- 16/05/2025
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00:00This programme contains strong language and adult humour.
00:05APPLAUSE
00:31Good afternoon and welcome to the Countdown studio.
00:34Now, Rachel, I read a survey recently that may well fascinate you.
00:37It's all about shoes.
00:39Now, for the first time ever, women are buying more trainers than heels.
00:43Quite extraordinary, really.
00:45And the stats are that 37% of women bought trainers last year,
00:48whilst only 33% bought heels.
00:52Trainers. Are they trainers?
00:55I found myself wandering around one of Manchester's great department stores recently.
00:59I was getting out of the rain, actually.
01:01And I happened to pass by the sort of racks and racks and racks of trainers.
01:06Some of them were £450.
01:09So they're not trainers, are they? They're fashion shoes.
01:11Now, you talk to me.
01:13You're in the wrong shops, Nick.
01:15I think, well, perhaps I was. Anyway...
01:17And what were you doing just wandering around the ladies' footwear?
01:20No, I've been talking about all these stats.
01:22I was actually wandering around the whole shop.
01:24OK. Like Father Ted lost in the ladies' shoe department.
01:27Absolutely.
01:29Now, who have we got with us? Sam's back.
01:31Maths teacher from Dorchester.
01:33Three good wins so far.
01:35Won his last game on a crucial conundrum.
01:37It was fantastic. Well done. Welcome back.
01:41And you're joined by Dave Ryan.
01:43Now, Dave Ryan, coach driver from Waverton near Chester.
01:47Dave's partner, of course, Susie Turner, was on recently and had three great wins.
01:51So a bit of a pressure there for you.
01:53A little bit, yeah.
01:55Well, good luck to you, but tell me this.
01:57Your favourite place is the summit of Snowdon
01:59and you had some sort of strange experience up there.
02:02Tell us about it.
02:04Yes, well, we were trudging up on a nasty, damp, drizzly day
02:07and then we were looking down on a sea of cloud.
02:09And if you look down at the cloud with the sun behind you,
02:12you see, like, a circular rainbow with your shadow in the middle of it.
02:15And I found out 20 years later that that was called the Brocken Spectre.
02:18I've never seen one since. I've never heard of it.
02:21All right. Big round of applause for Sam and Dave.
02:24APPLAUSE
02:27And over in the corner, of course, Susie,
02:29and for the first time on Countdown, former featherweight boxing champion,
02:32now boxing manager, commentator, writer
02:35and president of the Professional Boxing Association.
02:38He's in the corner. It's Barry McGuigan.
02:41Oh, welcome, Barry.
02:43APPLAUSE
02:48We're very excited to have you here.
02:50You may not know this, but you're looking at the son
02:53of one of your biggest ever fans, my mum.
02:56She used to say,
02:58-"Don't let them hurt my Barry." LAUGHTER
03:02She was from the north, from Bangor.
03:04Bangor, that's right. That was my old haunt.
03:06I used to stay in Bangor.
03:08It's a lovely place.
03:10Now, Sam, let's go. Let's have a letters game.
03:13OK, hi again, Rachel. Hi, Sam.
03:15Can I start today with a consonant, please?
03:17You can, indeed. Start today with S.
03:20And another.
03:22W.
03:24My initials. And another.
03:26Good sign. M.
03:30And a vowel.
03:32E.
03:34And a second.
03:36I.
03:38And a third.
03:40A.
03:42And another consonant.
03:44N.
03:46And another consonant.
03:49P.
03:51And a final consonant, please.
03:54And a final R.
03:56And here's the Countdown Clock.
04:16CLOCK TICKS
04:28Well, Sam? Seven.
04:30A seven, Dave. I'm going to try an eight.
04:32Sam? Panniers.
04:34Panniers. And Dave Ryan?
04:36Swampier.
04:38Swampier?
04:40Yes, it sounds unlikely, but it is in there.
04:43It's a swampier area than the next one.
04:46Very marshy, obviously.
04:48Pannier needs a double N, unfortunately.
04:51That's the French way, but not the British way, sadly.
04:54And what use from the corner?
04:56We've gone to seminar and remains.
05:00So, seven, seven, and swampier is eight.
05:04So, delighted with that. Well done.
05:06Well done. Well done, indeed.
