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00:00This programme contains strong language and adult humour.
00:05APPLAUSE
00:31Hello, everybody. Welcome to a very special week
00:34in the Countdown calendar.
00:36This is the climax of Series 87, the fourth quarterfinal.
00:40Today are semis, Tuesday and Wednesday,
00:43and a trophy to be handed over on Thursday.
00:46Magic is in the air.
00:48Rachel, Riley, welcome back. What a week ahead.
00:51Yeah, I know. Talking of magic, I'm going to give you two books.
00:54Tale Of Two Cities and The Little Prince.
00:57They're the only two works of fiction ever to sell more
01:01than a book that was released on this day in 1997,
01:05Connected With Magic.
01:07But were you a big Harry Potter fan?
01:09I'm pretty sure I read the books.
01:11Yeah. I mean, my memory's getting fuzzy now,
01:13so I can't say I was a super fan,
01:15but I think the books definitely over the films.
01:17The big question's always, like, what house are you?
01:20The four houses. So, like, you're Gryffindor, right?
01:23Why? Come on. It's got to be pop psychology.
01:25You're Harry Potter. You're Hermione.
01:27I'm mainstream. I'm a townie.
01:29You're that mainstream. You're definitely in that.
01:31I would say you would be, without a doubt.
01:33Susie's definitely Slytherin.
01:34She's Slytherin. We didn't want to say it,
01:36but that was taken out, obviously.
01:39Good.
01:40I'm a Hufflepuff.
01:41You've just got to be comfortable in your own skin.
01:44I'm a Hufflepuff. I have to accept that I am a Hufflepuff.
01:48Have you done the test online?
01:50No, I haven't.
01:51Right, so I'll do it for you during the next break.
01:55Thanks.
01:56We'll see if you're a Gryffindor. You're definitely a Gryffindor.
01:59It's going to come out Gryffindor. We'll do it anyway.
02:01OK, I'm very excited.
02:03A little bit of sarcasm, maybe, again, in this show.
02:07But let's just formally introduce Malfoy herself,
02:10Susie Dent, our J of the day,
02:12and, of course, that leaves one house,
02:14which is Ravenclaw, which is perfect,
02:16because intelligence, learning, wisdom and wit
02:20are the four qualities of Ravenclaw,
02:22and that describes our friend and space scientist,
02:25Maggie Adderham-Polcock.
02:30Sorry, Susie, you know we don't mean it.
02:32Actually, my youngest calls me Professor Snapes, frankly,
02:35because of the way my hair looks in the morning.
02:38It's all worked out absolutely perfectly.
02:41Now, we usually introduce our two contestants one by one,
02:45but if we can just get that two-shot of them,
02:47they are Countdown's equivalent of the Proclaimers.
02:50I'm glad you've... I'm glad you've got name tags.
02:53We'd never be able to tell you apart.
02:55But certainly we remember Graeme Mooney-Dalton,
02:58because he's only been gone for a few shows,
03:01just before the end of our regular programmes.
03:05Last week, you lost out at the Death,
03:07then become an OctoChamp, got beaten.
03:09But I suppose you haven't had time to think about it
03:12or overthink the finals, right?
03:14Yeah. Well, just getting here,
03:16I think we're both pretty happy just to be here, to be honest.
03:19Yeah, cos you're fourth seed, you're up against fifth seed,
03:22there's nothing between you.
03:23But to stir it up a little bit,
03:25you knocked him out in the regular season.
03:28It's true. Yeah. First game.
03:31Adam Dexter has been seething about that
03:35ever since that day in May,
03:38so much so he had to take time off work,
03:40and you went on holiday, I believe.
03:42I went to Majorca for a week.
03:45I love that.
03:46So, basically, in terms of your job,
03:49you took time off for Countdown,
03:51went to Majorca for a couple of weeks,
03:53and you're back on Countdown.
03:54Yeah.
