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Co-event

From Countdown

A Co-event is an unofficial tournament held at an organised location in the UK or Ireland that meets up for social and competitive Countdown. Inspired by Scrabble tournaments, players meet up with their Countdown board games (or in some cases, suitable computer software) and play a set number of games of Countdown, usually 5 or 6, and the player with the most wins claims 1st place. In the event of a tie, the number of points scored is used to separate the players. In most events, the top 2 players play a final to determine the winner.

There are two distinct types of tournament: head-to-head "Edinburgh-style" tournaments, and "Bristol-style" tournaments where everyone in the room plays from the same set of letters and numbers. The Countdown in Lincoln tournaments use head-to-head games, i.e. each 'table' of three players selects its own separate letters and numbers (one person acting as host, 'Dictionary Corner' and 'Rachel' whilst the other two play each other), while the Countdown in Bristol tournament uses the second system whereby players play in pairs, but all players have the same letters, numbers and conundrum (usually displayed on a board at the front of the room).

This second system eliminates the luck factor as no player or players have "better" selections than anyone else over the course of the day. However, some dislike it because, since they cannot select the letters or numbers themselves, it denies them the chance to use tactical selections to win individual games, for example picking an unusual numbers selection against an opponent known to be weak at the numbers game.

Some otherwise most Bristol-style tournaments have a system for numbers games that compromises between the two formats: A contestant from each pair makes a choice of numbers, just as on the show or in the Edinburgh format and, once everybody has chosen, a selection is revealed for each possible number of large and small numbers in one way or another, the 1st to introduce this was .co.mk in 2015.

Since 2016, the majority of tournaments have been run as part of organisational body FOCAL.

Prior to 2011, online tournaments were also listed here. However, the advent of Apterous's "tourney" system has allowed multiple tournaments to be played at once, rendering the number of tournaments sheer. Over 3,000 online tournaments have been played since 2011.

Co-event winners

Wins Player Events won
23 Jack Worsley Co:Leam (2013)
Countdown Aces Trophy (2013)
Co:Reading (2014, 2015)
Co:StAl (2014)
Co:Huddersfield (2014, 2015, 2016, 2017)
Co:Nottingham (2015, 2016)
COLIN (XII, XIV, XV)
COLIN Hangover (XII, XIV, XVI)
FOCAL (2016)
Co:Brum (2017)
Co:Blackpool (2018)
Co:WY (2019)
Co:Manchester (2022, 2023)
19 Rob Foster Co:Nottingham (2011)
Co:KL (2015, 2017)
Co:Reading (2017, 2019)
Co:Bournemouth (2017)
Co:MK (2017, 2019, 2022 Open)
FOCAL (2017)
Co:Brum (2018)
Co:Cambridge (2019)
Co:Braintree (2019, 2021, 2022)
Co:London (2022)
Co:Rugby (2023)
Goat:Leeds
COLIN XIX: The Hangover
10 Jack Hurst Co:Leicester (2011)
COLIN (X, XIX)
Co:Bristol (2016)
Co:Brighton (2022)
FOCAL (2022, 2023)
Co:Brum (2023)
Co:Braintree (2023)
Co:Liverpool (2024)
Conor Travers Co:Bristol (2005)
COLIN (IV, XVII, XVIII)
Co:BliviLon (2013)
COLIN Hangover (XI, XVII)
Co:London (2019)
Co:Dublin (2019)
Co:Edinburgh (2022)
9 Innis Carson Co:London (2010)
Co:BliviLon (2012)
Co:Edinburgh (2012, 2013, 2014)
COLIN (2015)
Co:Glasgow (2015, 2016)
Co:Leeds (2016)
8 James Robinson Co:Chester (2011)
Co:Reading (2012)
Co:Leicester (2012)
Co:Dublin (2015)
Co:MK (2016)
Co:GlasgowOnThen (2016)
Co:Edinburgh (2019)
Co:Galway (2022)
Dylan Taylor Co:Chester (2012)
COLIN Hangover (X, XV)
Co:MK (2015)
COLIN (XIII)
Co:Leeds (2017)
Co:Bristol (2018)
Co:Huddersfield (2018)
Callum Todd Co:Cambridge (2018)
Co:MK (2018)
Co:York (2019)
Co:Liverpool (2019)
Co:Blackpool (2019)
FOCAL (2019)
Co:Newcastle (2022)
Co:Blackpool (2023)
5 Kirk Bevins COLIN (VI, VII)
Co:Leicester (2010)
Co:Huddersfield (2012, 2013)
Tom Carey Co:Waterford (2017)
Co:Manchester (2020)
Co:Blackpool (2022)
Co:Dublin (2023)
Co:Newcastle (2023)
Ed McCullagh Co:Dublin (2016, 2017, 2018)
Co:Newcastle (2018)
Co:Edinburgh (2023)
Chris Wills COLIN (I, II, III)
Co:Bristol (2006, 2007)
4 Ed Byrne COLIN Hangover (XIII)
Co:Waterford (2019, 2020, 2021)
Hazel Drury Co:Waterford (2018, 2022, 2023)
Co:Monasteraden (2023)
3 Ahmed Mohamed Co:Brighton (2023)
Co:London (2023)
Co:MK (2023 Open)
Stephen Read Co:KL (2016)
Co:Brum (2016)
Co:Manchester (2017)
Zarte Siempre CoMultiLon (2014)
Co:StAl (2016)
Co:Bristol (2017)
2 Jon Corby COLIN (V, VIII)
Mark Deeks COLIN (IX)
Co:Reading (2013)
Oliver Garner Co:London (2017, 2018)
Bradley Horrocks Co:Blackpool (2021)
Co:Brum (2022)
Jonathan Wynn FOCAL (2018)
COLIN (XVI)
1 David Barnard Co:Bristol (2015)
Matt Bayfield Co:London (2011)
Matthew Brockwell Co:StAl (2015)
Tom Cappleman Co:Reading (2016)
Tom Chafer-Cook Co:Bournemouth (2018)
Graeme Cole Co:Reading (2018)
Tim Down COLIN Hangover (XVIII)
James Haughton Co:Newcastle (2019)
Dan McColm Co:Leeds (2018)
Jon O'Neill Co:Leicester (2009)
Richard Priest Co:Leicester (2010)
Zohaib Rehan Goat:Brum (2023)
Dinos Sfyris Co:Nottingham (2009)
Jen Steadman Co:Wolves (2019)
Mark Tournoff Co:Leicester (2008)
Dan Vanniasingham Co:Nottingham (2008)
Ben Wilson Co:Redhill (2007)