05:08All right. So, eight points, Sam, our champ, yet to score.
05:12Dave, now, then.
05:14Hello, Rachel. Hi, Dave. Can I start with a consonant, please?
05:17You can, indeed. Start with M.
05:19And a vowel?
05:21E.
05:23And a consonant?
05:25V.
05:27V.
05:29A vowel?
05:31I.
05:33A consonant?
05:35P.
05:37Another consonant?
05:39L.
05:41B.
05:43Erm... How many have we got left?
05:46A consonant, please?
05:48N.
05:50And a vowel?
05:52And the last one?
05:54A.
05:56Stand by.
06:11MUSIC PLAYS
06:27Yes, Dave?
06:29Only five this time.
06:31Five, Sam? Six.
06:33Now, then. Dave?
06:35Plain. And? Alpine.
06:37Now, can we match that, Barry, Susie?
06:40No, you're the intelligent one.
06:42You're helping me too much.
06:44Well, there's Manipal there for a seven.
06:46A subdivision of a Roman legion.
06:49But that would give you a seven.
06:51And then Barry's got a great six.
06:53Paimon.
06:55Simple Simon met a Paimon.
06:57So, eight plays six.
06:59And now, Sam, numbers time.
07:01Can I have my usual poison, please?
07:03You can, indeed. Three from the top and three little ones.
07:07And for this round, the three small ones are three, four and seven.
07:11And then the big three, 100, 50 and 75.
07:15And the target, 681.
07:18681.
07:20MUSIC PLAYS
07:38MUSIC STOPS
07:52Yes, Sam?
07:54675 not written down.
07:56675, Dave?
07:58I think I've got 679.
08:00Let's hear from you, then.
08:01OK, 100 minus three, it's 97.
08:04Yep, 97.
08:05Times seven?
08:06679, two away.
08:08Very good.
08:09But can we get to 681, Rachel?
08:12Yes, it was there.
08:13If you say 75 times three is 225.
08:18100 divided by 50 is two.
08:22Add it on for 227 and then seven minus four is three
08:26and times them together, 681.
08:28Well done. 681. That's the way.
08:30APPLAUSE
08:32So, with the score standing at Dave, 15, Sam on six,
08:36we turn to our first Tea Time teaser, which is She Reread.
08:40And the clue, she reread her lines over and over again
08:44before the play started.
08:45She reread her lines over and over again before the play started.
08:51MUSIC PLAYS
08:53APPLAUSE
09:07Welcome back. I left with the clue.
09:09She reread her lines over and over again before the play started.
09:13That's because she rehearsed.
09:15She rehearsed a lot.
09:18So, Dave on 15, Sam on six, and it's Dave's letters game.
09:22OK, can I have a consonant, please?
09:25Thank you, Dave.
09:26L
09:27And a vowel?
09:29I
09:31And a consonant?
09:33S
09:35And another consonant?
09:37J
09:39A vowel, please?
09:41O
09:43A consonant?
09:45T
09:47A vowel?
09:51A
09:53Er, another vowel, please?
09:56I
09:58And a consonant, please?
10:00And the last one?
10:02D
10:03Stand by.
10:05MUSIC PLAYS
10:21MUSIC STOPS
10:34Yes, Dave?
10:36I'll go with a six.
10:38Sam?
10:39I'll risk a six, then.
10:41Mm-hm. Dave?
10:43Stolid.
10:44Good word. Sam?
10:46Oldest.
10:48No, not there, I'm afraid.
10:50I think we do say ages rather than oldest, don't we,
10:52in terms of being prejudiced towards the elderly?
10:55Sorry.
10:56It's OK.
10:57Stolid's good, though.
10:58Yeah, very good.
11:00Now, in the corner, Barry and Susie,
11:02what have you combined to produce for us?
11:04Ladies first.
11:06Just sixes, really.
11:08Distal is there.
11:10Distal in anatomy means situated away from the centre of the body
11:15and point of attachment of a limb, for example.
11:18So that's quite a technical one.
11:20This one in reference to me and others like me.
11:25Idiots.
11:27Not a bit of it.
11:28Six.
11:29Not a chance of that, no.
11:30Very good.
11:31All right, so 21 plays Sam's six, and it's Sam's letters game.
11:35I've got a bit of a complex now.
