Countdown | Monday 23rd April 2018 | Episode 6811
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00:00This programme contains strong language and adult humour.
00:05If you're not comfortable with something, please leave a comment.
00:20APPLAUSE
00:31Well, good afternoon and welcome to the Countdown studio.
00:35Rachel, packaging is coming under fire, and with good reason, too.
00:39It's not just the fact that, you know, some of the packaging is sort of...
00:44..lasts for 1,000 years sort of thing.
00:47There's just too much of it.
00:49For instance, a single peeled orange was sold in a plastic box.
00:56A bottle of hand cream that comes in a seemingly pointless cardboard box
01:01and a pack of yoghurt that have cardboard sleeves all around them.
01:05The ones that get me,
01:07because I have to go searching round the house for a big pair of scissors.
01:11Now, this will be unfamiliar territory for you, I imagine.
01:17But those who wet shave...
01:21..they have to have new blades,
01:24and they come in just the most tough plastic.
01:29So you have to actually cut into them
01:32and frequently actually cut yourself, not on the razor blade,
01:36but on the plastic. I just don't get it.
01:38But I think there's a move afoot now to cut down on all this.
01:42Yeah, I really like the idea that the government had to have
01:45the plastic-free aisles so you can actually choose to go down the aisles
01:48that don't have that.
01:49But I hope they don't just incentivise other terrible ways of packaging things
01:53and just focus on the plastic.
01:55But something has to be done.
01:57Actually, Adam has done a great job with that, with his blue planet.
02:00Yeah.
02:01The amount of stuff sloshing around in the oceans, I've got to stop it.
02:06Absolutely.
02:07Now, who's with us?
02:09Matt Walker's back.
02:10How many wins have you got?
02:12Four.
02:13It's terrific stuff.
02:14You start off in a blaze of glory and you're carrying on.
02:18Brilliant. Sixth-form student from Sheffield.
02:20Four good wins.
02:22And you're joined by Jason Palmer, professional golfer from Nottingham,
02:26but home base, I think you were saying, is in...?
02:29Yeah, Leicester, originally.
02:30In Leicester. Yeah.
02:32And the career highlights came when you won in China on the Challenge Tour
02:36and then you played in the 2015 US Open in Washington State.
02:40Yeah.
02:41But you've had a bit of a bad risk.
02:43Yeah, I've been on and off the golf course since 2015.
02:47Really?
02:48Arthritis in my left wrist.
02:50Is that what it is, after years of playing?
02:52Yeah, probably just the amount of thousands of shots that I've hit.
02:56But do you think that's paid to any big wins then on the international circuit,
03:02do you think, or can you get through that?
03:04I think it's looking like curtains for my golf career, to be honest.
03:08I'm sorry to hear that.
03:10That's fine, because hopefully starting a new job down in London.
03:14Brilliant.
03:15Still within golf, just working for one of the betting companies.
03:19Well, listen, good luck in the new career.
03:22And good luck today as well.
03:23Cheers, Nick.
03:24A big round of applause for Jason and Mag, Mag Walker.
03:30And Susie's over in the corner there, sitting next to somebody
03:34to whom we're going to have to say goodbye today
03:37until you really come back next time.
03:39It's that wonderful Pasha Kovalev of Strictly Come Dancing.
03:49Now then, Mag, let's have a letters game.
03:52Good afternoon, Rachel.
03:53Good afternoon, Mac.
03:54Could I have a consonant, please?
03:55Thank you. Start today with N.
03:57And a vowel?
03:59E.
04:00And another?
04:02I.
04:03And another?
04:05A.
04:06And a consonant?
04:08S.
04:09And another?
04:11P.
04:12And another?
04:14H.
04:16And another?
04:18R.
04:19And finish off with a consonant, please.
04:21And finish with F.
04:23And here's the Countdown Clock.
04:38CLOCK TICKS
04:55Yes, Mac?
04:56Six.
04:57A six and...?
04:58Seven.
04:59Mag?
05:00Threes.
05:01Jason?
05:02Sharpen.
05:03No. Susie and Pasha?
05:05It's a seven-letter word, and it's penfish.
05:09Very good. Any else there, Susie?
05:11No, that was our absolute best for seven.
