Countdown (1997)

Hosted by Richard Whiteley and Carol Vorderman.
With Philip Franks & Hania Porucznik.
Transmitted - 01 August 1997.
A Yorkshire Television Production.

[@sirpsychosussy]

I know that television has changed a fair bit, given this was almost 30 years ago, but it's very charming how much this feels like a bunch of pals playing a game. This could be happening down at the pub, or at a Christmas party, yknow? And there's never been a lot of shows like that. It's a real shame Countdown's often seen as stuff for nerds. I remember once overhearing a couple of people in a coffee shop discussing that Rachel Riley was just there for the old men to look at; why didn't they just use a computer? The real answer is that that would make Countdown like every other quiz show on Earth. Some of them are good, but what makes Countdown great is the low stakes. By-and-large, you're not playing for loads and loads of money, but for one teapot (if you even drink tea). Everyone's joking around and conversationally bouncing off each other. There's no pressure or anything. It's all good fun. That kind of show is like hens' teeth.

[@oludotunjohnshowemimo434]

Countdown at its best with the late Richard Whiteley and Carol Vorderman.

[@peopleddiagram2920]

Wow Richard was so extremely clever. The conundrum was anchorage and Richard said, "I's that right, I'll ask her (alaska,). I'm on my knees bowing to the man of words. Bravo Richard, one of the best puns on countdown ever.

[@johnking5174]

I love how at the start Richard was saying it was August 1st, Yorkshire Day - as back then and now in 2018 Countdown is recorded months in advance in multiple blocks. Today they record a whole weeks episodes in one day.

[@KiddBloo86]

They're been a normal taping schedule for majority of 30 minute programs. Especially daytime network.

[@MartyMac-qx1xn]

No way was that 1997, I thought this was like late 80's. I feel so old!! 😩

[@DarkLight753]

Is it just me or does the guy keep saying 'Constant'...instead of 'Consonant'?

[@mitchweiner]

I hear "consonant"

[@klisher]

i hear constonant .. and i am listening really carefully haha

[@isihall4691]

DarkLight753

[@KNIGH7]

Oh, there are loads of people who do that on the show :D

[@andrewnewens41]

DarkLight753 You’d learn that word before going on, wouldn’t you?

[@willstanwyx1335]

The male contestant in this show (Michael / Mick Purdie) has been allowed back onto Countdown and is the reigning champion right now (June 2018).

[@kienphatong5534]

9:20 1 year = 365/366 days

[@myname7056]

3:15 God, Philip Franks is gorgeous!

[@dannylfcmeatloaf]

Will you be uploading every episode? I ask as I no longer have the dvd of the 2 episodes I was on, and be great if they could appear on you tube after all these years

[@lolmanradiotheobjectthingy5172]

August 12, 2011

[@solojinglesradio1]

lol😂

[@quizmaster85]

My solution for 776: 100 + 10 = 110 110 × 7 = 770 The other 7 - 1 = 6 770 + 6 = 776

[@brandonpowe4416]

It's really not that difficult to get 776.

[@marcpower4167]

I had the same (shows paper)

[@stewarthills9344]

Another six in round one is 'gamete'.

[@cyberrespond6310]

How come nobody got FRIAR?

[@artsed08]

How is that contestant 47???? He literally looks 67.

[@glenpovey1297]

I scored 66, pity I live in Philippines...

[@marcpower4167]

66 that's impressive👏. You'd have won against me, i had 48.

[@wolfelkan8183]

For 776, I did 100 + 10 + 1 = 111 Multiply that by one of the 7's for 777 8 - 7 = 1 Take that away. Mathematically: 776 = ((100 + 10 + 1) × 7) + 8 - 7

[@cwn89015]

same way I did it.

[@whosdr]

- 8 + 7 I think you mean but yeah, this was also my approach.

[@TheMoonRover]

My solutions: 6-4=2, 75-2=73, 73x5=365 10-7=3, 100-3=97, 97x8=776

[@cwn89015]

or 6/3=2 to take away from 75 to get 365.