11:37I thought you were looking at me when you said that.
11:39Not likely.
11:41Could I have a consonant, please, Rachel?
11:43S.
11:44And a second.
11:46N.
11:48And a vowel.
11:50O.
11:51And another.
11:52A.
11:53And a third.
11:55E.
11:57And a fourth.
11:59A.
12:00And a consonant.
12:02S.
12:04And another.
12:06C.
12:08And a final consonant, please.
12:10And a final T.
12:12Stand by.
12:43Yes, Sam?
12:45Just a six.
12:46Dave?
12:47A six for me as well.
12:48Now, then, Sam, six.
12:50From where I'm from, I think you pronounce this as scones,
12:53but some people say scons.
12:55Scones and scons, Dave?
12:56Season. Which I pronounce as season.
12:59Why not?
13:01Why not?
13:02So, two sixes. Any more sixes?
13:05One... seven.
13:07Yes?
13:08A sense.
13:10Very good.
13:11A sense of a mountain. Excellent.
13:14Enact is there for six and Cosset is there for six as well.
13:17Very good. A sense.
13:19All right.
13:2027 plays 12.
13:23This is a bit of a warning for Sam now to pick the game up.
13:26Numbers for Dave.
13:28OK, can I have one large number and an inverted T, please?
13:32You can indeed.
13:33One large and five little ones. Thank you, Dave.
13:36And for this round, the small ones are seven, six, five, four,
13:42two and 100.
13:44And the target?
13:46279.
13:47279.
14:06MUSIC PLAYS
14:19Yes, Dave?
14:20279, I think.
14:22279, Sam?
14:23No, 274.
14:24274.
14:25Now, Dave Ryan.
14:27OK, six times seven is 42.
14:29Six times seven is 42.
14:30Plus 100.
14:31142.
14:33Multiply that by two.
14:35Multiply that by two for 284.
14:37And then take the five off.
14:38And take away five.
14:39Yep, lovely.
14:40That'll do.
14:41Well done.
14:42Well done.
14:43APPLAUSE
14:44Well done indeed.
14:46Now we turn to Barry.
14:47And Barry, I mean, just to sort of, you know, nail how great you were,
14:51you're British Commonwealth and World title holder.
14:55And in your, I think, 32 wins, only three losses.
14:58But your wins, 28 of them, by knockout.
15:01So you're a formidable character.
15:03What are you up to at the moment?
15:04Well, I manage and promote.
15:07My family promote, I manage.
15:09We've got a world champion, two-weight division champion.
15:13He defends his title in Las Vegas against the great Leo Santa Cruz.
15:19And it was a fantastic fight last year.
15:22And it won a lot of accolades for one of the best fights of the year.
15:29Fantastic fight.
15:30We've got a stable of young, talented kids that my son trains
15:34and that I manage and my other boys promote.
15:37So we're very much involved in the game.
15:39I also get involved in the not-for-profit side of things.
15:42We have the Barry McGuigan Boxing Academy, which we help kids get into shape.
15:47Your young Karl Frampton setting the world on fire.
15:50He really is amazing.
15:522016 has been a phenomenal year for him.
15:55He unified the title here in Manchester.
15:58And then we went out to New York and box in the Barclays Centre.
16:03And he beat Leo Santa Cruz, who was a three-weight division champion, unbeaten.
16:08And he beat him in, as I say, one of the fights of the year.
16:11It was an incredible year.
16:13And he won fighter of the year in the British Boxing Board of Control.
16:16And my son won trainer of the year.
16:19So things couldn't be better at the moment.
16:21It's thriving.
16:23It's the greatest gratification in the world for me
16:26is to watch kids realise that potentially get them through
16:29and to help them achieve their objectives.
16:31It's fantastic.
16:32And this is all under the wing of Cyclone Promotions.
16:34Cyclone Promotions is our promotional team.
16:37And the sport for good thing is equally as satisfying.
16:41God bless you.
16:43APPLAUSE
16:47Fantastic.
16:49So, Dave on 37, Sam on 12.
16:52We turn to Sam now for a letters game.
16:54Sam.
16:55Consonant, please, Rachel.
16:56Thank you, Sam.
16:57R.
16:59And another.
17:01D.
17:03And a third.
17:05W.
17:07And a fourth.
