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00:00This programme contains strong language and adult humour.
00:05APPLAUSE
00:31Good afternoon, good afternoon, and welcome to the Countdown Studio.
00:35Viewers living in and around Oxfordshire may well have noticed
00:39that strange place names have started to appear,
00:43particularly around Didcot.
00:45Apparently, Rachel, around the roundabouts in Didcot,
00:48there's all sorts of signposts.
00:50One would say Narnia, in other words, Middle Earth,
00:53and this way to Neverland and Gotham City, five miles.
00:56Extraordinary.
00:58Didcot has been named the most normal town in Britain,
01:02so somebody, some mystery signwriter,
01:05some sort of sign-writing Banksy has appeared
01:08and has started to change all the signs.
01:10Very odd.
01:12And I thought, well, fictional places, where would I like to go?
01:15And I had an idea. Right.
01:17I thought, I'll go to heaven and have a look,
01:20and I'll go to hell and have a look,
01:22and actually I can then moderate my behaviour
01:26in a way that reflects where I want to end up.
01:28If hell's actually not that bad, I could continue to misbehave
01:33and I'd be OK because I'd know what to expect.
01:36I'd go to... You haven't seen Coco yet, have you?
01:38Coco?
01:40There's a heaven in the film Coco, the Pixar Disney animation.
01:43All right.
01:45And you've got spirit animals and it's all bright colours
01:47and they have parties and it looks fantastic.
01:49No mention of hell, I can remember.
01:51All right. Now, he's back again.
01:53He's almost got a season ticket.
01:55That's Bob Lunt, retired from Rotherham.
01:59Six good wins tucked away.
02:01And you're up against Emily Woodford.
02:03Welcome, Emily, a medical student from Nottingham.
02:05In your fourth year?
02:07Yeah, just finishing my fourth year now.
02:09You enjoy long-distance running and climbing.
02:11Are you mountaineering or what?
02:13Not mountaineering, no.
02:15Mainly, like, indoor climbing, a bit of bouldering as well.
02:18And bouldering is...?
02:20Bouldering is like indoor climbing but it doesn't go very high.
02:22You're not on a harness or anything like that.
02:24Oh, I see. All right.
02:26Well, you don't need a harness here, you need...
02:28Good luck.
02:30Thank you, I'll need it.
02:32To both of you. Big round of applause to Emily and Bob.
02:34APPLAUSE
02:36And Susie's here with songwriter extraordinaire Tim Rice.
02:40Welcome back, Tim.
02:42APPLAUSE
02:46Bob, off we go.
02:48Hello again, Rachel. Hi again, Bob.
02:50Consonant, please. Thank you.
02:52Start today with G.
02:54And a second.
02:56R.
02:58And a third.
03:00S.
03:02A vowel.
03:04E.
03:06And another.
03:08U.
03:10And a third.
03:12O.
03:14Consonant.
03:16C.
03:19And a consonant, please.
03:21And lastly, P.
03:23And here's the Countdown Clock.
03:48CLOCK TICKS
03:56Bob? Eight.
03:58Yes, Emily?
04:00I'll try an eight as well.
04:02Bob? Scrounge.
04:04Emily? Pouncers.
04:06Happy, Susie? Very happy.
04:08And what have we got over there? Tim? Tim and Susie?
04:10Well, I cannot top pouncers.
04:12I was amazed that it came up,
04:14because I've actually...
04:16When I was a kid, when I was thinking,
04:18there was a lot about pouncing,
04:20and I'm sure that little Simba was told to become a big, good pouncer.
04:24So it's an excellent word.
04:26Well done.
04:28Now, eight points apiece.
04:30Emily, your letters again.
04:32Afternoon, Rachel. Afternoon, Emily.
04:34Start with a consonant, please. Thank you.
04:36Start with J.
04:38And another.
04:40P.
04:42And a vowel.
04:44And another vowel, please.
04:46A.
04:48And a consonant.
04:50R.
04:52And a consonant.
04:54T.
04:56A vowel, please.
04:58O.
05:00A vowel.
05:02I.
05:04And a final consonant, please.
05:06And a final L.
05:08Stand by.
05:14CLOCK TICKS
05:34Emily.
05:36I'll try a seven, please.
05:38A seven. And Bob?