03:56I love it. Well, listen, we'll see if lightning strikes twice.
03:59We know it's going to be very, very close indeed.
04:02Good luck to Graeme, good luck to Adam.
04:07I proclaim this quarterfinal open.
04:09Graeme, let's get some letters.
04:11Hiya. Consonant, please.
04:13Hiya, Graeme. Start the final quarterfinal with W.
04:18Vowel.
04:20O.
04:21Consonant.
04:23S.
04:24Consonant.
04:26R.
04:28Vowel.
04:30E.
04:32Consonant.
04:34B.
04:36Vowel.
04:38A.
04:40Consonant.
04:42D.
04:44And a final consonant, please.
04:48A final G.
04:50At home, man in the studio, let's play Countdown.
05:10CLOCK TICKS
05:24Graeme. Seven.
05:26And Adam. Eight.
05:28And Annette, the seven is... Rosed.
05:30And a big eight. Dowages.
05:32Dowages.
05:34Dowages. That is absolutely brilliant, yeah.
05:37APPLAUSE
05:39Dowages makes me think of Downton Abbey, really, Maggie Smith.
05:42It's a widow with a title or property that was from her husband, essentially.
05:46Adam, well done. Crack and start. Let's get more letters.
05:49Hi there, Rachel. Hi, Adam.
05:51Can I start with a consonant, please?
05:53You can indeed. Start with T.
05:55And a second.
05:57F. And a third.
06:00T. And a vowel.
06:04E. And a second.
06:06I. And a third.
06:08U. And a consonant.
06:11F. And a vowel.
06:15E. And a final consonant, please.
06:18A final N.
06:2030 seconds.
06:39CLOCK TICKS
06:52Adam. Seven.
06:54And Graeme. Yep, seven.
06:56Yes, Adam. 15.
06:58And Graeme. Indeed.
07:00OK, 15, seven.
07:0215, seven.
07:04Dictionary corner, anything else?
07:0615.
07:08That's seven in the second round.
07:10The score is then seven, 15.
07:15Let's get the numbers round. You're choosing, Graeme.
07:18Three large, please.
07:20Three large ones, three little ones, your favourite.
07:23And for the first time this week, the numbers are nine,
07:27seven, four and the big three,
07:30100, 50 and 25.
07:3375. 715.
07:35And the dark... Oh, no!
07:37300. 300, numbers up.
08:04CLOCK TICKS
08:10There will be no ink wasted. Graeme?
08:13Yeah, 300. Adam?
08:15Just about. Graeme?
08:17Seven minus four times 100.
08:19Yeah, I'm not even standing up for that. Adam?
08:2125 plus 50 times four.
08:23Yeah, that'll do.
08:25Ten points each, no round of applause at all.
08:27Let's get our first tea time teaser of the day.
08:30This will be my favourite ever. I'll explain when we come back.
08:33Cause hoot. Cause hoot.
08:35She would cause a hoot by going to the shops in this.
08:38She would cause a hoot by going to the shops in this.
08:57Welcome back. Cause hoot.
08:59She would cause a hoot by going to the shops in this.
09:02A housecoat, Susie, a housecoat.
09:04It was the first word I was ever ridiculed for
09:06when I moved to London.
09:08I'd never used dressing gown in my life.
09:10I wasn't in the theatre.
09:12It's a coat that you wear in the house.
09:15We'd only ever used housecoat.
09:17Oh, this is actually interesting because do you have a housecoat?
09:20I do have a housecoat, yeah.
09:22It says it's a woman's long, loose, lightweight robe
09:25for informal wear around the house.
09:28Get me out of this, Adam.
09:29Can I have a consonant, please?
09:31Thank you, Adam. D
09:33And a second.
09:35R
09:36And a third.
09:38T
09:39And a vowel.
09:41A
09:42And a second.
09:43I
09:44And a third.
09:46O
09:47And a vowel.
