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00:00This programme contains strong language and adult humour.
00:05APPLAUSE
00:31Hello, everybody. Welcome to another week of Countdown.
00:35A very warm welcome to you all.
00:37Let's hope it's a cracker.
00:39Happy Monday, Rachel. Happy Monday, Colin.
00:42Calm down, everybody.
00:44We've got New Year's Eve, we've got Halloween,
00:47we've got Christmas Day,
00:49but it's National Spreadsheet Day today.
00:52My dad will be celebrating.
00:54This is literally pillow talk to you.
00:56I do like a good old formula in Excel, I have to say.
00:59So what do we do? Do we go for a nice dinner?
01:02Are we going to go out for a bit of karaoke?
01:04No, you've got to sit by yourself in whatever room you do your spreadsheets in
01:08and you have a good old bash at the keyboard.
01:10You're genuinely excited that it's National Spreadsheet Day?
01:13Not personally, but I know my dad is.
01:15And my six-year-old nephew, my dad's kind of got to him early
01:19and he loves a spreadsheet.
01:21He's requested on a weekend to sit and do them with my dad.
01:24Yes.
01:25Right, in the dictionary corner, J of the day's back,
01:28raring to go for another week, Susie Dent,
01:30and joining her, well, a familiar brilliant countdown face,
01:34the actor and narrator, John Thompson's here!
01:37APPLAUSE
01:40You are looking fantastic.
01:43Wonderful. Can't wait to be in your company all week.
01:46And you're in the company of a four-time champion, Mike Toms is here.
01:50He was retired, he came out of retirement, not for this show,
01:53he went back into teaching.
01:55You haven't broken 100 yet, you know?
01:57I haven't, no, no. Blew it on the conundrum.
02:00Every time? Each time.
02:02Four, your own four in the conundrum.
02:04Own four, yeah.
02:05Now, listen, we've talked a lot about all the weird and wonderful jobs
02:08that you've had, but tell me a little bit about the family.
02:11Yeah, so I've been married for very nearly 32 years to Nicky.
02:14So we've...
02:16She's mostly been responsible for bringing up three wonderful children
02:20who are now 30, 27 and 24.
02:23So Alex, Becky and Jamie, all off doing their thing,
02:26all off living their lives.
02:28Well, listen, good luck. I'm sure they're all watching
02:30and loving your performances so far.
02:32You're going to be taking on Ian Payne. Welcome to the show.
02:35Thanks, Colin. Great to be here.
02:36You're looking great, I have to say. Fit as a fiddle.
02:38Are you a fitness family?
02:40It's very kind of you to say. Thank you.
02:42Yeah, we like a park run every Saturday morning,
02:44me and my wife and my daughter Freya.
02:46I think it's strange you left out one member of the family,
02:49because Freya's with us today. You didn't mention Sparkles.
02:52Sparkles, the snow leopards. Yes. Yeah.
02:55OK, well, Sparkles ain't going to be happy.
02:57Let's see if you can sparkle today. Good luck to you.
02:59Thank you very much. Well done. All right, Mike and Ian.
03:01APPLAUSE
03:04Right, I've got my spreadsheet ready for the scores.
03:07Let's get on with it, Mike, and get nine letters.
03:09OK, hi, Rachel. Hi, Mike.
03:11Can I have a consonant, please? You can indeed.
03:13Start the week with B.
03:15And a second consonant?
03:18And a vowel?
03:21And another vowel?
03:24And a consonant?
03:28And another consonant?
03:31And a third?
03:36And a vowel?
03:40And a final vowel, please?
03:47At home and in the studio for the first time this week,
03:49let's play Countdown.
04:18MUSIC STOPS
04:21Ian? I have a six.
04:23And Mike? I also have a six.
04:25What's the six, Mike? Probed.
04:27Yes, and Ian? Also probed.
04:30And there was a myriad of sixes in there, actually.
04:33So how do we do, John?
04:35I have got the US equivalent of a nappy, a diaper.