05:40Seven. Emily.
05:42And Bob.
05:44Prolate.
05:46Yes. Prolate.
05:48Absolutely fine.
05:50It is a spheroid that's lengthened in the direction of a polar diameter.
05:54Heaven forbid.
05:56Useful word. Very.
05:58Tim.
06:00Tim and Susie.
06:02Epilator.
06:04Yes. I'll give you the names.
06:06Epilator.
06:08Epilator is hermeneutical, is it?
06:10You can also have a depilator. It's the same thing.
06:12Good. Look out for that.
06:1415 points apiece.
06:16And, Bob, it's your numbers game.
06:18One large and five small, please, Rachel.
06:20Your usual, thank you, Bob.
06:22One from the top row, five little ones.
06:24And the first one of the day is...
06:26five, four, seven,
06:28seven,
06:30nine and 100.
06:32And the target...
06:34582.
06:36582.
06:38582.
06:40Well, Bob?
06:42BELL RINGS
07:06Well, Bob?
07:08583, not written down.
07:10Emily?
07:12591, not written down.
07:14Let's stay with Bob, then.
07:16Bob?
07:189 plus 7 plus 5.
07:209 plus 7 plus 5, 21.
07:24Minus 4.
07:26Minus 4, 17.
07:28Take 17 from 100.
07:30100 minus 17, 83.
07:32And multiply by the other seven.
07:34And you haven't used the other seven yet.
07:36581.
07:38583.
07:40Sorry, one the other way, Bob.
07:42What a shame.
07:44Emily, you're in luck.
07:46591.
07:48OK, so I did 5 times 100 is 500.
07:505 times 100, 500, yeah.
07:529 times 7.
07:5463.
07:56Plus 7 times 4.
07:58And then the other 7 times 4,
08:00you haven't used, 28.
08:02Yeah.
08:04591.
08:06Rachel, here we are.
08:08Here we are.
08:10I've found a way.
08:12If you say 7 minus 4 is 3.
08:14Times 100 is 300.
08:16Less than 9.
08:184291.
08:20And then the other 7 minus 5 is 2.
08:22And times them together.
08:24582.
08:26Terrific.
08:28APPLAUSE
08:30Well done, Rachel.
08:3215 plays 20.
08:34And now we come to our first Tea Time teaser,
08:36which is Si Bribe.
08:38And the clue, what a load of absolute utter nonsense.
08:40What a load of absolute utter nonsense.
08:44BELL
08:52CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
09:00Welcome back, welcome back.
09:02So, what a load of absolute utter nonsense.
09:04And the answer to that is what a load of absolute gibberish.
09:08And so gibberish is the answer.
09:10Gibberish.
09:1220 for Emily, Bob on 15.
09:14Emily, your letters game.
09:16Start with a consonant, please. Thank you, Emily.
09:18B.
09:20And another.
09:22H.
09:24A vowel, please.
09:26A.
09:28And another vowel. O.
09:30R.
09:32A vowel.
09:34I.
09:36Consonant.
09:38L.
09:40A vowel.
09:42E.
09:44And a final consonant, please.
09:46And a final G.
09:48Stand by.
10:00BELL
10:18Emily.
10:20Just a five.
10:22Bob. Six.
10:24Emily. Glare.
10:26No, Bob. Boiler.
10:28Tim.
10:30Gerbil.
10:32Isn't that little hamster chappy?
10:34Yes.
10:36Usually eaten by your pet dog within weeks of ownership.
10:38Yes.
10:40And anything else?
10:42We have the old countdown word, gherao.
10:44G-H-E-R-A-O.
10:46Which is the strike in India.
10:50And gerbil. Yes.
10:5220 plays 21.
10:54Bob back in the lead, just one point in it.
10:56Your letters go.
10:58Consonant, please, Rachel. Thank you, Bob.
11:00S. And a second.
11:02D.
11:04And a third.
11:06S.
11:08A vowel, please.
11:10U. And another.
11:12O. And another.
11:14E.
11:16Consonant.
11:18M. Consonant.
11:20Z.
11:23And a consonant.
11:25And lastly, S.
11:27Stand by.
11:53Yes, Bob?
11:55Six. Emily?
11:57Six.
11:59Bob?