[@davidjeffreys9063]

Not sure what William G Stewart is doing in the audience behind the gent in the front row. I can tell it's him because he's not smiling at owt

[@davidjeffreys9063]

Has Judge Judy changed her name to Jo Lack or summet?

[@mitchweiner]

Philip reminds me a little in the face of Rik Mayall

[@mrspoonofbuttonmoon]

4:50 Gamete. 15:27 Guv'nor (ought to be in the dictionary, surely)

[@ahmeddhagahofficial9034]

25th July 1997

[@einSteppenwolf]

25:36 The century puzzle has no solution. 1+2+…+9=45, which is 55 away from 100. Every time a digit is used a the leftmost digit of a two-digit number, the sum increases by the value of the digit times 9. But the equation 9×n=55 has no integer solutions.

[@aliceparker2641]

75 x 5 is 375 7 add 3 is 10 take it away 365

[@marcpower4167]

Or you can add 6 & 4 and take it away.

[@salemkid1979]

looking for the rare episode when richard whitley stuck it in the vord at the board over in DICKtionary corner, any help?

[@CrazyIrishDrunk1]

+SalemKid no, sorry

[@salemkid1979]

could i have dreamt it? i was in a phase where i was doing a lot of bath salts during this countdown era, i do recall there was a good shot of it going in.

[@stephensnell5707]

​@@salemkid1979you have a spelling error in your other comment It is spelt Dictionary Corner

[@aveson5149]

11:10 How very silly!

[@KiddBloo86]

Is it just me, or was the first contestant up saying "constanant"? Straight added an unnecessary t.

[@einSteppenwolf]

365=(75-6+4)×5=(75-7+6-4+3)×5

[@stephenshipstone2498]

6 - 4 = 2 75 - 2 = 73 73 x 5 = 365

[@gerardscott5815]

All the comments on this post are far from the goodness of countdown and the great relationship they all had together on and off screen. I'm sad that TV is now only populated with assailed and posers. All innocence is lost in our society.

[@brandonmartin-moore5302]

Countdown is still going.

[@jakubsedlak2173]

Wow... could that first contestant have been any ruder? No "Hello, Caroll, could I have a vowel." Appalling behaviour.

[@GGR1986228]

8 x 100 - (7 + 7 + 10) = 776

[@deivuuk]

Where’s Susie Dent?

[@harryholden5377]

In the 1980s and 1990s and 2000-2008 different people done hear job

[@guypalmer7961]

@alwl89 It wasn't until late August 2004, midway through series 52 that Susie Dent became the show's permanent lexicographer.

[@guypalmer7961]

@alwl89 I know she appeared a lot more often in 2003, but still rotated Richard Samson and Alison Heard until 2003 and 2004 respectively.

[@guypalmer7961]

@alwl89 That website must have got their facts wrong then. There's also a website about the show Countdown called wiki.apterous.org.

[@guypalmer7961]

@alwl89 It's not! I'm telling you the facts as it were, it was 2004 she became permanent and that's that now stop arguing with me. True, she began appearing more frequently in 2003, but was not fully permanent until 2004, which was midway through series 52.

[@stephenshipstone2498]

10 - 7 = 3 100 - 3 = 97 97 x 8 =776

[@hannahpreece3651]

Ironic they didn’t get ironic.

[@sportsman165]

The first puzzle thing: 98+7-6+5-4+3-2-1 not hard

[@CountSolo]

Replying to an old comment, but I’m just watching this video now :) He said to add up the numbers, which I took to mean no subtraction, so this wouldn’t be a valid solution (unless additive inverses - ie, negatives - are allowed). Was also interested in finding a solution where none of the intermediate answers are used to represent the digits (like the guy here did in his two solutions), and looks like it’s not possible if we restrict ourselves to integers. Sketch of proof: consider any partition of 1-9 into ones and tens places, with each partition adding up to y and x respectively, and then solve the linear equation 10x + y = 100 and x + y = 45 (since 1 to 9 all added together is 45). Solution here is not an integer, which contradicts the fact that each of the partitions’ sums x and y have to be integers.

[@docastrov9013]

Proper Countdown before it became a political attack dog for the Conservative Party.

[@aliceparker2641]

75 x 5 = 375 - 7 - 3 = 365