04:38Very good, very good.
04:40And what you're looking today, Dapper is in there as well.
04:44I mean, you can't be dappier, but Susie, what else have we got?
04:47Well, I was about to say, put the I in dapper and you have dappier.
04:50Yeah, so to be dappier is to be silly, disorganised
04:52or lacking in concentration.
04:54Yeah, there you go. And your B-O left over as well from that.
04:57Wonderful start, eh? Six points each.
04:59Let's get some more letters now.
05:01And, Ian, it's your first chance to say hello to Rachel.
05:04Hi, Rachel. Hi, Ian.
05:06I'll start with a vowel, please. Thank you.
05:08Start with O.
05:10And a consonant, please?
05:13And another vowel, please?
05:17And a consonant, please?
05:21And a vowel?
05:25And another vowel, please?
05:29And a consonant, please?
05:32Another consonant, please?
05:36And a final consonant, please?
05:38A final W.
05:4030 seconds.
06:09MUSIC STOPS
06:11Mike?
06:13Eight. Very good indeed.
06:15Ian? Also an eight.
06:17What's the eight, Ian? Glowered.
06:19Glowered. I love the way you say that.
06:21Oh, look. Good man.
06:23By the noose, yeah.
06:27Matching each other word for word.
06:29Susie, any better?
06:31There is another eight, it's just simply a reforming of glowered
06:34and it's re-glowed, weirdly.
06:36Me too. Lovely.
06:3814 points each.
06:40Let's see if the first numbers round will separate them.
06:42Mike, you're picking?
06:44We'll stick with the winning formula, Rachel.
06:46Two from the top, please. Don't need to ask lately.
06:48Thank you, Mike. Two large, four little.
06:50Not changing it up just yet.
06:52First one of the week.
06:54Seven, one, six, three,
06:57150,
06:59and the target to reach...
07:02..800.
07:04MUSIC PLAYS
07:35I predict there will be no ink wasted.
07:37Mike? 800.
07:39Ian? I have 800.
07:41Off you go, Ian.
07:43So I did seven add one. Mm-hm.
07:45That's eight. Mm-hm.
07:47Times that by 100... Mm-hm.
07:49..is 800. Yeah. I think even Sparkles, the leopard toy,
07:52got that one.
07:54Mike? Yeah, same.
07:56Nyeh. There you go.
07:5824 points each.
08:00Let's take our first break of this week
08:02and give you a teatime teaser.
08:04Side Gift.
08:06Side Gift. This small drink sounds like it takes the biscuit.
08:09This small drink sounds like it takes the biscuit.
08:28Welcome back. Side Gift was your teatime teaser.
08:31This small drink sounds like it takes the biscuit.
08:34Digestive. And just out of nowhere,
08:36we start talking about digestive biscuits.
08:38John Thompson from Nowhere said,
08:40I'm studying the history of biscuits.
08:42I read a brilliant book about biscuits. Fantastic.
08:44So it started with the ship's biscuits.
08:46You know, when you go on long journeys,
08:48that was sustenance for the sailors.
08:50So that was your first ever biscuit.
08:52I will find time this week to talk more
08:54about the history of biscuits. Fascinated.
08:56I mean, spreadsheets, the history of biscuits.
09:00Ian, I want nine letters from you.
09:02OK, I'll start with a biscuit, please.
09:04I mean, a vowel, please.
09:06We can find one in here.
09:08U. And a consonant, please.
09:11S. Another consonant, please.
09:14N. And a vowel.
09:17E. And a consonant, please.
09:20G. And another vowel, please.
09:24A. And a consonant, please.
09:28S. R. And a vowel.
09:32I. And a consonant, please.
09:36And the last one, J.
09:39Thanks, Rich.
09:58MUSIC PLAYS
10:09How did you get on, Ian?
10:11I think I've got seven. And Mike?
10:13Six. The sixes?
10:15Rains. Ian?
10:17Gurneys. Gurneys.
10:19Over we go. Dictionary corner.