12:01Mouses.
12:03Emily?
12:05I got mosses.
12:07OK, mouse is absolutely fine in terms of the computer.
12:10I think...
12:12Er...
12:14Hmm.
12:16Yes, because in Scottish and Northern English, Emily,
12:19a moss is a bog, a peat bog.
12:21So you can certainly pluralise that.
12:23Thank you. What else can we have, Susie or Tim?
12:26Tim, what have you got?
12:28Moust. M-O-U-S-S-E-D, is that...?
12:31Yes, very good. Moust your hair.
12:33Moust your hair, yes. Which I haven't yet done today,
12:35but before the end of the programme. Plenty of time.
12:3827 plays 26.
12:40Bob's still got that one point lead.
12:42Emily, your numbers game.
12:44Two large and four small, please.
12:46Thank you, Emily. Two from the top, four little this time.
12:49Please, four little ones.
12:51Ah, two, eight, nine and seven.
12:55And the large ones, 50 and 25.
12:59And this target, 472.
13:01472.
13:19ELECTRONIC MUSIC PLAYS
13:33Emily?
13:35472, not quite written down.
13:37And Bob?
13:39472. Emily?
13:41I did 50 times nine.
13:4350 times nine, 450.
13:46Eight minus seven. Eight minus seven is one.
13:48Plus two is three.
13:50Plus two is three, you haven't used...
13:52And then 25 minus three.
13:54Is your 22. And then add on.
13:56Yeah, well done. 472.
13:58Bob. The same way, same way.
14:00Very good.
14:06So, still one point in it, 37 to 36 in Bob's favour as we turn to Tim.
14:11And I understand that you've suddenly, or recently,
14:14had performances in Argentina and Antarctica.
14:17What's been going on?
14:19Well, I took a cruise, a hard-working cruise, I hasten to add,
14:24and I was lucky enough to be able to perform,
14:29not sing, but talk and air views on songs,
14:33with some very good singers to back me up.
14:36And the trip I chose was from Buenos Aires to Montevideo,
14:41to the Falklands, to Antarctica, to Chile,
14:44which was absolutely fascinating.
14:46And I would recommend Chile as a holiday spot.
14:49It's got incredible variety, lovely people, good nosh.
14:53It's got everything from glaciers to deserts,
14:56to big cities, to small villages. Wonderful country.
14:59And tell me about the Falklands.
15:01Did you particularly want to go to the Falklands,
15:04or did the cruise happen to be passing by?
15:07No, not in a way, but I think the fact that it was going to the Falklands
15:11made me choose that one to do my show on.
15:14And it was fascinating.
15:16I mean, it's, in a way, as you would expect,
15:21but it's terribly neat and well organised and very colourful.
15:24The thing that struck me as we came into the port of Stanley
15:28was that all the roofs and the houses were beautifully painted,
15:32red and yellow and green and brown and all that.
15:35And the people were very, very friendly.
15:38Very British, needless to say.
15:40And there isn't an awful lot of road there to go and see the penguins.
15:46They have rock hoppers there.
15:48You have to drive for about two hours across very bumpy terrain.
15:52And it's quite moving as well when you think of the war there and everything
15:57and you see the memorials.
15:59And I would warmly recommend that, or coldly recommend that,
16:04as it's not that warm there.
16:05And are there many cruise ships stopping off?
16:07It's sort of a natural destination, isn't it?
16:09There are a few.
16:11I didn't see any other than our ship when we were there
16:14and we weren't one of those massive great jobs.
16:17But quite a few do visit.
16:19They've got a very good radio station, very good television station set up.
16:24And they're always very interested to see whoever's on the boat
16:28and you go in and have a chat.
16:30And they seem to have access to a huge music library on their radio station,
16:35which is interesting.
16:37Lovely. Thank you.
16:39APPLAUSE
16:45Now, Bob, it's your letters game now.
16:48Consonant, please, Rachel.
16:50Thank you, Bob. G.
16:52And a second?
16:54T.
16:55And a third?
16:57M.
16:59And a vowel?
17:01A.
17:02And another?
17:03U.
17:05And another?
17:06O.
17:08Consonant?
17:10L.
17:11And another?
17:13N.
17:16And another consonant?
17:18And lastly, V.
