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00:30Hello, everybody. It's a new dawn, it's a new day, and we are feeling good.
00:36Straight in to Series 88 of Countdown after 17-year-old Ronan Higginson's heroics yesterday.
00:43He became Series 87 champion, breaking records along the way, stealing our hearts and stealing that trophy.
00:51But the best thing about Countdown is we get to do it all again straight away.
00:55We get to make new friends, win or lose, whether they become octo-champs or they're just here for the afternoon.
01:01And that's what we love, Rachel Ryder.
01:04Well, he started watching Countdown when I was on the show.
01:07He doesn't know a time before I was here. That's just silly. That's just silly.
01:11Countdown's been on 40 years, and, you know, he was brilliant.
01:14Unbelievable. And you know what I've learned in my first full series?
01:18Do not underestimate you lot, the Countdown viewer.
01:22I made that throwaway comment. If anyone wants to nip me a jumper, they can.
01:26That was never throwaway. That was hopefully asking our lovely viewers, and now you know them.
01:32Well, they is the operative word there, because we have some specimens coming up between now and the end of next week.
01:39All of them got a great story. But I wanted to choose this one first, Rachel, because 71-year-old Jan is seven years into having Parkinson's and has put this effort in.
01:52Just not only this, but on another jumper as well.
01:55I'm quite jealous. Have you got any ladies' jumpers coming in?
01:58There is a ladies' jumper, right? It wouldn't fit you because it's big everywhere else.
02:02However, if you want to get in on this...
02:04I'll wear anything. If someone knits me something, Countdown, especially with that amount of effort and colour, I'll wear it.
02:10Rachel Riley has just said on TV, whatever you knit her, she will wear.
02:16Anything, do not let me down. Thank you, Rachel.
02:21Let's head over to Dictionary Corner then.
02:23Are J of the D's Susie Dent ready to rock for another series?
02:27You're rejoined in Dictionary Corner, back for a sophomore appearance.
02:33The storyteller extraordinaire and the radio legend that is whispering Bob Harris.
02:41Welcome back, mate.
02:42Thank you very much, Colin. I'm so happy to be back.
02:46Yeah.
02:46It's such a great atmosphere walking into this show. I just absolutely love it.
02:49Yeah. Any wardrobe malfunctions? Come see me.
02:52I've got a whole load of jumpers I'm trying to get rid of.
02:54Well, we also welcome back for a second appearance our champion, Adrian Clarke,
03:00who's from Cambridge and exiled in Solihull for quite some time.
03:06You're here because your son almost shamed you into being here and you got your first win.
03:12And you're up against the lovely Tom Saunders,
03:15who moved from Colchester to the big smoke of London quite recently.
03:20What a job you have. Tell me all about it.
03:21Oh, yeah. Immersive experience in escape rooms. It's very fun.
03:27Get a lot of laughs, especially with the jump scares.
03:30What about a countdown escape room?
03:32Because that would be good. You have to work out letter clues and number clues, right?
03:38And then it could be quite scary.
03:40You could have like a big thing of Susie Dent that comes out.
03:43Yeah. And also, think about it.
03:46It's a good idea.
03:47Yeah, it is a terrible idea, Tom, but you don't know me well enough to say that yet.
03:51Tom and Adrian, good luck.
03:55Mr Clarke, let's get underway.
03:57Hi, Rachel.
03:57Hi, Adrian.
03:58May I have a consonant, please?
04:00You may indeed.
04:00We'll start the series with R.
04:03And a vowel.
04:05U.
04:06A consonant.
04:08T.
04:09Another consonant.
04:11B.
04:13A vowel.
04:15O.
04:16Another vowel.
04:19A.
04:21Another vowel.
04:24I.
04:25Consonant.
04:27N.
04:27And a final consonant, please.
04:30And a final T.
04:32At home and in the studio for the first time this series, let's play Countdown.
04:36We'll see you next time.
04:37All the players.
04:38The word.
04:39We'll see you next time.
04:39Bye-bye.
04:40Bye-bye.
04:42Bye-bye.
04:46Bye-bye.
04:54Bye.