10:21It's got to be the E-Y-S, I'm afraid, not the I-E-S.
10:25I'm sorry, Ian. Sorry.
10:27Well, we did separate them, but not the way we thought.
10:30Mike gets the six points. Were there any sevens in their team?
10:33Surely with the I-N-G, we got something?
10:35Yeah, just something to push it to a seven, which is reusing.
10:38Reusing. Let's get more letters from you. Mike?
10:41A consonant, please, Rachel. Thank you, Mike.
10:43S. And another one.
10:47D. And a vowel.
10:50A. And another vowel.
10:53E. And a consonant.
10:56T. And another consonant.
10:59G. And a third consonant, please.
11:03T. And another vowel.
11:08A.
11:11And a final consonant, please.
11:14A final... Another G.
11:17Start the clock.
11:26CLOCK TICKS
11:49Ian? I've got another dodgy seven.
11:52Mike? Hopefully a safe six.
11:55OK, the safe six scored last time. What have you got?
11:57I've got stated.
11:59And, Ian, second time lucky. Could you have stagged?
12:02Yeah, I bet you a lot of people are asking the same question at home.
12:05Susie, we need an answer.
12:07You absolutely can. It's American English
12:09and it describes trousers roughly cut to become shorter.
12:13Well done.
12:16There you go, yes.
12:17Peter, Ian, takes a one-point lead.
12:20Very brave of him. Hard, John, when you've just got the three vowels.
12:23I've got a nice gadget.
12:25Gadgets, very good indeed. There you go.
12:27Stagged and gadgets.
12:29Ian takes a gamble, takes a point lead.
12:32Let's see what you're like at the numbers. Off you go.
12:35Can I have one from the top, please, Rachel?
12:37And any other five.
12:39You can indeed, thank you. And one large, five little.
12:41And hopefully something of a challenge this time.
12:44Five little ones are seven, three, ten, one.
12:49Another ten and a large one, 50.
12:52And your target to reach, 669.
12:55669, numbers up.
13:23MUSIC STOPS
13:26669, Mike.
13:28670.
13:30And Ian?
13:31One the other way, 668.
13:33OK, let's have the 670 first.
13:36OK, ten plus three, 13.
13:39Ten plus three, 13.
13:4150 plus one.
13:4350 plus one, 51.
13:4551, multiply them.
13:47For 663.
13:49And add the seven. And add the seventh one away.
13:51And one the other way in.
13:53So I did ten plus three is 13.
13:56Yep.
13:58Times 50 for 650.
14:00Yep.
14:02And then I added the other ten and the seven and the one.
14:07Yep, one the other way. Well done.
14:09And this is wee bonds for Riley. Off you go.
14:12Well, I often miss the ones where you have to times by ten.
14:15But if you say 50 plus ten plus seven is 67,
14:20times that by the other ten for 670, take the 1669.
14:24Yeah, well done.
14:26APPLAUSE
14:28Good game today, just one point in it,
14:30as we get our first chance to have a proper chat
14:33in Dictionary Corner with John Thompson.
14:35John, should we just go biscuits?
14:37I'm fascinated by them.
14:39But you bring up the item biscuits in a room
14:42and people go, they're always kind of like,
14:44everyone's got an opinion, haven't they?
14:46They've always got a favourite.
14:48The history of biscuits is a genuine book I've read
14:50and it was fascinating.
14:52So the first biscuit was on boats?
14:54Well, yeah, but really, the Roman Legion used to march on a biscuit
14:57that was twice baked and it would be rock hard
15:00and what we'd have to do, we'd have to revive it in water.
15:03Now, ship's biscuits were a similar kind of biscuit,
15:06a very, very hard-tack biscuit.
15:08But what they would do is, quite often,
15:10they would make a very basic stew
15:12and throw the biscuit into the stew to thicken it.
15:16And that stew in Scandinavia is called larpskaus
15:20and in Liverpool, because of the docks, that became skaus.
15:24Wow.