17:09R.
17:10And a fifth.
17:12X.
17:14And a consonant.
17:17T.
17:18And a vowel.
17:20I.
17:21And a vowel.
17:23And a vowel.
17:24And the last one, E.
17:27Stand by.
17:53Yes, Sam?
18:00Seven, not written down.
18:02And Dave?
18:03I've got seven.
18:05Sam?
18:06Wordier.
18:07Mm.
18:08And I've got worried.
18:10And worried.
18:12No need to be worried at the minute.
18:14And in the corner there, what have we got?
18:16We liked wordier in this corner, didn't we?
18:18Yeah, wordier.
18:19And rowdier is there as well.
18:21Rowdier.
18:22Rowdier.
18:23A rowdy.
18:24A rowdy.
18:25All right.
18:2644 plays 19.
18:28And Dave?
18:29Consonant, please, to start.
18:31Thank you, Dave.
18:32B.
18:33And a vowel, please.
18:35U.
18:36Like an S now.
18:38Consonant, please.
18:40There you go.
18:41S.
18:43And another consonant, please.
18:46L.
18:48Vowel, please.
18:50E.
18:51All right.
18:52Constant, please.
18:54T.
18:56Another constant.
18:58N.
19:01A vowel, please.
19:04U.
19:06And another vowel, please.
19:09And lastly, I.
19:11Countdown.
19:21BELL RINGS
19:43Yes, Dave?
19:44Er, six.
19:45A six, Sam?
19:48I'll stick with a six.
19:50Dave?
19:51Subtle.
19:52Sam?
19:53Er, bustle.
19:54Yep, those are absolutely fine.
19:56Quite good.
19:57Yes.
19:58Any more sixes over there? Barry, Susie?
20:00Er, sublet was there, unite.
20:03So they were there for six, but we had one seven.
20:06Yes.
20:07Which was utensil.
20:09Thank you. 50 plays 25.
20:11Now then, Sam, it's your numbers game.
20:13Despite having a mare so far today,
20:15I'm going to stick with my three big, three small, please.
20:19Three large, three little.
20:20And this time they are...
20:30And the target, 562.
20:32562.
20:34MUSIC
20:48MUSIC
21:04And, Sam, how did you get on?
21:06Er, 565.
21:07565, Dave?
21:09I've messed it up.
21:11Bad luck, bad luck. Sam, your opportunity.
21:139 minus 1 for 8.
21:159 minus 1, 8?
21:16Multiply by the 75.
21:18600.
21:19Take away the 25.
21:21575.
21:2250 divided by 5 is 10.
21:2450 over the 5, yep.
21:26And take it off.
21:27Yep. Well done. Three away.
21:29All right, well done.
21:30That brings you up to 32 points to Dave's 50.
21:33But now we go to Rachel.
21:35562?
21:36If you start the same way as Sam,
21:38so 9 minus 1 is 8,
21:40but then 75 minus 5 is 70,
21:43times them together for 560,
21:45and then 50 over 25 gives you 2 to add on for 562.
21:49Ah, well done. Thank you.
21:51APPLAUSE
21:53Very good.
21:55Let's have a tea-time teaser.
21:57It's sage fraud.
21:59And the clue,
22:00he was quite sage when it came to protecting himself from fraud.
22:03He'd always do this.
22:05He was quite sage when it came to protecting himself from fraud.
22:09He'd always do this.
22:11MUSIC
22:15APPLAUSE
22:26Welcome back. I left you with a clue.
22:28He was quite sage when it came to protecting himself from fraud.
22:31He'd always do this.
22:33He'd safeguard himself.
22:35Safeguard.
22:37Very wise.
22:39So, Dave, good lead.
22:41And now it's your letters game.
22:43Can I have a consonant to start with, please?
22:45You can indeed. Thank you, Dave.
22:47T
22:48And a vowel.
22:50E
22:51And a consonant, please.
22:54F
22:55And a vowel, please.
22:58O
23:00Consonant.
23:02N
23:05Consonant.
23:07Q
23:09Q.
23:11And a vowel, please.
23:14A
23:16A...
23:18..vowel, please.
23:20I
23:21Can I finish on a consonant, please?
23:23And finish with B.
23:25And the clock starts now.
23:27MUSIC
23:41MUSIC
23:58Yes, Dave?