05:13Excellent. Seven points to Jason, and it's Jason's letters game.
05:16Good afternoon, Rachel.
05:17Afternoon, Jason.
05:18Can I start with a consonant, please?
05:20Thank you. Start with S.
05:22And another?
05:24Z.
05:25And another?
05:28N.
05:29And a vowel?
05:31U.
05:32And another?
05:34O.
05:35Another vowel?
05:37E.
05:38A consonant?
05:40S.
05:42A consonant?
05:45N.
05:47And a final consonant?
05:49And a final T.
05:51And by?
06:04MUSIC PLAYS
06:23Well, Jason?
06:24A seven.
06:25A seven and...?
06:27Just a six.
06:28Your six?
06:29Stones.
06:30Jason?
06:31Sonnets.
06:32Sonnets.
06:33Yes, very good. Seven sonnets.
06:35Very good.
06:36Now, what has the corner got? Passion, Susie?
06:39We also had sonnets, and another eight-letter word?
06:44Yes, sunstone.
06:46It's a type of stone that sounds quite beautiful, with red and gold luster.
06:50Very good, and Jason's on 14 points. My word.
06:53Mac, numbers.
06:54Could I get three large and three small, please?
06:56Changing attack this time. Thank you, Mac.
06:58Three from the top and three little ones.
07:00See if you can clock some points back.
07:02Three small ones are six, six and two.
07:05And then the big ones, 50, 75 and 25.
07:08And the target?
07:10885.
07:11885.
07:13MUSIC PLAYS
07:33MUSIC STOPS
07:45Well, Mac?
07:46888.
07:47Jason?
07:48Yep, same, 888.
07:50So, Mac?
07:5175 plus 25 plus 50.
07:5375 plus 25 plus 50.
07:56150.
07:57Minus the two.
07:58Minus the two. 148.
08:00And then times that by six.
08:01And Jason?
08:02OK, I did six times two is 12.
08:05Six times two, 12.
08:07Times the 75.
08:09900.
08:11And then 50 divided by 25 is two.
08:14Yep.
08:15Times it by the other six and take its way.
08:18Yep, same result, 888.
08:21But 885 is what we really wanted.
08:24Can we make it?
08:25This was actually impossible,
08:27so one away is the best you could have got,
08:29but seven points is the best, ultimately.
08:31Indeed. Thank you so much.
08:33Seven plays 21, Jason on 21,
08:35and it's a tea time teaser we now turn to,
08:38which is Nag In Town and the clue.
08:40They were acting in a very unrestrained way
08:43over their Chinese food.
08:45They were acting in a very unrestrained way
08:49over their Chinese food.
08:51MUSIC PLAYS
08:58APPLAUSE
09:05Welcome back. I left you with the clue.
09:07They were acting in a very unrestrained way
09:09over their Chinese food.
09:11And the answer to that one
09:14is wantoning.
09:16Wantoning.
09:17Brilliant.
09:19Wantoning.
09:21Seven plays 21, Jason on 21,
09:23and it's your letters game.
09:25Start with a consonant, please, Rachel.
09:27Thank you, Jason. R.
09:29And another one.
09:31Q.
09:33Another consonant.
09:35D.
09:36And a vowel.
09:38A.
09:39Another vowel.
09:41A.
09:43And one more vowel.
09:44O.
09:46A consonant.
09:48T.
09:50Another consonant.
09:51L.
09:52And a final vowel.
09:54And a final I.
09:56Stand by.
10:24MUSIC PLAYS
10:29Jason.
10:30Six.
10:31Mac.
10:32Six.
10:33Yes, Jason.
10:34Radial.
10:35Mac.
10:36Adroit.
10:37Yes, very good.
10:38Adroit. Good word.
10:40Skilled.
10:41Could we beat that, I wonder?
10:43There is a seven-letter word.
10:45Yes.
10:46And it's dilator.
10:48A dilator.
10:49Yes.
10:50Dilator muscle, you might find in the eye, for example.
10:53It's an organ such as the pupil of the eye.
10:56Oh, I've had that done, yeah.
10:58Everything goes...
11:00Yeah, fun while it lasts.
11:02What else have you got? Anything else?
11:04That was our best.
11:05It'll do, thank you.