04:55Bye-bye.
05:00Bye-bye.
05:01Adrian?
05:08Six.
05:09And Tom?
05:10Going to go for a risky eight.
05:13Risky eight.
05:14OK, Adrian, the six.
05:16Turban.
05:17Yes, and Tom?
05:18Runabouts.
05:20Runabout.
05:21Given somebody the runabout.
05:24It's in the dictionary, but we need two years, unfortunately, for that, Tom.
05:28I'm sorry.
05:29But, yeah, perfectly legitimate word.
05:31Go to your tick and risk, Erling.
05:33Anything else there for me, Bob?
05:34Well, rain out is the one that we thought.
05:38Traditional countdown word, that one, isn't it?
05:39Yeah.
05:40An event cancelled through rain.
05:42Lovely.
05:43Thank you so much.
05:44Right, Tom, you get to choose these letters.
05:46Write them down carefully.
05:47OK, could I have a consonant, please?
05:49Thank you, Tom.
05:51H.
05:53And a vowel.
05:55E.
05:57And a consonant.
05:59T.
05:59And a vowel.
06:02A.
06:04And another consonant.
06:07C.
06:08And a consonant.
06:11N.
06:12And a vowel.
06:14E.
06:16And a consonant.
06:18L.
06:20And another consonant, please.
06:23And a final D.
06:24In 30 seconds.
06:26And a consonant.
06:27And a consonant.
06:28And a consonant.
06:29And a consonant.
06:29And a consonant.
06:29And a consonant.
06:29And a consonant.
06:30And a consonant.
06:30And a consonant.
06:31And a consonant.
06:31And a consonant.
06:32And a consonant.
06:32And a consonant.
06:32And a consonant.
06:33And a consonant.
06:33And a consonant.
06:33And a consonant.
06:33And a consonant.
06:34And a consonant.
06:34And a consonant.
06:35And a consonant.
06:35And a consonant.
06:36And a consonant.
06:36And a consonant.
06:36And a consonant.
06:37And a consonant.
06:37And a consonant.
06:37And a consonant.
06:38And a consonant.
06:38And a consonant.
06:39And a consonant.
06:39And a consonant.
06:40And a consonant.
06:40And a consonant.
06:41And a consonant.
06:41And a consonant.
06:42And a consonant.
06:56That's time, Mr Saunders.
06:59A seven.
07:00A seven. Adrian?
07:02Seven.
07:02And a seven. What have you got for me, Tom?
07:04Er, cheated.
07:06Cheated.
07:07None of that around here, Mr Clark. What have you got?
07:09Latched.
07:10And latched. Latched and cheated.
07:12Seven each. Really, really good.
07:15There's a plethora of sevens in there, but anything better?
07:18We did get an eight, actually.
07:19You could just about take it to that with lanceted.
07:23So a lancet is a surgical knife.
07:25It's got two edges and it goes to a sharp point,
07:27hence the medical journal, the lancet.
07:29And so stained glass windows can be lanceted if they have that shape.
07:33Very nice. Very nice.
07:35Really good, though, Adrian.
07:36And Tom, let's get our first numbers round.
07:39Champ, you're picking.
07:40I'll have one large and five small, please.
07:42Thank you, Adrian.
07:43One from the top five little first numbers of the series.
07:46Ah, two.
07:48Two.
07:49Nine.
07:50Seven.
07:51Three.
07:52And the large one, 25.
07:53And the target for you to reach?
07:55Seven hundred and twenty-five.
07:57Seven to five.
07:58Number's up.
07:58Two.
08:00Two.
08:01One.
08:02One.
08:03Two.
08:03One.
08:03Six.
08:04Two.
08:05One.
08:07Two.
08:09Two.
08:10Three.
08:10Two.
08:11MUSIC PLAYS
08:30Time's up. Adrian? 725.
08:32And Tom? 727.
08:34727. So, for ten points, Adrian?
08:37Three times nine. 27.
08:40Add with two. Tester, the 25 times table here.
08:4329. Times 25.
08:45Times 25 gets you to 725.
08:47Well done.