23:59Six.
24:00Six. Sam?
24:02I'll risk a seven.
24:04Yes, Dave?
24:05Mine's six. Obtain.
24:07Obtain. Sam?
24:09I can't spell it completely, but...
24:11Fabient.
24:12How are you spelling it?
24:13F-A-B-I-E-N-T.
24:15And if it exists, I have no idea what it means.
24:17Oh, no, it doesn't exist.
24:20What can we have over in the corner?
24:23Niobate. You'll have to explain what that means.
24:25One for chemists.
24:27Niobate. N-I-O-B-A-T-E.
24:30And it is a sort of something called niobium,
24:34which is a silvery metal
24:37with atomic number 41.
24:39Of course it is.
24:41LAUGHTER
24:43There we go.
24:44So, well done. 56 plays 32.
24:47And, Sam, you're off again. Letters again.
24:50Consonant, please, Rachel.
24:52Thank you, Sam. R.
24:54And again.
24:56Z.
24:57And a third.
24:59G.
25:01And a fourth.
25:03P.
25:04And a fifth.
25:06S.
25:07And a vowel.
25:09E.
25:10And a vowel.
25:12U.
25:14And a third.
25:16A.
25:18And finish with a tasty consonant, please.
25:22And finish with T.
25:24T for tasty. Here's the clock.
25:36CLOCK TICKS
25:58Yes, Sam?
25:59Just a six.
26:00Dev?
26:01A seven.
26:02Right. Sam?
26:03Taster.
26:04Dev?
26:05Upstage.
26:06Upstage. Very good.
26:08Very good.
26:09APPLAUSE
26:10Wow!
26:12Any sixes and sevens in the corner there?
26:14Barry, Susie?
26:15Yes.
26:16Pasture.
26:17Seven.
26:18Yep.
26:19And?
26:20Yep, uprate, which is to increase the value of a payment
26:23or a benefit.
26:25Yeah.
26:26And one for Barry there, for four.
26:28Spar.
26:29Spar indeed.
26:30Four.
26:31You've done a bit of that.
26:32Number 32, Dave in the lead,
26:34and it's Susie that we return to now
26:36for her wonderful origins of words.
26:39Susie?
26:40Slightly morbid one today, possibly.
26:43I had an email from John Callender.
26:45He said, why do we talk about snuffing it
26:47when we talk about somebody dying?
26:49And while we're at it,
26:51why do we speak of something being up to snuff?
26:54Two very, very different stories behind this one.
26:57I'll start with snuff in the sense of murder.
27:00And that is simply a figurative extension
27:02of the idea of snuffing or extinguishing a candle.
27:05That is a very, very old Germanic word.
27:08The snuff was actually the charred wick of a candle.
27:13Completely unrelated to the tobacco world,
27:15but the idea is simply, much as you might do...
27:18I don't know if you would want to do this in boxing,
27:20but put someone's lights out,
27:22the idea is extinguishing all life or all fire.
27:25So that goes back to around the 1930s,
27:27that idea of murdering somebody,
27:29and then snuffing it to look a bit older.
27:31But up to snuff,
27:33if you look at one of the earliest versions of the expression,
27:37it becomes a little bit clearer.
27:38It's up to snuff and a pinch above it,
27:40confirming that the snuffing question is indeed the tobacco kind.
27:44And that was inhaled, of course,
27:46on account of its stimulating properties.
27:48But that word comes from a fantastic German word,
27:51which I love, which is schnupftabak.
27:53And schnupftabak was simply snorting tobacco,
27:56and that was where we took snuff from.
27:58And anyone described as being up to snuff was sharp and discerning
28:02and able to distinguish, if you like,
28:05between matters of poor or high quality.
28:08Very good. Well done.
28:13Right. Now, Dave.
28:16Your letters game.
28:18OK, can I have a consonant start, please?
28:21Thank you, Dave. M
28:23And a vowel, please.
28:25I
28:27Consonant.
28:29R
28:31Vowel, please.
28:33A
28:35A consonant.
28:38S
28:40Another consonant, please.
28:42D
28:44Another consonant, please.
28:47H
28:49And a vowel, please.
28:52E
28:54And I'll finish with a...
28:57consonant, please.
28:59And finish with V.
