: 602. ((4+2)x6)+1+1 (10)
C2: 602. ((4+1+1)x100)+2 (10)
Score: 47–29 (max 49)
A nice easy numbers game before Kate Humble plugs the not-for-profit website she’s involved with: stuffyourrucksack.com. Sounds good.
Teatime teaser: ITSOHUGE -> TOUGHIES
Methinks that teaser (which produced much audience tittering) might invoke the most complaints since PENDULUM.
Round 6: B C W L E U O T S
C1: CLOUTS (6)
C2: CLOSET (6)
DC: BOUCLE (6) BLOUSE (6)
OT: BOLETUS (7)
Score: 53–35 (max 56)
Working in the fashion business as I do (I know, it’s hard to believe), I’ve often thought that the plural of BOUCLE should probably be allowed. As it is, BOLETUS is the only definitely legitimate seven.
Round 7: V R R L I A I I R
C1: RIVAL (5)
C2: RIVAL (5)
DC: VIRAL (5)
Score: 58–40 (max 61)
A horrible round. Let’s move on.
Round 8: M S G N E I A V X
C1: VEXING (6)
C2: SAVING (6)
DC: VEGANISM (8)
Score: 64–46 (max 69)
A fabulous eight from DC; ENIGMAS and MISGAVE are also nice sevens.
Round 9: E A O R A W H Y K
C1: WEARY (5)
C2: HAWKER (6)
DC: WEARY (5) HAWKER (6)
OT: AWEARY (6)
Score: 64–52 (max 75)
A good six from John means he reduces the deficit. DC should be kicking themselves for missing the other six available, not that it’s that common a word.
OoW: Susie gives us more gen on phrases derived from the world of movies.
Round 10: 100, 2, 8, 9, 10, 8. Target: 837.
C1: 835. ((100+2)x8)+10+9 (7)
C2: 828.
JS!: 837. (8x100)+(2x10)+9+8 (JS) (10)
Score: 71–52 (max 85)
Good work from Lee means his lead is up to 19, while Rachel shows us how to get 10 (if we didn’t already know).
Teatime teaser: MINDWILL -> WINDMILL
Round 11: P G F N O E I F D
C1: DOFFING (7)
C2: DOFFING (7)
DC: DOFFING (7)
Score: 78–59 (max 92)
I was disappointed to miss DOFFING; seemingly, I was held up doing a bit of PIGEON DOPING, which is hopefully not commonplace in the world of bird racing.
Round 12: T M S Q A O E O N
C1: MOOSE (5)
C2: STEAM (5)
DC: MOONSET (7)
OT: ONOMAST (7)
Score: 83–64 (max 99)
Richard Whiteley’s favourite word (not mentioned by Susie this time, but I bet she was thinking it) gets a mention in Dictionary Corner. An ONOMAST is nothing to do with John Lennon’s boat; it’s actually a person who studies proper names.
Round 13: U A E C D N D M R
C1: DEMAND (6)
C2: CRANED (6)
DC: MANURED (7) MAUNDER (7)
OT: DURAMEN (7) UNARMED (7) DURANCE (7) UNCARED (7)
Score: 89–70 (max 106)
Hearing the word MAUNDER on Countdown always reminds me of the late, great Magnus Magnusson, who came up with the word on one of my appearances in 2002.
Round 14: 50, 25, 100, 75, 3, 8. Target: 412.
C1: 412. (50x8)+(3x(100/25)) (10)
C2: 409.
Score: 99–70 (max 116)
John chooses four from the top and it allows Lee to extend his lead to its greatest yet, an unassailable 29 points. So no crucial conundrum this Friday, then.
Round 15: D I V A N S A L E
C1 buzzes on 1 second to say VANDALISE which is correct.
Score: 109–70 (max 126)
Lee’s bell sounds after one-and-three-quarter seconds and he registers his first century with a highly respectable 109. How will he fare on Monday, when Dr Hilary Jones returns to Dictionary Corner? Join James (I think) to find out, or tune into Channel 4 at 3.25. See you next time.
Further summaries are at:
http://www.apterous.org/cdb/series.php?series=62