15:25And like biscotti, that was a kind of variation of a hard biscuit
15:28and what people used to do with that was dip it in sweet wine
15:31when things became a little more civilised.
15:33Right, one more biscuit fact for me, come on, give us another.
15:36Do we eat the most biscuits? Are we the biscuit-eating nation?
15:40The most popular biscuit in the UK is the chocolate digestive.
15:43Straight up. There you go.
15:45We had digestive earlier, perfect place.
15:47And why do we say, then, Susie, ticking the biscuit?
15:50Shall I do that in my origins of words?
15:52Look at this. This is how we roll on Countdown.
15:55Wonderful. John loved it.
15:57APPLAUSE
15:59Right, let's see how the cookie crumbles in our next letters round.
16:02Mike, it's you.
16:03A consonant, please, Rachel.
16:05Thank you, Mike.
16:06L
16:07And another consonant.
16:09H
16:10And a vowel.
16:12U
16:14And another vowel.
16:16E
16:17And another consonant, please.
16:20V
16:21And another consonant.
16:24T
16:25And a third, please.
16:27M
16:29And a vowel.
16:32U
16:35And a final vowel, please.
16:37Hopefully not another U.
16:39E
16:40Half a minute.
16:44MUSIC CONTINUES
16:46ELECTRONIC MUSIC PLAYS
17:12Have we got one, Ian?
17:14Just a five.
17:15Yeah, five.
17:16OK, very good. Mike?
17:17Theme.
17:18Yes, and Ian?
17:19Same theme.
17:21OK.
17:22There you go.
17:23I'm not coming over with a huge amount of optimism
17:26here with these letters, but Susie and John?
17:28I've got a six.
17:29Oh, come on.
17:31Helmet.
17:32Oh, my goodness.
17:34So obvious now you say it.
17:36Crazy.
17:37Susie, any better?
17:38No, nothing better than that. It was down to five, so, yeah, very good.
17:41Let's just wash our hands of that round, Ian.
17:43Let's get more letters.
17:44Start with a consonant this time, please.
17:46Thank you, Ian.
17:48R
17:50And a vowel, please.
17:52I
17:53And another consonant, please.
17:55S
17:56And a consonant.
17:58R
17:59And a vowel, please.
18:01E
18:03Another vowel, please.
18:05E
18:06And a consonant, please.
18:08T
18:09And a vowel.
18:11O
18:13And a final consonant, please.
18:15A final M.
18:17Good luck.
18:43MUSIC PLAYS
18:49Let's see, Mike.
18:50Six.
18:51And Ian?
18:52I think I've got an eight.
18:53There's six, Mike.
18:54Merits.
18:55And what are you thinking, Ian?
18:56Troy reams.
18:57Oh, straight over to Susie Dent.
19:00Yes. Absolutely brilliant.
19:02Ancient Greek or Roman war galleys with three banks of oars,
19:05hence the tri.
19:06Wow. Wow, wow, wow.
19:10Nine points in it. We know what's coming next, Mike.
19:12Your numbers.
19:13Two large and four small, please.
19:15Two from the top, four nots coming up, Mike.
19:18And this time they are...
19:28And the target to reach, 257.
19:31257, numbers up.
19:33MUSIC PLAYS
19:43MUSIC CONTINUES
20:03Mike?
20:04257.
20:05Yeah, Ian?
20:06257.
20:07Off you go, Mike.
20:0850 times five, plus seven.
20:10Another one for sparkles.
20:11Ian?
20:12I did it slightly differently.
20:13I did two fives of ten...
20:15Yeah.
20:16..times 25, plus 250, and then add the seven.
20:18Still not writing it down.
20:21Good time for a break.
20:2261 plays 52.
20:24Our champion, Mike, under a little bit of pressure.
20:27Six rounds to go when we return.
20:29Your teatime teaser, All Shops.
20:32All shops must have sales from time to time.
20:35These have sales all the time.
20:37It's a tricky one.
20:39All shops have sales from time to time.