08:48APPLAUSE
08:50OK, first tea-time teaser.
08:53Isn't beast. Isn't beast.
08:56Nora isn't the beast.
08:58She's just known for her odd behaviour.
09:01Nora isn't the beast.
09:03She's just known for her odd behaviour.
09:10Battiness.
09:11Is that a bit too much of an old reference for you, Rach?
09:13No.
09:15Nora batty.
09:16Yep.
09:17That's the summer wine reference.
09:18Let's get back to our game.
09:19Relevant, as always, here on Countdown.
09:21And Tom, you're picking these letters.
09:22Consonant, please, Rachel.
09:23Thank you, Tom.
09:24S.
09:25And a vowel, please.
09:26O.
09:27And a consonant.
09:28N.
09:29And a vowel.
09:30I.
09:31And a vowel.
09:32Norabatty. Yep, that's the Summer Wine reference.
09:36Let's get back to our game. Relevant as always here in Countdown.
09:39And, Tom, you're picking these letters.
09:41Consonant, please, Rachel. Thank you, Tom.
09:43S. And a vowel, please.
09:46O. And a consonant.
09:49N. And a vowel.
09:52I. And a vowel.
09:56A. And a consonant.
10:00P. And a consonant.
10:04T. And a consonant.
10:07C.
10:10And a final consonant, please.
10:13A final T. Thanks, Rachel.
10:17P. And writing,
10:18A. And you can hear from it.
10:20A.
10:21Power rupees.
10:22MUSIC PLAYS
10:48Time's up. Tom?
10:50Eight.
10:51And Adrian? Eight.
10:52Very good, both of you, Tom.
10:54Captions. Captions!
10:56Captions as well.
10:58And there you go.
10:59APPLAUSE
11:03Decent letters. Could you go one better? Can you why us?
11:06Yeah, I've got captions.
11:09Oh, you can just turn it on its head a little bit and have captions.
11:12Legal use for bargains or agreements.
11:14Great stuff. Adrian, let's see if we can keep up this lovely standard.
11:18A consonant, please.
11:19Thank you, Adrian.
11:21S.
11:22A vowel.
11:23I.
11:24A consonant.
11:26N.
11:27Another consonant.
11:30S.
11:31A vowel.
11:33O.
11:34Another vowel.
11:36E.
11:39Consonant.
11:41L.
11:42Another consonant.
11:45D.
11:47And a final consonant, please.
11:48And a final N.
11:50And half a minute.
11:51Go!
11:53functions your eighth tongue of something like that.
11:55We will邏
11:56continue to be the same cuStars.
11:57Who knows how you are.
11:58Volunt is now reptilian.
11:59Be quiet and big,
12:00you may have.
12:01You may be open to work.
12:02You may have evolved when to come.
12:02To be a three,
12:03somebody has results.
12:04Bye.
12:04What's popping up?
12:06Here's something nice.
12:07Well, this is one of your favoriteéré items for you,
12:08because of the rewards from the four teams.
12:09Also, as a pulse of the basket seems with you,
12:10having to have produced lots of phases of the holiday season,
12:12and you know that you have to change your bedtime years
12:12because of your life.
12:13This is completely nature of what's working like you.
12:14And a rocky idea is,
12:16to be a
12:20Adrian?
12:23Seven.
12:24And Tom?
12:25Seven.
12:25Very good, what have we got?
12:26Insoles?
12:28Insoles.
12:28And Tom?
12:29Sinless.
12:31Sinless.
12:32Oh, I think you need the three S's for sinless.
12:36Done again.
12:37Oh, you've done it again, Tom, you've done it again.
12:40Don't worry about it.
12:42Insoles then, tickets, which puts you another step ahead there.
12:45Adrian, anything else in the dictionary corner?
12:47Lesions.
12:48Yes.
12:49Yes.
12:50And that was it.
12:51Sevens for us two.
12:52Yeah, loads of sixes flying about there for us mere mortals,
12:55but we will move on and get more numbers.
12:58And Tom Saunders, you get to choose these.
13:00Can I have two big and four small, please?
13:02You can indeed.
13:03Two from the top and four not coming up.