17:19Stand by.
17:30CLOCK TICKS
17:51Yes, Bob?
17:52Five.
17:53Five. Emily?
17:54Five.
17:55Bob?
17:56Gamut.
17:57Emily?
17:58Malt.
17:59Five to beat.
18:01What are the chances, Tim?
18:03I think we can't beat it.
18:06Malt.
18:08M-O-U-L-T.
18:11Continuing the dupilation theme.
18:14Yeah.
18:16That seems to be about it.
18:18I mean, a lot of fours, but that's not much to WhatsApp home about, really, is it?
18:22Exactly.
18:23So, we'll leave it at five.
18:25Definitely.
18:26So, five points on top.
18:2842-41, Bob in the lead.
18:30Emily, your letters again.
18:32Consonant, please.
18:33Thank you, Emily.
18:34L.
18:35And another?
18:38P.
18:39And a vowel?
18:41E.
18:42Another vowel, please?
18:44I.
18:45Consonant?
18:48R.
18:49Consonant?
18:51N.
18:52Vowel?
18:54U.
18:55Consonant?
18:57T.
18:59And a final vowel, please?
19:01And a final O.
19:03Count.
19:26BUZZER
19:34Emily?
19:35A seven.
19:36A seven. Bob?
19:38Eight.
19:39Emily?
19:40Palsier?
19:41Bob?
19:42Outliner.
19:44Yes, an outliner.
19:46It is a way of structuring a computer document, for example.
19:50It's an outliner.
19:51Very good.
19:52Anything else to add, Tim or Susie?
19:54No. Well, actually, there's one here that Susie's come up with,
19:57which, beyond me, NeuroPill.
19:59Yes.
20:00From anatomy and zoology, it is a dense network of nerve fibres
20:04and their branches and synapses, etc.
20:07And NeuroPill. Thank you.
20:09APPLAUSE
20:11All right, so 50-41.
20:14Bob, it's your numbers game now.
20:16One large, five small, please, Rachel.
20:18Shouldn't ask, should I, Bob? Thank you.
20:20One from the top, five little.
20:22And for this round, your selection is six, nine, ten,
20:27one, seven and 50.
20:30And this target, 942.
20:33942.
20:52MUSIC PLAYS
21:05Well, Bob?
21:06942.
21:08942. Emily?
21:10942.
21:11Bob?
21:12Ten plus nine.
21:1419.
21:15Times 50.
21:17950.
21:18And minus seven and one.
21:20Perfect, 942.
21:21Same way.
21:23There we go, Bob.
21:25Yeah.
21:26APPLAUSE
21:29So, just at 9.60 to 51, Emily on 51,
21:34let's return to our second Tea Time teaser,
21:37which is Breathe In.
21:39And the clue.
21:40The creatures breathe in at a much slower rate when they do this.
21:45The creatures breathe in at a much slower rate when they do this.
21:49APPLAUSE
22:05Welcome back, welcome back.
22:07I left with the clue.
22:09The creatures breathe in at a much slower rate when they do this.
22:12When they...
22:14Hibernate. Hibernate.
22:169.60 to 51, Bob in the lead.
22:18Emily.
22:19Emily, let us go.
22:21Consonant, please.
22:23Thank you, Emily. R.
22:25And another?
22:27W.
22:29Vowel?
22:31E.
22:32Another vowel, please?
22:34I.
22:35Vowel?
22:37A.
22:38Consonant?
22:40N.
22:42Another consonant?
22:44S.
22:45Another consonant?
22:47D.
22:48And a final vowel, please?
22:50And a final U.
22:52And here's the Countdown Clock.
22:54BELL RINGS
23:16BELL CONTINUES
23:25Emily.
23:26A seven.
23:27Bob.
23:28Seven.
23:29Emily.
23:30Sandia.
23:31Bob.
23:32A sunder.
23:34Yes, torn asunder. Both are sevens.
23:37So, Tim and Susie?
23:39We have an eight.
23:41Unraised.
23:43That's it, Susie?
23:44Sevens. Durians. Wardens.
23:46But that was the single eight that we could find.
23:48Well done. Unraised. Thank you.
23:5067-58. Bob, it's your letters game.
23:53Consonant, please, Rachel.
23:55Thank you, Bob. S.