11:0627 plays 13.
11:08Mac, letters game.
11:09Could I have a consonant, please?
11:10Thank you, Mac.
11:11L.
11:12And a vowel.
11:14E.
11:15And a vowel.
11:17A.
11:18And a consonant.
11:20N.
11:22And another.
11:24C.
11:25And another.
11:27R.
11:29And a vowel.
11:31E.
11:32And another.
11:35A.
11:36And a final consonant, please.
11:38And the last one, P.
11:40Stand by.
11:53CLOCK TICKS
12:12Yes, Mac?
12:13Six, not written down.
12:15And Jason?
12:16Slightly dodgy seven.
12:18So, Mac?
12:19Cumper.
12:21And...
12:22I'm going for clamper.
12:23Susie, clamper?
12:24Yes, we have car clampers, don't we?
12:27That's absolutely fine in the dictionary.
12:29And what else have we got, I wonder?
12:31There are a couple seven-letter words in here.
12:34One of them that we all like.
12:36I think we all like.
12:38This is caramel.
12:39Yes.
12:40And another is...
12:42Replace.
12:43Replace, indeed.
12:46Caramel, yeah.
12:4834-13.
12:50And Jason, numbers game for you.
12:52Could I have one from the top and any other five, please, Rachel?
12:56You can indeed. Any other five little ones?
12:58Any other five little ones.
12:59Yeah, you have to be specific, otherwise you'd get anything.
13:02Thank you, Jason.
13:03These five small ones are five, four, eight,
13:07another four, another eight, and the large one, 25.
13:11And the target, 717.
13:13717.
13:15CLOCK TICKS
13:20WHISTLE BLOWS
13:46Jason?
13:47712.
13:48Mac?
13:49713.
13:50And 713.
13:52Mac?
13:53Eight times four.
13:55Eight times four, 32.
13:56Minus four.
13:57Minus four, 28.
13:59Times by 25.
14:00Times by 25, 700.
14:02And then add the other five and the eight.
14:04And you've got five and an eight. Yep, four away.
14:06But 717, Rachel?
14:08It was possible.
14:10If you say four times four is 16,
14:13eight plus five is 13,
14:16add them together for 29,
14:18times that by 25 for 725,
14:21and take the other eight.
14:22Yeah, super. Lovely.
14:24APPLAUSE
14:28So good.
14:30So, 34 plays 20 early days,
14:33but Jason's in the lead as we turn to Pasha.
14:37You're going to talk to us,
14:39your final visit to us for the moment,
14:42about your lifelong ambition. What is it?
14:45Well, let me start with one of my favourite dances,
14:48which is samba.
14:50It's quite... I think everyone's heard of samba.
14:53It's a very energetic, very celebratory kind of dance.
14:59And it originated in Brazil,
15:02where samba is quite popular,
15:04but it's completely different from samba that you see on TV
15:08on Strictly Come Dancing, for example,
15:10because ballroom and Latin
15:13became more stylised, technicalised,
15:16if there is such a word.
15:19And original dances became a little bit more complicated.
15:23But nevertheless, samba is a beautiful dance,
15:26and I always wanted to see it for myself.
15:30And the best place to do it is Rio de Janeiro.
15:33Every winter, sometimes end of January, beginning of February,
15:37they have a big carnival.
15:39Everyone has heard of Rio Carnival.
15:42And for that carnival, they build a special place.
15:47It's called Samba Drome.
15:49And a few schools, a few dance schools,
15:52for the whole year, preparing for this one night
15:55when they will parade, march through that Samba Drome
15:59and perform a little samba dance.
16:01So I always wanted to see it for myself
16:04and experience it for myself.
16:06And a couple of years ago, we went there
16:08and we joined the carnival.
16:10We not only looked at it and watched it from the seats,
16:14but we actually joined one of the schools.
16:17You have an hour for each school to pass through the Samba Drome.
16:21Because in our school, I believe it was over 3,000 people
16:26who were involved in that procession,
16:28just walking for this one kilometre long Samba Drome.
16:32And the most shocking thing to me was
16:36that at the end of that walk,
16:38all those beautiful costumes get dumped.