13:05And for the second time today, the number selection is two,
13:10ten, one, nine, 75 and 100.
13:16And this target, 357.
13:18Three, five, seven, numbers up.
13:20Terminal four.
13:22Three, four, seven, number one.
13:33Three, four, three, four.
13:393, 5, 7, the target, Tom.
13:543, 5, 8.
13:55One away. Adrian?
13:57No, not close.
13:58Oh, listen, there you go, Tom.
13:59You've got a little window to get back into this for seven points.
14:03I did 100 plus 75.
14:06175.
14:07Times 2.
14:08Times 2, 350.
14:11And then I plus the 9 and minus the 1.
14:13Yeah, that gets you to 1 away.
14:15As you're about to see, a slight little change, you would add 10 points.
14:19Off you go, Rich.
14:20Yeah, a very slight change.
14:22100 plus 75.
14:24Take 1 is 174.
14:27If you times that by 2, you get 348.
14:30And then you can add 9 to get a spot on.
14:32There you go.
14:33APPLAUSE
14:34Just that little change.
14:38Tom, you're on your way to greatness.
14:39That's the positive headline from that.
14:41Right, 38 plays 22.
14:43As we head over to Dictionary Corner to have a little chat, we're whispering Bob.
14:47Now, Bob, can we talk a little bit about, you know,
14:50the friendships that you've forged through music,
14:52as we all do?
14:54It's a great uniter, isn't it?
14:55Yeah.
14:56It's great, isn't it, Colin?
14:58Because that is what music does, doesn't it?
15:01It brings people together.
15:02I mean, when I started doing the Orgo Whistle Test in 1972,
15:07one of the bands that we supported massively was Led Zeppelin.
15:11And we were very fortunate because their manager, Peter Grant,
15:16was quite a fearsome chap,
15:19and he was very protective of the group.
15:22But Peter and the band, actually, were huge fans of Whistle Test.
15:26So if anything was happening with Led Zeppelin,
15:29Peter would always phone up Mike Affleckton, the producer,
15:33and say, we're just about to announce a new tour,
15:35does Bob want to do an interview with one of the guys?
15:37And almost always it would be Robert.
15:40Yeah.
15:40So, you know, our friendship has sustained right through,
15:43and, of course, in recent years,
15:45Robert's got very much involved in the country-slash-Americana scene.
15:50And he's worked with Alison Krauss.
15:52They made that beautiful record, Raising Sand.
15:55Yeah.
15:56And I will just tell you the sweet story,
15:58because, I mean, I do think this is so lovely.
16:00Robert was driving home.
16:02It was about 11 o'clock on a Saturday night.
16:05My show was going out on Radio 2,
16:07and I played an Alison Krauss track.
16:11And Robert had never heard her before.
16:13You know, it was midsummer.
16:14It was a beautiful, balmy evening.
16:16He pulled the car over in this little country lane.
16:19He turned the radio up, got out,
16:21and stood there with the music sort of blaring from the speakers
16:25under the starlight listening to her voice.
16:29And he said,
16:30it sounded like a voice from another planet,
16:33is the way that he described it to me.
16:34So then he reached out.
16:36They made the Raising Sand album together.
16:39And I don't think anybody had any idea when it first came out
16:42how huge that record was going to be.
16:44But he invited me to join them
16:45at the New Orleans Jazz Festival.
16:48And they played at about 3.15 in the afternoon
16:51on this beautiful sunny day.
16:5310,000 people there,
16:54all the colours, the flags, sunshine.
16:56Nice.
16:57It was a shivers down the spine moment.
16:59It really was.
16:59Thank you, mate.
17:02APPLAUSE
17:02OK, let's get back to today's game.
17:06There's a whole lot of love in the studio
17:08between Adrian and Tom,
17:10but you're leading the way at the moment
17:12and it's your turn, champ, to pick the letters.
17:15May I have a consonant, please?
17:16You may.
17:17S.
17:19And a vowel.
17:20I.
17:22A consonant.
17:23L.
17:24Another consonant.
17:27W.
17:28A vowel.
17:31U.
17:32Another vowel.