09:49A
09:50And a consonant.
09:52P
09:53And a final consonant, please.
09:55A final L.
09:56Thanks, Rachel.
10:27Adam.
10:29Seven.
10:30Graham.
10:31Yeah, seven.
10:32Yes, Adam, what's the word?
10:33Partial.
10:34Partial and Graham.
10:35Parotid.
10:36Parotid?
10:37Parotid, yes.
10:38Gosh, we haven't had that for a while,
10:40but it used to be such a countdown word.
10:42It's the parotid gland, or situated near the parotid gland,
10:46which is one of the salivary glands.
10:48Yeah.
10:49Is that connected to grotted?
10:51No.
10:52Thank you very much. Straight to the point.
10:54I appreciate that. Let's move on.
10:56What did I do to annoy Susie?
10:58Let's get another round of letters.
11:00Graham.
11:01Consonant, please.
11:02Thank you, Graham.
11:03H
11:05And a vowel.
11:07I
11:08And a consonant.
11:10T
11:11And a consonant.
11:13N
11:15And a vowel.
11:16E
11:18And a consonant.
11:20D
11:22And a vowel.
11:24O
11:26And another vowel.
11:30E
11:31And a consonant.
11:32And a final L.
11:34Thanks, Rich.
11:52MUSIC
12:04That's time.
12:05Graham Mooney-Dalton?
12:06I just six.
12:07And Adam Dexter?
12:08Eight.
12:09And eight.
12:10Graham, what have you got?
12:11Indeed.
12:12Indeed. What's the eight?
12:13Deletion.
12:14And deletion.
12:15Well done. That's excellent.
12:16Very good.
12:17APPLAUSE
12:19Look at that.
12:20That's a proper gap now, isn't it?
12:2216 points for Adam,
12:24who was beaten in the regular season by Graham.
12:28Certainly not enough to relax.
12:29What else do we have?
12:30Another seven, a hotline.
12:31But a hotline bling.
12:33Yes.
12:34Hotline lentoid, which means lentil-shaped
12:36or lens-shaped by convex,
12:38but we did not get deletion, so that's amazing.
12:40Excellent.
12:41And I'm pretty sure nobody in Dictionary Corner
12:43got my Drake reference either,
12:45so let's get on to the numbers.
12:47You're picking, Adam.
12:48Can I have four large, please?
12:50You can indeed.
12:51You want to increase that lead, four large,
12:53with a little wry smile over to Graham.
12:55And two little ones.
12:56And he's not happy.
12:57Right, let's see.
12:59We have nine and three and 50,
13:02100, 75 and 25,
13:05and something more challenging than 300, please.
13:08Oh, come off it.
13:09156.
13:11Ah!
13:12156, numbers up.
13:18ELECTRONIC MUSIC PLAYS
13:44OK, 156.
13:46Let's go through the motions, Adam.
13:48Yeah.
13:49Yeah, Graham.
13:50Yeah.
13:51Let's get it over with, Adam.
13:52100 plus 50 plus nine,
13:54take away three.
13:55Mm-hm.
13:56Yeah, Graham, let's see your bit of paper.
13:58Yeah, it's fine.
13:59Ten points each, no applause
14:01as we head over to Dictionary Corner again.
14:03Spend a couple of minutes with Maggie Aderin-Polcock.
14:06The thing that I love about you
14:08is you realise that what you do is quite complex
14:11and you try and make sure
14:14as many younger people are able to understand it.
14:17And I haven't understood a huge amount
14:19of what you've ever said in this show,
14:21so I am delighted that you brought out a book for kids.
14:24I'm learning so much.
14:26Am I made of stardust?
14:28So let me just ask you that question.
14:30That's what it's called. Am I made of stardust?
14:32Yes, and so the simple answer is yes.
14:34But to understand this,
14:35we need to go back to the early universe and the Big Bang,
14:38sort of some 13.7 billion years ago.