16:41There are big rubbish trucks standing at the end of the walk
16:45and whoever passed through there did already all the dancing,
16:50all the walking, they just take off their costumes
16:53and just chuck it away.
16:55Amazing.
16:56Just a little thing to add that our school won.
17:01I don't want to say it's because of us,
17:03but they won that year.
17:05Brilliant. Brilliant stuff.
17:07What fun.
17:13Now, Mac, your letters game.
17:15Can I get a consonant, please?
17:17Thank you, Mac. F
17:19And a vowel?
17:21E
17:23And a consonant?
17:25V
17:27And a vowel, please?
17:29O
17:31And a consonant?
17:33R
17:35S
17:37And a vowel?
17:39A
17:41And a vowel?
17:43E
17:45And a final consonant, please?
17:47And a final X.
17:49Stand by.
18:06MUSIC
18:20Well, Mac? A six.
18:22A six. And Jason?
18:24I've got a five not written down, though.
18:26Your five? Foxes.
18:28Foxes. And Mac? Fevers.
18:30And fevers. Yes. Very good.
18:33Pasha and Susie? Pasha?
18:35One, seven letters.
18:37Word over C.
18:39And the S, Susie?
18:41That was top. That'll do perfectly.
18:44Over C.
18:46Now, then, 26-34. Jason's still in the lead.
18:49And it's Jason's letters game. Yes, Jason?
18:52Start with a consonant, please, Rachel.
18:54Thank you, Jason. S
18:56And another one?
18:58D
19:00And another one?
19:03And another one?
19:05K
19:07And a vowel?
19:09I
19:11Another vowel?
19:13A
19:15And another vowel?
19:17E
19:19And a consonant?
19:21D
19:23And a final consonant?
19:25And a final G.
19:27And here's the Countdown Clock.
19:29CLOCK TICKS
19:31CLOCK TICKS
19:57What do you think, Jason? How about seven?
19:59Seven. Mac? Just a five.
20:01Your five? Spike.
20:03And Paddy's?
20:05Paddy's?
20:07Yes, you can have them in the sense of rice fields, paddy fields,
20:11or in the sense of a fit of temper.
20:1541-26.
20:17And, Mac, it's your Numbers game.
20:19Could I get two large and four small, please?
20:21You can indeed, thank you, Mac.
20:23Two from the top, four little, and this time around
20:26are seven, four, one, five, 75 and 25.
20:32And the target?
20:34669.
20:36669.
20:56CLOCK TICKS
21:08Well, Mac, 669.
21:10And Jason?
21:12669.
21:14Thanks, Mac. Five plus four?
21:16Five plus four, nine.
21:18Times by 75?
21:20675.
21:22And then seven minus one?
21:24And, Jason, same way?
21:26Same way.
21:28Yeah. Well done.
21:30APPLAUSE
21:34So, Jason's still in the lead.
21:3651 to Max, 36 as we go into our second Tea Time teaser,
21:39which is Nip Monaco.
21:41And the clue...
21:42I nipped to Monaco with a travelling partner
21:44and we shared some bread.
21:46I nipped to Monaco with a travelling partner
21:48and we shared some bread.
21:50CLOCK TICKS
21:54APPLAUSE
22:04Welcome back. I left you with the clue,
22:06I nipped to Monaco with a travelling partner
22:08and we shared some bread.
22:11And that was with a companion.
22:13Companion is the answer to that.
22:16So, Jason, letters again?
22:19Start with a consonant, please, Richard.
22:21Thank you, Jason. H.
22:23And another one?
22:25M.
22:27And another one?
22:29W.
22:31And a vowel?
22:33O.
22:34Another vowel?
22:36I.
22:37And another vowel?
22:39U.
22:41And one more vowel?
22:43E.
22:45And a consonant?
22:47B.
22:49And a final consonant?
22:51And a final L.
22:53Stand by.
23:22MUSIC STOPS
23:24Well, Jason?
23:26Six.
23:28And Mac?
23:29Six.
23:30Jason?
23:31Humble.
23:32Humble. And?
23:33Mobile.
23:36Anything over six, I wonder?
23:39Yes, there is a word there.
23:42It consists of seven letters.
23:44Yes.
23:46And it's...
23:48Bumhole.
23:49Bumhole!