20:42These have sales all the time.
20:44Got there.
21:00Welcome back.
21:01All shops become shallops.
21:03All shops have sales from time to time.
21:05These have sales all the time.
21:07I think it's a type of sail in a fishing boat, if I'm right.
21:10Is that right, Susie?
21:11It's absolutely right, yeah.
21:12A light sailing boat used for coastal fishing.
21:14There you go.
21:15Right.
21:1661 plays 52, so every round matters.
21:19Ian, can you dethrone our champion?
21:22Let's get nine more letters.
21:24Start with a vowel, please.
21:25Thank you, Ian.
21:27I.
21:28And a consonant, please.
21:30S.
21:31And a vowel, please.
21:33A.
21:34And a consonant.
21:35P.
21:36And a vowel.
21:38U.
21:39And a consonant, please.
21:41D.
21:42Another consonant, please.
21:44R.
21:45And a vowel, please.
21:47E.
21:49And a consonant, please.
21:52And finally, Z.
21:55Kind of.
22:06MUSIC PLAYS
22:26Right, Ian.
22:28Seven.
22:29And Mike?
22:30Six.
22:31What's the six, Mike?
22:32Spider.
22:33Confident with the seven, Ian?
22:34Fairly.
22:35Praised.
22:36Praised.
22:37Well, you should be overconfident with that.
22:39Seven more points in the bank for our challenger.
22:41John?
22:42By a sheer stroke of fate,
22:44I've got the American equivalent of the nappy again.
22:48Diapers.
22:49I saw that and I was like,
22:51I think Thompson's going to see that.
22:53We could go twice on it.
22:54So there you go.
22:55A nappy change.
22:56Anything else?
22:57You can put the U in the front of praised and have upraised.
23:00Fantastic.
23:01Only leaving the Z out.
23:03That's as good as you'll be able to do.
23:05OK, Mike, this is where champions come into their own
23:08and turn it around.
23:09Let's get your letters.
23:11A consonant, please.
23:12Thank you, Mike.
23:13T.
23:14And a second.
23:16C.
23:17And a vowel.
23:20O.
23:21And another one.
23:23A.
23:24And a third.
23:27E.
23:28And a consonant.
23:30P.
23:32And another consonant.
23:34S.
23:35And a third consonant.
23:38G.
23:39And a final vowel, please.
23:41A final O.
23:44Here we go.
24:03And there it is.
24:04Iain?
24:05Safe seven.
24:06And Mike?
24:07Just a five.
24:08Oh, this could be big.
24:09Mike?
24:10Coast.
24:11And what's safe?
24:12Postage.
24:13Yeah, postage is going to be there.
24:15Another seven points for Iain.
24:17Takes them 75-52.
24:19Susie, any better?
24:20I'm not sure.
24:21I'm not sure.
24:22I'm not sure.
24:23I'm not sure.
24:24I'm not sure.
24:25I'm not sure.
24:26I'm not sure.
24:27I'm not sure.
24:28I'm not sure.
24:29I'm not sure.
24:30I'm not sure.
24:31Susie, any better?
24:32One more seven to add, but we couldn't get it to an eight.
24:35But capotes are there, which are long-hooded cloaks.
24:37OK, great.
24:38Let's stay with Dictionary Corner.
24:40And on the hoof, you're going to talk about biscuit origins of words.
24:44Good luck with that.
24:45OK, yes.
24:46Taking the biscuit, something that you wanted to know the origin of.
24:50And when we use it today, it's just like,
24:52well, that takes the biscuit.
24:54In other words, that is really bad.
24:56It's something very unprincipled, usually.
24:58And, well, this is how I use it.
25:00And then it means that it tops everything else.
25:03So if something takes the biscuit, it's actually quite cheeky.
25:06Do you not use it that way?
25:07Well, I would say in a positive way, oh, that takes the biscuit.
25:10Oh, interesting, because that's how it started.
25:12So if something took the biscuit, it excelled at something.