14:40And at that time, there weren't even atoms.
14:43And so then as the universe started to cool,
14:46atoms started forming and the main atom formed was hydrogen.
14:49Now, there's about 10% hydrogen in our bodies,
14:52but we've got lots of other atoms, more complex atoms,
14:55so oxygen, nitrogen, things like that.
14:57And this was actually formed in the heart of stars.
15:00So stars give out light because there's a fusion process
15:03happening in their centre.
15:04They're incredibly hot and incredibly high-pressured.
15:07And at those high pressures, this process of fusion happens
15:10where you take a hydrogen and a hydrogen and fuse it together
15:13to make helium.
15:14Energy is released and you'll form these new atoms.
15:16But they don't actually get thrown out into the universe
15:19until the star dies.
15:20And stars die, and they can die in many different ways,
15:23but some stars die in a supernova,
15:25the brightest thing in the universe.
15:27And they throw out all this matter and then new stars are born.
15:30And so the stuff that is new, me and everything else around us,
15:34was formed in the heart of a star.
15:36But the stuff in us is probably going through three or four stars.
15:40So not only are we stardust once, we're stardust multiple times,
15:43which I think makes us all very special.
15:45Amazing. Maggie, thank you, as always.
15:50Right, OK, Graham versus Adam.
15:53The sequel, it's going much better for Adam this time around,
15:57but so many rounds to go. Graham, off we go.
15:59Consonant, please.
16:01Thank you, Graham. R.
16:03A vowel.
16:05A. And a consonant.
16:08S. A vowel.
16:10E.
16:12Consonant.
16:14R.
16:16Consonant.
16:18S. Vowel.
16:20I.
16:22A consonant.
16:24N.
16:26And another consonant.
16:28And lastly, G.
16:30OK, let's see if we can get to the bottom of this.
16:35ELECTRONIC MUSIC PLAYS
16:37ELECTRONIC MUSIC CONTINUES
17:03Graham. Seven.
17:05Seven.
17:07Sevens. Searing.
17:09And Adam. Rearing.
17:11Rearing and searing.
17:13We could have had earrings, couldn't we?
17:15You could.
17:17It's weird, that thing, Graham.
17:19You've got to get it within the 30 seconds.
17:21We can't have a three for all these, right? Earrings.
17:23There were a few eights lurking there.
17:25Gracia, another one, and grainers.
17:27Might be a wood grainer.
17:29And a whole load of sevens.
17:31Right, the gap remains 16 points.
17:33Well played, Adam.
17:35Have a consonant, please. Thank you, Adam.
17:37K.
17:39And a second.
17:41M. And a third.
17:43N.
17:45And a vowel.
17:47O. And a second.
17:49I.
17:51And a third.
17:53A. And a consonant.
17:55D.
17:57And a vowel.
17:59U.
18:01And a final M.
18:03Start the clock.
18:31CLOCK CHIMES
18:35How many, Adam? Six.
18:37Six for you, and Graham? Yep, six.
18:39Six as well. Off you go.
18:41Audion. Audion.
18:43Domain. Audion.
18:45Susie, happy with that? Yes.
18:47It's an old radio term
18:49because it was an early form of a triode valve
18:51used as an amplifier.
18:53Lovely. Yeah. There you go.
18:55Another numbers round then to finish off
18:57the second part of Countdown today.
18:59Graham, you're up again.
19:01Let's mix it up with one large.
19:03Are you going away from the gamble?
19:05After the last couple,
19:07we want something hard, so one large.
19:09We want a tricky one large one.
19:11None of that rubbish we've had so far today.
19:13Let's see what we can find.
19:158, 10,
19:173, 8,
19:191,
19:21and 75.
19:23And the target, 891.
19:25891. Numbers up.
19:27♪
19:57The target is 891.
19:59Did it work, Graham?
20:01892, but not run down.
20:03One away. Adam?