17:34E.
17:35A consonant.
17:37L.
17:40Another vowel.
17:42O.
17:44And a consonant, please.
17:46And the last one.
17:47S.
17:48Here we go.
17:48I.
17:50I.
17:50I.
17:51I.
17:51I.
17:52I.
18:12I.
18:13How many, Adrian?
18:21I'll try a six.
18:22A six, and Tom?
18:23Trying a six as well.
18:24Trying the six. What are we trying on here?
18:26Louses?
18:27Louses, and Tom?
18:30Soleil?
18:31No, worry, spell it.
18:33S-O-L-E-I-L.
18:35We cross straight over to the dent.
18:37I'd love to give you Soleil, French for sun, of course,
18:40but it's only there as in Roi Soleil, the sun king, Louis XIV.
18:46So it's not there on its own, I'm afraid, Tom.
18:48I'm very sorry about that.
18:49And to louse, there is a verb, it's to de-louse, essentially.
18:53It's to remove lice from someone.
18:55Lovely.
18:55What have we got in the dictionary corner?
18:57We have a lovely seven, which is very pertinent to Bob.
19:00Yeah, soulies.
19:02Soulies, people who love northern soul music.
19:04That's an actual term, a soulies.
19:05That's an actual word, yes, it is.
19:07You'd have, like, rockers and ravers, but not solers, soulies.
19:13That's brilliant.
19:15That's absolutely great.
19:16Right, more letters, please, Tom.
19:19A consonant, please.
19:20Thank you, Tom.
19:22R.
19:23And a vowel.
19:24E.
19:25And a consonant.
19:27D.
19:29And a consonant.
19:32F.
19:33And a vowel.
19:35O.
19:36And another vowel.
19:39E.
19:40And a consonant.
19:41R.
19:43And a consonant.
19:44S.
19:46And a consonant, please.
19:48The final Y.
19:50Start the clock.
19:51And a consonant.
19:52And a consonant.
19:52And a consonant.
19:52And a consonant.
19:53And a consonant.
19:53And a consonant.
19:54And a consonant.
19:54And a consonant.
19:54And a consonant.
19:54And a consonant.
19:54And a consonant.
19:55And a consonant.
19:56And a consonant.
19:56And a consonant.
19:56And a consonant.
19:56And a consonant.
19:57And a consonant.
19:57And a consonant.
19:57And a consonant.
19:58And a consonant.
19:58And a consonant.
19:59And a consonant.
19:59And a consonant.
20:00And a consonant.
20:00And a consonant.
20:01And a consonant.
20:02And a consonant.
20:02And a consonant.
20:03And a consonant.
20:04And a consonant.
20:04And a consonant.
20:05And a consonant.
20:06And a consonant.
20:06And a consonant.
20:07And a consonant.
20:08And a consonant.
20:09And a consonant.
20:21Tom, how many?
20:22Six.
20:23And Adrian?
20:24Six.
20:25Six and six, what have we got?
20:26Orders.
20:27Orders, that's definitely not French, that's in there.
20:30Orders as well.
20:31There you go.
20:31Orders and orders, six points each over to Bob and Susie.
20:35Well, I'm not so sure about this one, Susie.
20:37Yes, it's an unusual one.
20:39It's from the Christian church, RERDOS, R-E-R-E-D-O-S,
20:44and it's an ornamental screen that covers the wall at the back of the altar.
20:48It's from the French from behind.
20:49Re-re-dos.
20:51How are you saying it?
20:52I think it's RERDOS, R-E-R-E-D-O-S.
20:57OK, thank you.
20:58Susie, let's get numbers right now.
21:00Adrian?
21:01One large and five small, please.
21:03Thank you, Adrian.
21:03Back to the one from the top, five not.
21:06And this time around, your selection is five, two, six, eight, one.
21:15And the big one, 50.
21:17And the target, 736.
21:19736, numbers up.
21:21736, numbers up.
21:21106, numbers up, 1096, numbers up.
21:22126, numbers up.
21:22125, тысяч
21:2430 to 7,000.
21:24Send me some gold.
21:25107, numbers up.