23:51What?
23:52Yes, but the only thing I would say, having looked it up in the big
23:55Oxford English Dictionary, is it's been in the dictionary since 1611.
23:58Or at least it's been recorded since 1611.
24:00Well, they've been around a long time.
24:02LAUGHTER
24:05Well done, guys. Thank you.
24:0757 to 42. Mac on 42, and it's Mac's letters game.
24:11Can I have a consonant, please?
24:13Thank you, Mac.
24:14M.
24:16And a vowel?
24:17E.
24:18And a vowel.
24:20O.
24:22And a consonant.
24:24R.
24:26And another.
24:28T.
24:30And another.
24:32D.
24:34And a vowel.
24:36U.
24:38And another.
24:40A.
24:42And a final consonant, please.
24:44And a final R.
24:46T.
24:48And a vowel.
24:50U.
24:52And a consonant.
24:54R.
24:56And another vowel.
24:58U.
25:00And another consonant.
25:02R.
25:04And another vowel.
25:06U.
25:08And another consonant.
25:10R.
25:12And another vowel.
25:15Mac?
25:17Six.
25:19And?
25:21Try an eight.
25:23Mac?
25:25Murder.
25:27Jason?
25:29Mortared.
25:31Yes, absolutely.
25:33To attack or bombard with a mortar.
25:35Absolutely fine.
25:37APPLAUSE
25:39Mortared, indeed.
25:41And Pasha?
25:43But there is another eight, and it's out-armed.
25:46Yes.
25:48Out-armed. Well done.
25:50So, 65-42.
25:52Susie, take the pressure off them.
25:55Let's have a session with your origins of words.
25:59Well, thank you to Beverly Smith, who emailed in to say,
26:02do you know why we say, spill the beans?
26:06And it's a really good question, and the answer is,
26:10I'm not completely sure, but we can have a good guess.
26:13The most usual story that's attached to it
26:15is that it goes back to ancient Roman ballots,
26:17ballot itself being a word meaning little ball,
26:20when it said that votes were cast,
26:22white balls and black balls were put into a container,
26:25and lots were taken.
26:27And they decided on really important issues,
26:29such as whether to send somebody into exile, for example.
26:32Blackballing is said to come from exactly that process.
26:36And the idea was that all these little balls might fall out
26:39and that perhaps they were called beans in some sense or other.
26:42Unfortunately, that's just a little bit far-fetched, colourful as it is.
26:46I'm going to start with the word spill,
26:48because it's quite innocent these days, we spill something.
26:51But actually, in Old English, it meant to kill.
26:54It was all about spilling blood.
26:56As much as thrilling someone was to pierce them with a sword,
26:59spilling was something you didn't want to witness either.
27:02By the 14th century, it had softened quite a lot,
27:05so it simply meant to damage or waste.
27:07And, of course, that's where we get our modern meaning from today.
27:10But what about spilling beans?
27:12Well, if you look back to the early 20th century,
27:15you'll find that most examples of the idiom are all to do with sporting events.
27:19So there's one from a Missouri newspaper which is all about horse racing,
27:24and it says,
27:25In some manner the field ran around and over her,
27:27so that she was shut in, cut off and lost.
27:29This is a mare, obviously.
27:31So the beans were spilled.
27:33In other words, the race was spoiled, at least for that particular race-goer.
27:37Then it's probably on racetracks, and it encompassed baseball as well,
27:41when it usually was about not just a defeat,
27:43but some sort of blunder that had caused the defeat.
27:46But our modern sense about divulging the secret
27:48only came around a little bit later.
27:51And we're still not completely sure what the beans were.
27:54We do know they appear in lots of idioms like
27:56that's not worth a hill of beans, as they might say in America,
27:59or we might say not worth a bean over here.
28:01Bean was a slang term for money of small value,
28:03and that's our best guess.
28:05Spilling the beans was originally to spoil the game so that no prize was won,
28:09or at least to spoil a gambler's winnings, and then went on from there.
28:14So not a very direct answer, it's a very tricky one.
28:16But I will just say we do know where full of beans comes from.
28:19That's all about horses again, and the idea that beans were their staple diet,
28:22and once a horse had been fed lots of beans,
28:25it was full of vitality and energy and ready to go.