20:05891. Oh, well, it may have backfired.
20:07Let's have it.
20:098, 3 is a 24.
20:118, 3 is 24. Add the 75.
20:139 to 9.
20:1510 minus 1 is 9. Yep.
20:17And then multiply. Good spot.
20:19Yes.
20:21APPLAUSE
20:2310 dividends, my friend.
20:25That is a proper lead now.
20:27Our fifth seed, Adam.
20:2973 against our fourth seed,
20:31Graham. 47 in this rematch.
20:33Let's see if there's any twists
20:35in the tale when we come back.
20:37Your second Tea Time teaser.
20:39Good liner, good liner.
20:41In Italy, he's always making waves.
20:43In Italy, he's always making waves.
20:45MUSIC
20:53APPLAUSE
21:01Welcome back. In Italy, he's always making waves.
21:03Good liner becomes gondolier.
21:05Gondolier.
21:07And our fourth seed, Graham Mooney Dalton
21:09is barely staying afloat right now.
21:1126 points behind Adam Dexter,
21:13our fifth seed.
21:15But with this standard,
21:171-9, and it's game back on.
21:19So, a lot of rounds to go.
21:21Adam, let's get underway again.
21:23Can I have a consonant, please?
21:25Thank you, Adam.
21:27V. And a second.
21:29T. And a third.
21:31R.
21:33And a vowel.
21:35A. And a second.
21:37E. And a third.
21:39A. And a consonant.
21:41M. And a vowel.
21:45O. And a final
21:47consonant, please.
21:49Ready? Let's play.
21:51MUSIC
22:19MUSIC
22:21And that's it. Adam?
22:23Just six. And Graham?
22:25Yeah, same. The six. Adam?
22:27Matter. Matter.
22:29Yeah. And that's all that matters,
22:31is what they have. But what does Dexter and Corner have?
22:33We have an eight. Yes.
22:35Rotavate.
22:37Is that connected to cars?
22:39No. I'm not sure you obviously don't have a rotavator
22:41in your garden. It kind of breaks up soil.
22:43Right. So,
22:45good, healthy soil needs a rotavator.
22:47OK. So, if we ever had, like, a gardening
22:49fitness expert, they could be Mr Rotavator.
22:51That would work, wouldn't it?
22:53Right. Motivation needed
22:55for Graham. Maybe it'll come in this round.
22:57Consonant, please. Thank you, Graham.
22:59D.
23:01Vowel.
23:03U. Consonant.
23:05Z.
23:07Consonant.
23:09P. Vowel.
23:11O.
23:13Vowel.
23:15I.
23:17Consonant.
23:19S. Consonant.
23:23W.
23:25Vowel, please.
23:27And, lastly, U.
23:29Good luck.
23:45MUSIC PLAYS
24:01Graham?
24:03Heavenly four. You're not getting the letters here.
24:05They're not falling kindly. Adam? Five.
24:07And a five.
24:09Graham? Spud.
24:11And the five?
24:13Pious. Oh, pious.
24:15Very good indeed. Well done. We rarely clap a five.
24:17Let's do that.
24:19Are we going to cheer a six? No.
24:21It's the five, pious.
24:23I didn't think.
24:25Deux-pois came out there, of course,
24:27connecting to the Eurovision.
24:29But that is not a word. We only deal
24:31in words that are in the dictionary.
24:33So, Susie Dent, let's do exactly that now
24:35with Origins of Words.
24:37Well, several people, several of our lovely
24:39viewers have asked me this, including
24:42And don't take this personally,
24:44Colin, at all, but it's...
24:48Why would I take that personally?
24:51I have no idea.
24:53So, if you're off your rocker,
24:55it's one of many, many euphemisms,
24:57some of them quite unkind,
24:59for being just not quite with it,
25:01shall we say.
25:03Just a little bit disturbed,
25:05you know, erratic, etc.