21:26126, number one.
21:29106, number one, 50, number one.
21:30116, number one, 50, number two, six and eight on the top.
21:31126, number one, 100 is notMA.
21:32116, number one, 50.
21:33722, number two, 20 McMinn.
21:4790, number two, 25.
21:47116, number two, 25, Ora, 48.
21:48736. The target, Adrian.
21:55734.
21:57Two away. Tom?
21:58I'm too far out.
21:59You're too far out.
22:00You put your pen down in 28 seconds and I thought it's either complete resignation that I can't get it or I've nailed it.
22:06So, Adrian, a few points for you here.
22:098 plus 6, 14.
22:11Yep.
22:12Times 50 plus 2.
22:14Times 50 plus 2, 728.
22:16And then add the 5 and the 1.
22:18And the 5 and the 1 you haven't used for 2 below.
22:21Well done.
22:22So, 736, Rach.
22:24Yeah, a couple of ways.
22:25One, you could have said 2 plus 5 is 7.
22:28Times that by 6 for 42.
22:31Add the 42 to 50 for 92.
22:33And 92 times 8 is 736.
22:40Now, dude beach.
22:42Dude beach is your tea time teaser.
22:45The dude on the beach behaved disgracefully.
22:48The dude on the beach behaved disgracefully.
22:50Welcome back.
23:07The dude on the beach behaved disgracefully.
23:09Dude beach becomes debauched.
23:11Debauched.
23:12Six rounds left, Tom.
23:14Off we go.
23:15A consonant, please.
23:16Thank you, Tom.
23:17T.
23:18And a vowel.
23:19And a vowel.
23:20I.
23:22And a consonant.
23:23G.
23:25And a vowel.
23:26A.
23:28And a vowel.
23:30O.
23:31A consonant.
23:33T.
23:34A consonant.
23:36R.
23:38Another consonant, please.
23:41M.
23:41And a final consonant.
23:45And a final R.
23:47Let's play.
23:48Here we go.
23:48Michael.
23:55Throwback.
23:57Oh, man.
23:58Don't let it.
23:59Let it.
24:01No one es.
24:01No one es.
24:02No one ar.
24:04The lidt.
24:05Hear.
24:06Que Material.
24:07Die Lamborghini.
24:08Treasure.
24:08Let's fly.
24:09Oh, wee.
24:12Don't let it.
24:12He can.
24:14Do it.
24:14One.
24:15aram.
24:15Time is up, Tom.
24:21Eight.
24:22An eight.
24:22And Adrian?
24:23Just a five.
24:24What's the five?
24:25Grote.
24:26What's this eight?
24:27Migrator.
24:28Migrator.
24:29Absolutely brilliant.
24:30Ah, yes.
24:33Migrator is sensational.
24:35It really is, yeah.
24:35Migratory birds, obviously, and other species.
24:38Very good indeed.
24:39That will do us.
24:39Let's get more letters.
24:41May I have a consonant, please?
24:42You may indeed.
24:43M.
24:44Vowel.
24:46E.
24:47Consonant.
24:48Consonant.
24:50H.
24:52Another consonant.
24:54G.
24:56A vowel.
24:57I.
24:59Another vowel.
25:01U.
25:02A consonant.
25:04P.
25:06Another consonant.
25:08L.
25:11And a vowel, please.
25:13And a final O.
25:14Good luck.
25:15Good luck.
25:15Good luck.
25:15Good luck.
25:15Good luck.
25:15Good luck.
25:16Good luck.
25:16Good luck.
25:16Good luck.
25:16Good luck.
25:16Good luck.
25:17Good luck.
25:17Good luck.
25:17Good luck.
25:18Good luck.
25:18Good luck.
25:18Good luck.
25:19Good luck.
25:20Good luck.
25:20Good luck.
25:20Good luck.
25:20Good luck.
25:21Good luck.
25:21Good luck.
25:22Good luck.
25:22Good luck.
25:22Good luck.
25:22Good luck.
25:23Good luck.
25:23Good luck.
25:24Good luck.
25:24Good luck.
25:24Good luck.