28:31APPLAUSE
28:35Wonderful. 65-42, Jason.
28:38Your letters game. Start with a consonant, please, Rachel.
28:41Thank you, Jason. T
28:43And another.
28:45N
28:47And another.
28:49S
28:51And another.
28:53R
28:55And a vowel.
28:57I
29:00And another vowel.
29:02O
29:04And a consonant.
29:06G
29:08And a final consonant.
29:10And a final T.
29:12Stand by.
29:29WHISTLE BLOWS
29:45Jason? Seven.
29:47Mac? Seven.
29:49Jason? Sorting.
29:51And Mac? Storing.
29:53Can we match or beat it, I wonder? Passion, Susie?
29:56There are eights here, other eights.
29:59One of them, janitors.
30:01Yes. And another is tenorist.
30:04Tenorist. Tenorist.
30:06A player of a tenor saxophone, for example, would be a tenorist.
30:09But there is a nine.
30:11In fact, they're not a very common one, but it's gritstone,
30:14which is another name for a coarse sort of sandstone. Gritstone.
30:17Gritstone. Very good.
30:22OK, on to the final letters game.
30:24Mac, we're with you. It's a letters game.
30:26Could I have a consonant, please? Thank you, Mac.
30:29L
30:31And a vowel.
30:33I
30:35Another.
30:37E
30:39And another.
30:41A
30:43And a consonant.
30:45S
30:47And another.
30:49B
30:51And another.
30:53One more.
30:55N
30:57And finish with a consonant, please.
31:00And finish with S.
31:02And here's the Countdown Clock.
31:23CLOCK TICKS
31:33Well, Mac? Just a six, not written down.
31:35A six. Jason?
31:37Eight.
31:39Right. Mac? Blinds.
31:41And Jason Palmer? Disables?
31:44Very good. Excellent.
31:46APPLAUSE
31:50Well played.
31:52Disables. To disable a bomb, for instance.
31:5580 playing 49.
31:57And into the final numbers game. Jason?
31:59I'll go for an inverted T, please.
32:02An inverted T. One from the top and five little.
32:05Thank you, Jason.
32:07And the final numbers game of the day is...
32:098, 5, 9, 1, 4 and 75.
32:14And the final target...
32:16291.
32:18291.
32:20CLOCK TICKS
32:50Well, Jason? Yep, 291.
32:52And Mac, two? 291.
32:54Thank you, Jason.
32:5675 times four?
32:58300.
32:59And take away the nine.
33:01And Mac? Yeah, same way.
33:03Well done.
33:05APPLAUSE
33:07So that brings us up to the final round.
33:09Fingers on buzzers, please.
33:11Let's roll today's Countdown Conundrum.
33:13BELL RINGS
33:21Mac. Untangled.
33:23Untangled. Let's see whether you're right. I hope you are.
33:26Yes, well done.
33:28APPLAUSE
33:31Well done. Well done, Jason.
33:34But it's with a tear in my eye that we have to say cheerio to Mac Walker.
33:38Four terrific wins, a young man, 17 years old,
33:42with a great future ahead of you.
33:44And you did brilliantly.
33:46So you take this teapot and this goodie bag back to Sheffield with you
33:49with our thanks and congratulations to you.
33:52You played terrifically well. Thank you.
33:54All right, thank you.
33:56Jason, we'll see you next time out.
33:58Well done. You beat a cracker of a player there.
34:00Yeah, very good. Well done.
34:02All right, see you next time.
34:04We say farewell to you until you come back next time.
34:06You have a great summer and a great autumn.
34:09I look forward to hearing all about it next time you come back.
34:11Thank you. It was so much fun being here.
34:13Thank you for coming. I hope to come back soon again.
34:15Indeed. Susie, see you next time out.
34:17Yeah, take care, see you soon.
34:19All right. And Rachel, too, of course.
34:21See you next time. See you next time.
34:23Join us then, same time, same place, you'll be sure of it.
34:26A very good afternoon.
34:28You can contact the programme by email at countdown at channel4.com,
34:32by Twitter at c4countdown,
34:34or write to us at countdown leads ls31js.
34:38You can also find our webpage at channel4.com forward slash countdown.