29:01Stand by.
29:25MUSIC
29:34Yes, Dave?
29:35Eight.
29:36An eight. Sam?
29:38Seven.
29:40And that seven?
29:41Shadier.
29:42Shadier. Dave Ryan?
29:43Misheard.
29:44And what have we got in the corner there? Barry and Susie?
29:47Misheard is great for eight, but we had dervish as well.
29:50They were a member of a religious order
29:52taking vows of poverty and austerity,
29:54but they were known for their wild and ecstatic rituals,
29:57hence the whirling dervishes or howling dervishes.
29:59That spinning dervish.
30:01So that would give you a seven as well.
30:03Well done. Thank you very much.
30:0471 plays 32 as we turn to Sam for the final letters game.
30:08Sam?
30:09Can I have a consonant start, please?
30:11Thank you, Sam. D
30:13And another.
30:15N
30:17I feel a nine coming on here. Another, please.
30:20F
30:22And a fourth.
30:24R
30:26And a fifth.
30:28P
30:30And a vowel.
30:32A
30:34And again, please.
30:36E
30:38And a third.
30:40A
30:42And a final consonant, please.
30:46And a final T.
30:48Stand by.
31:17Yes, Sam?
31:19No, just a six.
31:21And Dave?
31:23An eight if I spelt it right.
31:25All right. Sam?
31:26Parted.
31:27Parted and?
31:28Adaptive.
31:29Very, very good.
31:30Good man, yeah.
31:32What did we have in the corner?
31:34Panders and parents.
31:37Parents, indeed. Yeah.
31:38Couple of sevens.
31:39Well done. But well done, Dave, on that.
31:4179 now to 32 as we turn back to you, Dave,
31:45for the final numbers game.
31:47OK, can I go for two large numbers and four small ones, please?
31:50You can indeed, thank you, Dave.
31:52Two large, four little to finish the day.
31:54And this selection is...
31:5610, 7, 3, 2,
32:00and the big ones, 50 and 75.
32:04And the target, 261.
32:06261.
32:08CLOCK CHIMES
32:16CLOCK TICKS
32:39Yes, Dave?
32:40260.
32:42260, Sam?
32:43261.
32:44Well done. So, Sam?
32:4675 plus 50 plus 7.
32:4975 plus 50 plus 7, 132.
32:52Multiply by the 2.
32:54264.
32:55And take away the 3.
32:56Perfect, 261. Well done.
32:58Well done, indeed.
33:02Well done.
33:03Thus spake the maths teacher there, all right?
33:05261.
33:06With the score standing 79 to Dave and 42 for Sam,
33:09we go into the final round.
33:11So it's fingers on buzzers.
33:14We're rolling today's Countdown Conundrum.
33:24Dave?
33:25Appetiser.
33:26Appetiser. Let's see.
33:28Said with conviction. There it is.
33:30Well done.
33:3489.
33:3589. That's a cracking score against Sam,
33:38who's a three times winner, so I'll come back to you in a second.
33:41Dave, you did really very well.
33:43Fantastic.
33:44And your family are here to watch you.
33:46Yeah.
33:47And you're all back to Dorchester taking a goody bag
33:50and a teapot as well with our congratulations.
33:53Thank you very much, Dave.
33:56Well done.
33:57We shall see you next time, Dave.
33:59Next time.
34:01And we shall see Barry and Susie next time.
34:04More Tales From The Ring from Barry.
34:06We're looking forward to those.
34:08Thank you, Nick.
34:10And I like Sam's out, that's the Countdown version of the dab.
34:13It's going to take off.
34:14Very good.
34:15Huge.
34:16That's excellent.
34:17See you soon again.
34:18Join us then.
34:19You'll be very sure of it and a very good afternoon to you all.
34:23Contact us by email at countdown at channel4.com,
34:27by Twitter at c4countdown,
34:29or write to us at countdown leads ls31js.
34:33You can also find our web page at channel4.com forward slash countdown.
34:39Tonight at 9 o'clock, a 70th ends up in a trip to A&E,
34:43the family and friends that pull together in 24 hours.
34:46And at 10 o'clock, a chilling new drama,
34:48three people trying to solve the case of a dead ballerina,
34:51and it all comes courtesy of water.
34:53A new life in the sun, what's up next?
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