25:24Good luck.
25:25Good luck.
25:25Good luck.
25:26MUSIC PLAYS
25:47Adrian.
25:48Er, six.
25:49And Tom.
25:49Six.
25:50And a six. What have we got?
25:51Plough.
25:52Plough, yes. Tom, same.
25:54Yeah, yeah.
25:55You and hundreds of thousands of people, I think, were scrambling for ply.
25:59Anything else?
26:00Susie has got a Megilp.
26:02Yeah, still a six, but a nice six.
26:04Megilp, which is M-E-G-I-L-P, is a mixture of resin and oil that's added to oil paint.
26:11Lovely.
26:12OK, series 88, first origins of words?
26:15From one of our lovely viewers, without a jumper, but it's still a great question.
26:21It's from Lauren in Cheltenham, who has said that she looks at the British flag, knows that we call it the Union Jack, related, Lauren thinks, to the crosses of each nation being brought together.
26:32And she says, and I remember similar use of the word in jumping jacks and cross jacks, as well as the jacks used in that old-fashioned game with the ball.
26:40Do you remember jacks?
26:41I used to love that little game.
26:42Yeah.
26:43But where does it come from, Lauren asks, in the context of crosses?
26:47You know, is it all related?
26:50The crosses, I think, might be a bit of a red herring here, because I think jack here is used in a slightly different way, although I totally get the idea of the, you know, the Union Jack, etc.
27:04So, I've mentioned so often on Countdown that personal names are used in so many different words and expressions.
27:12And in the Middle Ages, jack is a pet form of John, essentially, used to refer to any ordinary man.
27:18And by the 16th century, it also meant a young man.
27:20And in the 18th century, jack was a labourer, which gave us the lumberjack, the steeplejack, etc.
27:25But also an unskilled labourer, an unskilled worker, compared with the master of a trade who had completed an apprenticeship.
27:32So, we get saying such as jack of all trades and master of none.
27:36But, crucially, when it comes to the Union Jack and the jacks that we play with, it can be a thing that is smaller than normal.
27:43And that's the key here, because the jack in bowls, you will know, Colin, it's a smaller bowl, or bowl, that's placed as a marker for the players to aim at.
27:52Likewise, the jacks that we use in the game.
27:55And Jack in the Union Jack, strictly speaking, and this is how it began, was a smaller version of the national flag that was flown aboard a ship.
28:04Brilliant. Thank you, Susie.
28:05APPLAUSE
28:08Right, it's becoming interesting.
28:10Let's get letters from Tom Saunders, who's closing that gap.
28:14Can I have a consonant, please?
28:15Thank you, Tom. V.
28:18And a vowel.
28:20E.
28:21And another vowel.
28:23O.
28:25And a consonant.
28:27N.
28:29Vowel.
28:31E.
28:33Another vowel.
28:35I.
28:36Consonant.
28:37C.
28:39And a consonant.
28:41X.
28:42And another consonant, please.
28:44And lastly, R.
28:46Kind time.
28:49We'll see you.
28:53Appreciate it.
28:55We'll do it.
28:57We'll do it.
28:58Sometimes.
29:01페ngucus đ theologyuri.
29:02That's time, Tom.
29:19Just a five.
29:20Oh, and Adrian.
29:21Just a five as well.
29:21Just a five.
29:23Tom.
29:24Nicer.
29:24Nicer.
29:25Coven.
29:26And coven.
29:27What have we got in the dictionary corner?
29:28Over nice.
29:29Yes, over nice.
29:31So, can somebody be over nice?
29:33I suppose they can be if it's not genuine.
29:35But that will give you an eight.
29:36Very good.
29:37Always a learning curve here.
29:39Let's get our final letters round.
29:41Adrian.
29:41A consonant, please.
29:43Thank you, Adrian.
29:44F.
29:46And a vowel.
29:47E.
29:48A consonant.
29:50J.
29:51Another consonant.
29:54D.
29:55A vowel.
29:57A.
29:58Another vowel.
30:00I.
30:01A consonant.
30:04N.
30:05Another consonant.
30:07T.
30:09And a final vowel, please.