25:15It was really, really good.
25:16And it seems to be a variation on an American phrase,
25:20which was takes the cake.
25:22And this referred to a cakewalk.
25:25Now, a cakewalk was a...
25:26It sounds quite strange, but it was a competition
25:30particularly, I have to say, in plantations.
25:33So a lot of African-American slaves did a cakewalk,
25:37and it was a form of sort of entertainment, I suppose,
25:40whereby people would try and do the most graceful walk
25:43that they possibly could.
25:45And those that won the competition received a cake as a prize.
25:48So if something took the cake, they had done particularly well,
25:52which sounds quite strange,
25:54but that is, we think, how takes the biscuit
25:56then came into British English to mean that's really good.
25:59But because of British irony, I suspect, and cynicism,
26:02it kind of flipped to mean, well, that's just the end of everything.
26:06That's sort of really cheeky.
26:08But lots of reference to cakes and biscuits
26:10being given as prizes, actually,
26:12because if you go back to classical Greece,
26:14in drinking competitions, the one who could last the longest
26:17received a cake or a giant biscuit as a prize,
26:20which seems quite strange.
26:22And in Canada, if something takes the biscuit,
26:25it's got an altogether different meaning.
26:27It means that it's completely worn out,
26:29and we think that the biscuit there is a reference
26:31to the holy sacrament that is given to patients
26:34as they are sick or dying,
26:36as part of a ritual called extreme unction.
26:39So very different meaning there.
26:41So you can see, it's just kind of really evolved over time.
26:44Biscuit itself, incidentally, and John alluded to this,
26:47it's from the French biscuit, twice cooked,
26:49because they were originally twice baked and made very, very hard
26:52and cooked in a slow oven.
26:54So I'm going to put you under real pressure here.
26:56OK. You can't have your cake and eat it.
26:58That's one of many illogical phrases in English
27:01that started off being completely rational, only we flipped them.
27:04So I think the original was, you can't eat your cake
27:06and then have it too. Wonderful.
27:08APPLAUSE
27:10Right, let's tuck into another round.
27:12Everything up for grabs today.
27:14Ian, it's your letters.
27:16Start with a consonant this time, please, Rachel.
27:18Thank you, Ian. T
27:20And a vowel, please.
27:22E
27:24And a consonant, please.
27:26L
27:28And a vowel, please.
27:30A
27:32Consonant, please.
27:34N
27:36A vowel, please.
27:38O
27:40And a consonant.
27:42R
27:44And a vowel.
27:46I
27:48And a final consonant, please.
27:50B
28:16Ian?
28:18Good for a seven.
28:20OK, and Mike? Eight.
28:22Oh, it's never over till it's over.
28:24Ian? Reliant.
28:26And the big eight? Oriental.
28:28Oriental, yes!
28:30Very good.
28:32APPLAUSE
28:34Reduces the gap to 15.
28:36Susie, any better?
28:38Yeah, there's a really beautiful one in there.
28:40Lionheart.
28:42Yes!
28:44APPLAUSE
28:46What a nine that is!
28:48But the eight is what makes this really, really interesting.
28:50Just 15 points in it.
28:52And for people who are just discovering Countdown
28:54after nearly 40 years,
28:56ten points in the conundrum at the end.
28:58So you get within ten and it makes it really exciting.
29:00One more letters round, though,
29:02and, Mike, you're in control.
29:04OK, a consonant, please, Rachel.
29:06Thank you, Mike. S
29:08And a second consonant.
29:10Y
29:12And a vowel.
29:14And another one.
29:16U
29:18And a vowel.
29:20O
29:22A consonant.
29:24M
29:26Another consonant.
29:28B
29:30Third consonant.
29:32T
29:34And a final vowel, please.
29:36A final I.
29:38Last letters.
29:44MUSIC PLAYS
30:10Time's up. Mike?
30:12Risky six.
30:14And Ian?
30:16I'll go for a five, but I haven't written it down.
30:18What's the five?