25:07And often people think it might be a simple reference
25:09to falling off your rocking chair,
25:11which, you know, you can understand.
25:13But more likely origin will take you back
25:15to the streets of North America.
25:17So, if we go back to the turn of the 20th century,
25:19another expression emerged,
25:21which we will also be familiar with,
25:23to be off one's trolley,
25:25which is a little bit more curious, I think.
25:27And the trolley here is a trolley car.
25:29So, that's the electric-powered coach
25:31or carriage that ran along metal tracks
25:33set into the road.
25:35And if you look at the Great Blizzard
25:37in New York City
25:39in 1888,
25:41the trolleys in Manhattan,
25:43so essentially the trams,
25:45no longer used overhead cables
25:47as a result of this blizzard,
25:49because it just made everything
25:51completely chaotic.
25:53So, they picked up their supply
25:55from an electrified third rail.
25:57And if the car became derailed,
25:59its power was completely lost.
26:01So, that's the analogy here.
26:03So, there's a vehicle that has literally
26:05come off the rails, it can no longer function,
26:07and someone who's no longer acting
26:09in a kind of straightforward,
26:11direct way, if you like.
26:13And off one's rocker emerged
26:15in exactly the same decade, and it's quite possible
26:17that the rocker here is the runner
26:19along which those trolleys operated,
26:21just like those ones in New York City.
26:23Brilliant.
26:25APPLAUSE
26:27We'll all be off our rockers this Friday
26:29at the Countdown end-of-season party,
26:31always the craziest night
26:33of the year.
26:35No camera phones allowed.
26:37We've still got to get through three-and-a-bit shows
26:39before we can party.
26:41So, let's get back to it. Four rounds left.
26:43Looks like a bridge too far, Graeme,
26:45but let's see. Adam, your letters.
26:47I have a consonant, please.
26:49Thank you, Adam. S.
26:51And a second.
26:53T. And a third.
26:55S.
26:57And a vowel.
26:59E. And a second.
27:01O. And a third.
27:03E. And a consonant.
27:05C.
27:07And a consonant.
27:09N.
27:11And a final vowel, please.
27:13And a final O.
27:15Countdown.
27:31CLOCK TICKS
27:47Mr Dexter?
27:49I'm going to risk an eight.
27:51We're going to risk an eight, even with that lead.
27:53Mr Mooney Dalton?
27:55I'll go for a dodgy six.
27:57LAUGHTER
27:59Adam, the risky six?
28:01Cosset.
28:03And Adam, the dodgy eight?
28:05Ecotones.
28:07Ecotones.
28:09OK, cosset, absolutely fine to pamper.
28:11Ecotones. I think Adam's been learning the dictionary, actually, recently.
28:15Yeah, it's absolutely brilliant.
28:17It's basically the kind of transitional space
28:19between two very different habitats.
28:21So an example here is tigers thrive in the areas known as ecotones
28:25that exist between cultivation and dense forest.
28:28APPLAUSE
28:31OK, Graham, let's get more letters.
28:33Consonant, please.
28:35Thank you, Graham. R.
28:39And a vowel.
28:41A.
28:43Consonant.
28:45T. Consonant.
28:47S.
28:49Vowel.
28:51E.
28:53Consonant.
28:55G.
28:57N.
28:59Vowel.
29:01I.
29:03And another consonant.
29:05And lastly, L.
29:07Last letters.
29:28MUSIC
29:39Graham? Eight.
29:41And Adam? Nine.
29:43And a nine, the eight.
29:45Genitals.
29:47Genitals. Well, he's got you by them. Adam?
29:49Triangles. Triangles!
29:51APPLAUSE
29:54Fantastic nine from Adam Dexter, our fifth seed.
29:59To Dixonry Corner, lovely letters.
30:01What else was there?
30:03Gnarliest. Very good. Gnarliest is another nine.
30:06Yes. Fantastic. Fantastic.