30:11And a final E.
30:14Last letters.
30:15BABY.
30:28BABY.
30:29BABY.
30:29BABY.
30:30A RHIZ.
30:30How many, Adrian?
30:46Seven.
30:47A seven. And Tom?
30:48A seven.
30:49A seven as well. Let's have him.
30:50Fainted.
30:51Fainted, yes.
30:52Defiant.
30:53And defiant. Well done.
30:55You put up a defiant fight, didn't you, after a really nervy start?
30:58It's just going to be a little beyond you, though.
31:00Tom, really good, though.
31:01Seven points each. Anything else?
31:03Those were two?
31:04Yep. Same.
31:05Right, last numbers round of the day.
31:07Tom, it's just a little out of reach.
31:0921 points by 20 points up for grabs.
31:12So, you know, you literally can do anything you want.
31:15Can I just have two from the top and four from the bus, please?
31:16You can, indeed.
31:18Thank you, Tom.
31:18Two from the top and four of the other lot.
31:21And the final numbers of the week are 10, 9, 10, 9, 174.
31:30This could be tricky.
31:31Let's have a look.
31:32573.
31:34573.
31:34Numbers up.
31:35That's no escape.
31:37You can choose.
31:37That's no escape.
31:38You try to get caught.
31:39That's a expense.
31:39That's the wahr��고 word.
31:40And the correct answer is, if you're not mistaken,
31:42you have to do anything you want.
31:46You see, awesome.
31:58for the interview,
31:58You know,
31:59this is a good night.
32:005-7-3, Tom?
32:08No.
32:08No.
32:10Adrian?
32:10No.
32:11All right, thank you for not wasting any time.
32:13Rachel, take us to 5-7-3.
32:15I know you have it because you smile on your face after about 15 seconds.
32:19Well, if you do this one times this one minus this one and chuck a one-off,
32:23you get to 5-7-4, but this was impossible.
32:25Oh, wow, really?
32:26My work was done.
32:27There you go.
32:27Oh, a serene resignation that we can't get there.
32:31There's 5-7-4.
32:32OK, brilliant.
32:33The Countdown Conundrum, just to come to finish the first episode of the series.
32:39And, Adrian, big news for you.
32:41That is a countdown record for the series.
32:43That's the highest record, so well done to you.
32:46I'm going to retire now.
32:47Let's see if we can get from 75 to 85.
32:50Tom, let's see if you can go out with a bang.
32:52Finger on the buzzer, my friend, as we reveal today's Countdown Conundrum.
33:28Time's up.
33:29Nothing from Adrian and Tom.
33:32Rachel, go ahead.
33:33Well, if Dr Maggie were still here, she'd probably like this as Stardust de-atomising.
33:37Let's have a look.
33:38Nice one.
33:40APPLAUSE
33:41And that means the second win for Adrian Clark.
33:45Lovely.
33:46You finished off series 87.
33:48You started series 88 in fine style.
33:50Well done to you.
33:51Well done to you.
33:53And Tom's taken you about 45 minutes to escape from this room.
33:58Just a little bit of nerves at the start.
34:00Apart from that, it would have been just crucial countdown conundrum territory.
34:04So you should be very pleased.
34:05Thanks for being here.
34:06Thanks, Colin.
34:07OK, Bob, we'll see you on Monday.
34:09I'll see you then, Colin.
34:10Lovely stuff, Suze.
34:10Yeah, have a fun weekend.
34:11I can't wait to see some more of these jumpers.
34:13If you knit it, we will wear it.
34:15We've committed to it.
34:17So we will do that.
34:18So just as we say goodbye, another huge thank you to Jan.
34:22How special.
34:23We talked about it earlier in the programme.
34:25We're blown away by that, not just on set, but off camera as well.
34:29Thank you so much, Jan, for that.
34:31Rachel, Suze and I are back on Monday.
34:33You can count on us.
34:35APPLAUSE
34:35You can contact the programme by email at countdown at channel4.com.
34:41You can also find our webpage at channel4.com forward slash countdown.
34:45APPLAUSE
34:46And we'll see you next time.