23:57And a second?
23:59G.
24:00And a third?
24:02N.
24:03A vowel?
24:05O.
24:06And another?
24:08E.
24:09And another?
24:11I.
24:12Consonant?
24:14B.
24:15Consonant?
24:17C.
24:19And a consonant?
24:21And lastly, K.
24:22And the clock starts now.
24:43CLOCK TICKS
24:54Yes, Bob?
24:55Seven.
24:56Emily?
24:57I'll try a seven as well.
24:58Bob?
24:59Beckons.
25:00And Emily?
25:02Socking.
25:03Oh, yes, socking it to him. Yeah, absolutely fine.
25:05Yes.
25:06Now, what else can we have? Tim? Tim and Susie?
25:09I'm afraid we can't beat seven.
25:11Recognise.
25:13Which is part of...
25:15Which part of the verb? Or is that the verb?
25:17Yes, to become aware of.
25:19So if you recognise, you become aware again.
25:21So it's right.
25:23Yeah, just seven for us, otherwise.
25:26All right, so 74-65.
25:30Close enough as we head towards the finish line.
25:34But Susie, let's talk to you first.
25:36Will you talk to us about your wonderful origins of words?
25:39We'll start with Mr Chris Morrison,
25:41who emailed to ask about gadabout.
25:44A gadabout, he says, or she, I'm not quite sure
25:47whether it's he or she, so apologies,
25:49is someone who gads about, but why?
25:51Is that derived just from the verb to go,
25:53or is there a connection with the oath by gad?
25:57So I'll start with the tiny but most important verb,
26:01one of the most important verbs in English,
26:03which is to go.
26:05That is Germanic, goes back to Gaean,
26:08and the past tense goes back to wend,
26:10and it has nothing to do with gadding,
26:12so I can get that one out of the way quite quickly.
26:14The ultimate origin of gadding about
26:16is actually proved quite elusive,
26:18but there are two theories,
26:20and one of them we reckon has got to be the right one.
26:23The first is it comes from an obsolete term gaddling,
26:26and a gaddling was a companion,
26:29but later it took on the meaning of a wanderer or a vagabond,
26:33which seems to fit with the idea of gadding about,
26:36wandering about quite aimlessly.
26:38Another view is that the expression comes from the idea
26:41of rushing about like an animal that's been stung by a gadfly,
26:45a gadfly being a pesky insect that torments cattle,
26:49and they take their name from the verb to goad,
26:52because that's exactly what they do to the poor cows.
26:55But given that gadding is usually a pleasant preoccupation,
26:58at least for the gadder,
27:00the first seems much more likely, gaddling, being the vagabond.
27:03Bigad has a very different origin.
27:05Gad here is simply euphemism for God,
27:07one of those minced oats that I mention quite often,
27:10using gad as a say of God.
27:13But we'll finish off with vagabond,
27:15because the root of that is the Latin vagus, meaning to wander,
27:20and that has given us so many words in English.
27:23We have vagaries, so we talk about the vagaries of fashion,
27:26hemlines, et cetera, just wander all over the place.
27:29Vagrant, somebody who is a wanderer,
27:32and vague, which is a wandering of the mind, if you're feeling vague.
27:36But gadding about is much more expressive, isn't it?
27:39I think it's a lovely, lovely expression,
27:41and we're pretty sure it goes back to that idea of wandering around.
27:44Wonderful. Thank you, Susie.
27:51Gadding about, indeed.
27:53So, 74 to 65, Emily. Letters, Ken.
27:57Consonant, please, Rachel. Thank you, Emily.
28:00N
28:01And another.
28:03D
28:05And a vowel.
28:07E
28:08Another vowel, please.
28:09A
28:11A vowel.
28:13O
28:14Consonant.
28:16R
28:17Consonant.
28:18S
28:20Consonant.
28:22F
28:24And a vowel, please.
28:25And the last one.
28:27A
28:28Stand by.
28:59Yes, Emily.
29:01A six.
29:02Bob.
29:03Six.
29:04Emily.
29:05Snared.
29:06Bob.
29:07Reason.
29:08No.
29:09Any more sixes or, indeed, sevens?
29:11Tim and Susie?
29:12We have a seven.
29:13Um, fedoras.
