Co:Durham 2026 - Saturday, 31st October
Posted: Sat Mar 21, 2026 11:22 am
Countdown in Durham 2026
Presented by Adam Beach
For the third successive year, letters, numbers and conundurhams are returning to the medieval cathedral city of Durham — and this time, we're jazzing it up for a special Halloween shindig. (No, you don't have to dress up.)
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Date and times
Saturday, 31st October 2026
• Doors open: 10:00
• Introduction: 10:50–11:00 (10m)
• First round draw: 11:00*
• Round 1: 11:00–13:00 (2h)
• Lunch: 13:00–13:45 (45m)
• Round 2: 13:45–15:45 (2h)
• Round 3: 15:45–17:45 (2h)
• Grand final: 18:00–18:45 (45m)
• Prizegiving: 18:45–19:00 (30m)
*Please arrive by 10:50. If you are late, the other two players on your table will carry out their game first to give you time to arrive without missing out on any gameplay. If you haven't arrived by the time they have finished, you will be "pruned" until you turn up.
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Overview
The event will be carried out in the "Lincoln" style. How this works.
When I said we're jazzing this event up, I wasn't exaggerating: for what I believe will be a first for a "Lincoln"-style co-event, we'll be playing 15-rounders over the course of the day. This explains the 2-hour time slot for each round, which will hopefully be sufficient to complete three games within. Whether it will be successful is yet to be determined, but let's give it a go.
You'll be playing six games, thereby hosting three, across three rounds. There will be a random draw ahead of the first round to determine the fixtures. For the following rounds, the "Birmingham" style of fixture-generation will be used — this involves being randomly matched with two players on the same number of wins as you, rather than the two next to you in the standings.
Once the three preliminary rounds have concluded and the scores have been gathered, the two contenders with the most wins and points will compete in the grand final to determine the event champion. In what is now the typical grand final setup for a "Lincoln"-style event, it will involve my board at the front of the room, which is elevated to give everyone involvement in the game and potentially better the players.
————————————
Venue
Merryoaks Community Hall, Park House Rd, Durham, DH1 3QF
We'll be in the main hall once again, which I've booked until 19:00 this time.
Getting to the venue
The community hall is located 1.5 miles southwest of Durham Railway Station — the station being located in the city centre. If you want to get your steps in, it's a 36-minute walk from there according to Google Maps. If not, there are two bus services that run from the bus station, which stop within a five-minute walking distance of the venue: Arriva's 7 towards Darlington, and Go North East's X21 towards West Auckland. Alight at the Douglas Gardens stop, which is one stop after the Duke of Wellington.
Parking
For anyone planning on driving in, the venue has a car park. Alternatively, you could use the Park and Ride scheme and then walk or bus over to the venue. All information is available here.
————————————
Admission
£14 per person. You can sign up via this Google Form. Please also answer the questions on the form.
————————————
Lunch and snacks
As with most co-events now, lunch will not be provided; however, snacks and such will be. There is a pub, The Duke of Wellington, which is a five-minute walk away. Feel free to venture there for a bite to eat. I've also booked the venue's kitchen facilities for the day so that everyone will have access to the kettle, microwave and fridge. I will be providing tea, coffee and hot chocolate, with biccies to go with them. If anyone has any requirements, particularly with milk type, please let me know ASAP.
Please note that the lunch break for this event will be reduced to 45 minutes in order to accommodate the 15-round games.
————————————
Evening plans
Naturally, because of the extra time required for the 15-rounders, the meal will be later than before. I'll be making a provisional booking at Ask Italian for 20:00. This should be enough time for all of us to get back to the city centre once the event is over. You can let me know via the Google Form if you're interested in attending. Once I've had a sufficient response, I'll post a link to the spreadsheet for the preorders. Current menu (subject to change).
————————————
Parkrun
For the parkrunners among us, the Durham course takes place at the Graham Sports Centre, located within Durham University. The average finish time is 00:28:35 (correct as of 17/03/2026), which should be sufficient time for everyone to get back to their accommodation for a shower before the first round draw takes place at 11:00.
Full details here.
————————————
Attending or organising a FOCAL event is subject to the FOCAL Code of Conduct.
