The Countdown Invitational Challenge!

Welcome to the Countdown invitational challenge, where Countdown fans the world over can challenge all (well, some) of the great champions who have appeared on their screens over the past few years via the miracle of instant messaging. If you've ever played along at home, thinking "I know I can beat these people", then this is your chance to prove it- it really is the next best thing to appearing on the show (which is, of course, a highly recommended experience in itself. ;-)

The Rules of the Game

The rules of the challenge are exactly the same as the normal rules of Countdown- words must be in the NODE to be allowed, 18 points for a nine-letter word, only one shot at the conundrum etc. etc. To speed things up a little, all games will take the format of the old nine round show- for those of you who can't remember what it went like, here's a brief reminder-

Round 1: Letters selected by player 1
Round 2: Letters selected by player 2
Round 3: Letters selected by player 1
Round 4: Numbers selected by player 2

(Insert celebrity waffling here ;-)

Round 5: Letters selected by player 2
Round 6: Letters selected by player 1
Round 7: Letters selected by player 2
Round 8: Numbers selected by player 1
Round 9: Conundrum (pre-selected by "host", first to type correct answer wins).

For the conundrum, the general rule is that you type any random letter and send the message to the game- this effectively acts as a "buzzer" and lets the host know that you have the answer. In the event of a tie after nine rounds, the game will go to sudden-death conundrums, as with the show itself. You will need to have MSN messenger or Windows messenger installed on your PC to play- if you don't have it, it can be found (along with simple step-by-step installation instructions) on this site- http://messenger.msn.com

How to Enter

Feeling up to the challenge? Excellent! To enter, you simply need to send an email to yak_patrol_warden@hotmail.com in which you need to tell me when you'll be available for a game, and which of our "panel" you wish to take on. Obviously, I'll have to check if said panellist is available at that time and date, but if they're not, you are always free to select a different time/panellist. All confirmed future games will go on the "games pending" table below, so keep  checking to see if your game has been added! The games will, generally speaking, be hosted by members of the panel (as we use the board game to generate the letters/numbers games), but don't worry, we are so far beyond corruption it's amazing, really... ;-) You can enter as many times as you want, against as many different panellists as you want, but we do have one rule that, if you have already beaten a panellist once, you can't take them on again- their pride is important to them.

...And What a Panel They are (shouldn't that be "it is"?)

Yes, below are the confirmed names for the panel- if you're a former Countdowner (you don't have to have won a champion of champions series to be eligible, so don't worry) and wish to take part, simply drop me a line at the email address above and I'll add you to the list.

*- Lost a "Countdown alumnus" match 100-92 to Julian Fell in 2003
**- It should be pointed out Peter only lost to eventual series semi-finalist (and, erm, current panellist) Kevin Thurlow very narrowly, and he also won the monthly challenge more than once.

Leaderboards

Basically, these are where I keep the information on the winners and losers (amongst both Panellists and Challengers) along with confirmed future games.

Panellists

Challengers

Current Overall Score

Confirmed Future Matches

Recent Matches (1/1/04)

Yes, match one of the challenge has finally taken place, pitting Zef, the first challenger to pick up the challenge, against Martin Gardner from the panel (you may have noticed the match was originally supposed to have been against Jim Bentley- however, Jim had to pull out at the last minute, leaving Martin to come in as a last-minute replacement). The match was tight, nothing separating the two during the first three rounds, but a slight slip up on a numbers game gave Zef a ten-point lead going into the first half. Martin clawed it back to 3 points after spotting FOLIOSE in round 5 (FOLIOSE meaning "leaf-like", as in "foliage"), and 3 points down he remained going into the conundrum. INREVENGE was revealed, and both players sat, staring, staring, staring... for the full 30 seconds. Time ran out, and so did Zef, the victor by 53 points to 50. So, one game down, and the panel are already behind. Just proves that they can be beaten- so let's see some more challengers!

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Nebagram 2004