29:15Oh, yes.
29:17Fancy a fedora, yeah.
29:2080 plays 71.
29:22Into the final letters game, Bob.
29:24Consonant, please, Rachel.
29:25Thank you, Bob.
29:26T
29:27And another.
29:29X
29:31And a third.
29:33T
29:34A vowel.
29:36I
29:37And another.
29:39E
29:40And another.
29:41U
29:43Consonant.
29:46N
29:48Consonant.
29:49P
29:51And a consonant.
29:53And lastly, R.
29:55Stand by.
30:26Yes, Bob.
30:27Seven.
30:29Emily.
30:30Just a five.
30:31And your five is?
30:33Print.
30:34Bob.
30:35Knottier.
30:36Knottier, yes.
30:38Chocolate might be knottier than one piece,
30:40might be knottier than the next.
30:42Indeed.
30:43Fine.
30:44That's brilliant.
30:45That's it?
30:46No, I'm afraid can't top that.
30:47Susie, we done?
30:48Yes, Tim had an X turnip, which I quite like.
30:51A former turnip.
30:54X turnip.
30:55What is it now, then?
30:57Are you sure it's not there?
30:59Possibly, yes.
31:00Oh, lovely.
31:01He was an X turnip.
31:0287 to 71.
31:04Emily.
31:05Emily, your numbers game.
31:07Two large and four small, please.
31:09Not gambling?
31:10No.
31:11Your gamble is the two large,
31:12so let's hope for something tricky enough,
31:14cos if you win this, your fours are crucial.
31:16The final numbers of the day are
31:18five, three, ten, two,
31:2150 and 25,
31:23and the target, 589.
31:26589.
31:51BUZZER
31:59Emily.
32:01582.
32:03582. Bob.
32:05592, not written down.
32:07592.
32:09Off we go.
32:1050 plus...
32:13No, sorry, I think I've gone wrong.
32:15Ah.
32:17Emily.
32:18OK, so I did...
32:2050 plus 3 plus 5.
32:2250 plus 3 plus 5, 58.
32:25Times ten.
32:27Times ten, 580.
32:29And plus the two.
32:30And plus the two.
32:31Yes, 582.
32:33Now then, Rachel.
32:35589.
32:36Erm, leave it with me, Nick.
32:38So, Emily on 76 and Bob on 87,
32:42so we avoid a crucial, sadly, just by one point.
32:45And so it's fingers on buzzers.
32:47So, Emily and Bob, let's roll today's Countdown Conundrum.
32:54Bob.
32:56Polarised.
32:57You're so fast on this.
32:59Let's see whether you're right.
33:01Polarised. Amazing.
33:08Well done. Well done, Bob.
33:10Look at you. Seven wins. Seven wins.
33:12We'll see you in a couple of minutes.
33:14The funny thing is, until the last letters game,
33:16he'd only won by one.
33:18I know. It was close.
33:20It was a shame. Very close.
33:22Thank you very much indeed for coming.
33:24You take this back to Nottingham.
33:26Good luck with your studies.
33:27Thank you very much.
33:28And have a wonderful medical career.
33:31Thank you. Travel safely.
33:33Now, seven wins.
33:35Excellent stuff. We'll see you tomorrow.
33:37Big day tomorrow, all right?
33:39Excellent.
33:41See you tomorrow, Tim and Susie, yes?
33:43You will. All right.
33:45And Rachel, you haven't been wasting your time.
33:47I haven't.
33:48You're never, ever fooled by these things.
33:50It's brilliant. 589?
33:52If you say 25 x 10 is 250,
33:56add the 50 for 300 and take the 3 for 297,
34:01times it by 2 for 594 and take the 5 away.
34:06How wonderful.
34:07589.
34:08There we are.
34:10So we'll see you tomorrow when Bob Maywell
34:13pull it off and become an octo-champ, Rachel.
34:15And then a nice long lie down in a dark room, I'd imagine.
34:18Indeed. We'll see you tomorrow.
34:20Join us then, same time, same place,
34:22you'll be sure of it, a very good afternoon.
34:25You can contact the programme by email at countdown at channel4.com,
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34:31or write to us at countdownleads ls31js.
34:35You can also find our web page at channel4.com forward slash countdown.
35:05.