Questions about this event? Contact us at hello@focalcountdown.com
————————————
Entrants (as of 24th May 2026)
1. Euan Crabb
2. Bradley Horrocks
3. Phil Stanton
4. Andrew McNamara
5. George Baker
Presented by Adam Beach
For the third successive year, letters, numbers and conundurhams are returning to the medieval cathedral city of Durham — and this time, we're jazzing it up for a special Halloween shindig. (No, you don't have to dress up.)
————————————
Date and times
Saturday, 31st October 2026
• Doors open: 10:00
• Introduction: 10:50–11:00 (10m)
• First round draw: 11:00*
• Round 1: 11:00–13:00 (2h)
• Lunch: 13:00–13:45 (45m)
• Round 2: 13:45–15:45 (2h)
• Round 3: 15:45–17:45 (2h)
• Grand final: 18:00–18:45 (45m)
• Prizegiving: 18:45–19:00 (30m)
*Please arrive by 10:50. If you are late, the other two players on your table will carry out their game first to give you time to arrive without missing out on any gameplay. If you haven't arrived by the time they have finished, you will be "pruned" until you turn up.
————————————
Overview
The event will be carried out in the "Lincoln" style. How this works.
When I said we're jazzing this event up, I wasn't exaggerating: for what I believe will be a first for a "Lincoln"-style co-event, we'll be playing 15-rounders over the course of the day. This explains the 2-hour time slot for each round, which will hopefully be sufficient to complete three games within. Whether it will be successful is yet to be determined, but let's give it a go.
You'll be playing six games, thereby hosting three, across three rounds. There will be a random draw ahead of the first round to determine the fixtures. For the following rounds, the "Birmingham" style of fixture-generation will be used — this involves being randomly matched with two players on the same number of wins as you, rather than the two next to you in the standings.
Once the three preliminary rounds have concluded and the scores have been gathered, the two contenders with the most wins and points will compete in the grand final to determine the event champion. In what is now the typical grand final setup for a "Lincoln"-style event, it will involve my board at the front of the room, which is elevated to give everyone involvement in the game and potentially better the players.
————————————
Venue
Merryoaks Community Hall, Park House Rd, Durham, DH1 3QF
We'll be in the main hall once again, which I've booked until 19:00 this time.
Getting to the venue
The community hall is located 1.5 miles southwest of Durham Railway Station — the station being located in the city centre. If you want to get your steps in, it's a 36-minute walk from there according to Google Maps. If not, there are two bus services that run from the bus station, which stop within a five-minute walking distance of the venue: Arriva's 7 towards Darlington, and Go North East's X21 towards West Auckland. Alight at the Douglas Gardens stop, which is one stop after the Duke of Wellington.
Parking
For anyone planning on driving in, the venue has a car park. Alternatively, you could use the Park and Ride scheme and then walk or bus over to the venue. All information is available here.
————————————
Admission
£14 per person. You can sign up via this Google Form. Please also answer the questions on the form.
————————————
Lunch and snacks
As with most co-events now, lunch will not be provided; however, snacks and such will be. There is a pub, The Duke of Wellington, which is a five-minute walk away. Feel free to venture there for a bite to eat. I've also booked the venue's kitchen facilities for the day so that everyone will have access to the kettle, microwave and fridge. I will be providing tea, coffee and hot chocolate, with biccies to go with them. If anyone has any requirements, particularly with milk type, please let me know ASAP.
Please note that the lunch break for this event will be reduced to 45 minutes in order to accommodate the 15-round games.
————————————
Evening plans
Naturally, because of the extra time required for the 15-rounders, the meal will be later than before. I'll be making a provisional booking at Ask Italian for 20:00. This should be enough time for all of us to get back to the city centre once the event is over. You can let me know via the Google Form if you're interested in attending. Once I've had a sufficient response, I'll post a link to the spreadsheet for the preorders. Current menu (subject to change).
————————————
Parkrun
For the parkrunners among us, the Durham course takes place at the Graham Sports Centre, located within Durham University. The average finish time is 00:28:35 (correct as of 17/03/2026), which should be sufficient time for everyone to get back to their accommodation for a shower before the first round draw takes place at 11:00.
Full details here.
————————————
Attending or organising a FOCAL event is subject to the FOCAL Code of Conduct.
Questions about this event? Contact us at hello@focalcountdown.com
————————————
Entrants (as of 24th May 2026)
1. Euan Crabb
2. Bradley Horrocks
3. Phil Stanton
4. Andrew McNamara
5. George Baker