30:08APPLAUSE
30:11What a score you're putting up here, Adam Dexter, at the moment.
30:1420 more points you could add. Let's get the last numbers.
30:17We'll try something a bit spicy. Six small, please.
30:20A little bit of training ahead of the semi-final now.
30:23Six little ones coming up.
30:25Let's see what we have.
30:27They are eight, three, ten, two, three, and nine.
30:33And a target. 434.
30:36434, last numbers.
30:38MUSIC
30:50MUSIC CONTINUES
31:08434, Adam?
31:10Just 435, not written down.
31:12108, Graeme?
31:14435 as well. Adam, you go first, then.
31:16Ten times nine, it's 90.
31:18Ten times nine, 90.
31:20Take away three.
31:2187.
31:22And then three plus two is five.
31:24Yeah.
31:25Multiply.
31:264...300...
31:28Sorry, 435.
31:30Graeme, same way?
31:32Yeah, yeah. That's fine. There you go. Well done.
31:34APPLAUSE
31:36Very difficult one. Rachel, could you get the 434?
31:39Yeah, finally something to do today. Yeah.
31:41If you say nine times eight is 72,
31:45take away ten for 62,
31:47and then three times three is nine,
31:49take away two is seven,
31:51and 62 times seven is 435.
31:53Very good.
31:54APPLAUSE
31:56Right, Graeme and Adam,
31:58I anticipated this to be the closest of all quarterfinals.
32:02It hasn't worked out that way,
32:04but it's been a real joy of an afternoon.
32:06So let's go out by revealing today's Countdown Conundrum.
32:10MUSIC
32:13BUZZER
32:15Adam.
32:16Whizzliest.
32:18Let's have a look.
32:20No, rest of the time, the Golden Grimm.
32:23MUSIC
32:43BUZZER
32:49Well, all that Harry Potter talk
32:51and Adam went for whizzliest, so that worked out quite well.
32:54Graeme drew a blank on it, as did I.
32:57My eyes scanned the studio.
32:59Everybody's just shrank about six inches in their chair.
33:04So let's just reveal the answer to today's Countdown Conundrum.
33:08Oh, least wise.
33:10Least wise. We were the least wise.
33:12If you got that at home, well done.
33:14Ten points to you.
33:16Adam manages to avenge that regular season defeat
33:19to Graeme Mooney-Dalton,
33:21but still, really enjoyed it.
33:23Maybe I enjoyed it a little bit more than you, though, Graeme.
33:26I've had a great time.
33:28I was happy to get the teapot and getting here is just a bonus.
33:33And you get to take this home as well,
33:36for just being a finalist, which is fantastic.
33:39Come on, you can take that with you as well.
33:41Now, you have to take on, tomorrow, on Countdown,
33:46the one and only, number one seed,
33:48the 17-year-old Hurricane, Ronan Higginson.
33:51But you just sent a little message out there, haven't you?
33:54He got 122 in his quarter, you got 117.
33:57So you must be just a little buoyed and a little more confident now.
34:02Yeah, I would just like to have a holiday before I have to play tomorrow.
34:06We'll see if we can get you a plane to Mallorca right now.
34:09You can have a night of partying and come back, OK?
34:11Thank you to both of you. Absolute pleasure, as it always is.
34:14Maggie and Susie, we'll see you tomorrow.
34:16Definitely see them.
34:18First semi-final. Rach?
34:20I'm still halfway through.
34:22Well, there are only four houses right now
34:24that could be the new home for the Countdown trophy.
34:27We're not sure which one it'll be,
34:29but we begin our semi-finals tomorrow.
34:31If you could be here, that would be marvellous.
34:33Susie, Rachel and I will be waiting for you.
34:36You can Countdown us.
34:39You can contact the programme by email at Countdown at Channel4.com.
34:43You can also find our webpage at Channel4.com forward slash Countdown.
35:03CHEERING AND APPLAUSE