30:20Bites.
30:22And what's the risky six?
30:24It's mousy, with an E in it.
30:26Yes, you can spell it that way. Excellent.
30:28APPLAUSE
30:30Anything else, John?
30:32A final five, with tomes.
30:34Anything bigger?
30:36No, ubiety is there for six, being in a definite place,
30:38but no better than six.
30:40No, ubiety, he is more than in with a squeak.
30:42Two rounds left,
30:44and it's your numbers, Ian.
30:46I think I'll go crazy and go for four big ones, please.
30:48Oh, I like it.
30:50Taking your destiny into your own hands.
30:52Four large, two little.
30:54And let's see what happens. Possible crucial coming up.
30:56The little ones this time. Five and two.
30:58And our big ones.
31:0050, 100, 75 and 25.
31:02And the target to reach...
31:04651.
31:06651.
31:08Last numbers.
31:39651, Ian.
31:41I've got 650.
31:43And Mike... Also got 650.
31:45..has joined the rest of the nation.
31:47Ian, off you go.
31:49So, five add two is seven,
31:51times by 100... 700.
31:53..and then take off the 50.
31:55That will do it. One away, 650.
31:57Yeah, that'll get you there.
31:59Mike's done it exactly the same way.
32:01That means a crucial countdown conundrum today.
32:03But first of all, 651?
32:05No, impossible. That's the best you could have done.
32:08Yeah, you could get the one,
32:10but then you weren't left with enough.
32:12Well, then you'd be 650 away, so...
32:14Yeah.
32:16Right, here we go.
32:18Champion Mike, four wins under the belt on 73.
32:22In the Challenger on 82.
32:24In a show that has been dominated by biscuit talk,
32:27it'll be a taxi for one of them,
32:29after today's crucial countdown conundrum.
32:37ELECTRONIC MUSIC PLAYS
33:03Time is up. We have a new champion in.
33:06It's always the most tense way when nobody gets it,
33:09but I looked over about ten seconds in,
33:12and John Thompson, I thought, was going to light a cigar.
33:15He just leapt out at me, attendant.
33:17Let's have a look and see if you're right.
33:23Well, listen, Mike, in the nicest possible way,
33:26not in the negative meaning, you have taken the biscuit.
33:28I call you our gentleman champion. It's been so nice to have you here.
33:31It's been brilliant, Colin. Thank you very much. He's a worthy winner.
33:34There you go. And you get the teapot. Take that home.
33:37Fantastic. Well, listen, Ian, you managed to get there. You're gold.
33:41I can't believe it. I'm cream crackers.
33:45That's not a biscuit, though, is it?
33:47We'll see you here tomorrow. Well done, Ian. Thank you, Mike.
33:53You started today, Thompson. That's the way the cookie crumbles.
33:56Thank you, Susie. See you tomorrow. Thank you.
33:59Just glad to get it out of the way.
34:01You know, it's been, you know, spreadsheet day.
34:03Yeah. Countdown just gets in the way.
34:05So I thought, we'll go back to your dad's. We'll have a party.
34:08Yeah, party rings for Ian, party rings for my dad.
34:10And you know my dad has actually got a spreadsheet
34:12of all the numbers games I've ever done on Countdown.
34:14No! Yeah, probably 14 years' worth soon.
34:17Even though that is quite obsessive,
34:20I find that really beautiful that he does that, every single one.
34:24Yep. I love it. That's another Countdown log.
34:27We'll be back tomorrow, Susie, Rachel and I. You can count on us.
34:32You can contact the programme by email at Countdown at Channel4.com
34:36or write to us at Countdown Leagues LS3 1JS.
34:40You can also find our web page at Channel4.com forward slash Countdown.
34:47It's a fun-filled Mexican fiesta later.
34:50A fresh new series of Come Dine With Me is served piping hot at 5.30.
34:55And Judy loves on a mission to fight injustice tonight,
34:58black, female and invisible, at 5 past 11.
35:01A Place in the Sun is next.