View from the Green Room: Countdown hits the Déise
Countdown in Waterford city.
Eight out of 10 cats does Countdown, according to comedian Alan Carr, and the numbers are up this year. 30 uber-cool and beyond-clever dudes and dam-smart-divas are in my old primary school, The Manor, for the Waterford Countdown Convention. And it’s all the brainchild of Eoin Jackson from Dunmore who became one of that rare breed of ‘Octochamps’ – winner of eight successive games on Channel 4.
Most of the competitors have travelled significant distances and several have flown in from Britain for the open competition. And they’re all nerdy sharp. 30 is an unfortunate number. And so, doesn’t Eoin just go and invite my good self and a friend – yes, I do have one! – to make up that magical 32 that all competitions need. "No need to worry," says the bould Eoin, "most of them aren’t that hot."
Countdown is a very popular British TV game show involving word and number puzzles. It is produced by ITV Studios and broadcast on Channel 4. It’s currently presented by Belfast lad Colin Murray, assisted by Rachel Riley and regular lexicographer Susie Dent, and was the very first programme to be aired on Channel 4.
As we speak, series 93 has just been broadcast since it first aired on November 2, 1982. With over 8,700 episodes and figures of up to half-a-million viewers, Countdown is one of the longest-running game shows in the world.
The show attracts big audience numbers – despite its afternoon slot – and even has a bizarre, late-night spin off with Alan Carr’s ‘8 out of 10 Cats does Countdown’.
These contestants just love words. The shape of them, the colour and texture, the nuances and variations they bring. They listen with their eyes and see with their ears. And when that magical nine letter word sounds, oohs and aahs fill the air. Everyone wants to win but, in the heel of the hunt, there’s an innate generosity that acknowledges talent and ability.
There’s an uber-sharp computer readout on a large white board and a ticking clock that booms out every descending second and sends us all into collective hysteria. Organiser Eoin Jackson is the host and is annoyingly correct in disallowing words. He bats away my ‘gropiest’ with the explanation that ‘the Oxford dictionary demands more usage’ – well, I wouldn’t have thought that would be an issue! But my ‘mitred’ is ok for six when topping a bishop, getting the nod with the saintly topsy turban!
How did I get on? Well, you don’t really want to know. I mean it’s an open draw and I’m not exactly blessed for luck. Three games are all with people who finish in the top four. But I do manage decent scores and a couple of wins and finish somewhere in the middle. And I’m pretty chuffed really because, folks, the real deal is a lot more intense than watching the programme in the comfort of the home where we can constantly delude ourselves that ‘yeah…I’d have got that one…easy’! Yeah…rrrriggght! And I’m not even going to mention the conundrums because I only got the sum total of one!
The competition kicks off at 11am and the day pounds away with a break for lunch in Geoff’s. I play nine games, finish at 6pm and I’m drained for two whole days afterwards. Age weariness, alas!
Cream always rises to the top and Hazel Drury from Ballina, now resident in the Isle of Man, defeats Brendan from Dublin in the final. There are other prizes and the craic continues long into the night in the local. Eoin Jackson has done a splendid job and is already talking about next year.