List of co-events

The Edinburgh Countdown Club was the first to organise tournaments.

Number Tournament Winner Runner-up
Tournaments in 2005
1 COLIN Chris Wills Mark Tournoff
2 Co:Bristol 2005 Conor Travers Kirk Bevins
Tournaments in 2006
3 COLIN II Chris Wills Stewart Holden
4 Co:Bristol 2006 Chris Wills Mark Tournoff
Tournaments in 2007
5 COLIN III Chris Wills Paul Howe
6 Co:Redhill 2007 Ben Wilson Mike Brown
7 Co:Bristol 2007 Chris Wills Conor Travers
Tournaments in 2008
8 COLIN IV Conor Travers Jon O'Neill
9 Co:Nottingham 2008 Dan Vanniasingham Julian Fell
10 Co:Leicester 2008 Mark Tournoff Ben Wilson
Tournaments in 2009
11 COLIN V Jon Corby Jon O'Neill
12 Co:Nottingham 2009 Dinos Sfyris Paul Howe
13 Co:Leicester 2009 Jon O'Neill Kirk Bevins
Tournaments in 2010
14 COLIN VI Kirk Bevins Paul Howe
15 Co:London 2010 Innis Carson Oliver Garner
16 Co:Leicester Summer Special Richard Priest Kirk Bevins
17 Co:Leicester 2010 Kirk Bevins Matt Bayfield
Tournaments in 2011
18 COLIN VII Kirk Bevins James Robinson
19 Co:Leicester 2011 Jack Hurst James Robinson
20 Co:Nottingham 2011 Rob Foster Richard Priest
21 Co:London 2011 Matt Bayfield Thomas Cappleman
22 Co:Chester 2011 James Robinson Richard Priest
Tournaments in 2012
23 COLIN VIII Jon Corby Konstadinos Sfyris
24 Co:Reading 2012 James Robinson Dan McColm
25 Co:Leicester 2012 James Robinson Richard Priest
26 Co:Huddersfield 2012 Kirk Bevins Dan McColm
27 CobliviLon 2012 Innis Carson Edward McCullagh
28 Co:Chester 2012 Dylan Taylor Jack Worsley
29 Co:Edinburgh 2012 Innis Carson James Robinson
Tournaments in 2013
30 COLIN IX Mark Deeks Kirk Bevins
31 Co:Reading 2013 Mark Deeks Giles Hutchings
32 Co:Huddersfield 2013 Kirk Bevins Glen Webb
33 CobliviLon 2013 Conor Travers Jack Worsley
34 Co:Leam 2013 Jack Worsley Jack Hurst
35 Co:Edinburgh 2013 Innis Carson Edward McCullagh
36 Countdown Aces Trophy Jack Worsley Kirk Bevins
Tournaments in 2014
37 COLIN X Jack Hurst Zarte Siempre
38 COLIN X: The Hangover Dylan Taylor Jack Worsley
39 Co:Reading 2014 Jack Worsley Giles Hutchings
40 Co:StAl 2014 Jack Worsley Callum Todd
41 CoMultiLon Zarte Siempre James Robinson
42 Co:Edinburgh 2014 Innis Carson Jack Worsley
43 Co:Huddersfield 2014 Jack Worsley Callum Todd
Tournaments in 2015
44 COLIN XI Innis Carson Mark Deeks
45 COLIN XI: The Hangover Conor Travers Jack Worsley
46 Co:Bristol 2015 David Barnard James Robinson
47 Co:Reading 2015 Jack Worsley Conor Travers
48 Co:Glasgow 2015 Innis Carson Callum Todd
49 Co:KL 2015 Rob Foster Graeme Cole
50 Co:StAl 2015 Matthew Brockwell Thomas Cappleman
51 Co:Nottingham 2015 Jack Worsley Dylan Taylor
52 Co:MK 2015 Dylan Taylor James Robinson
53 Co:Huddersfield 2015 Jack Worsley Thomas Carey
54 Co:Dublin 2015 James Robinson Kevin McMahon
Tournaments in 2016
55 COLIN XII Jack Worsley Dylan Taylor
56 COLIN XII: The Hangover Jack Worsley Zarte Siempre
57 Co:Bristol 2016 Jack Hurst Jack Worsley
58 Co:Reading 2016 Tom Cappleman Paul Erdunast
59 Co:Leeds 2016 Innis Carson Thomas Carey
60 Co:KL 2016 Stephen Read Callum Todd
61 Co:StAl 2016 Zarte Siempre Rob Foster
62 Co:Not 2016 Jack Worsley Zarte Siempre
63 Co:MK 2016 James Robinson Dylan Taylor
64 Co:Dublin 2016 Ed McCullagh Dan McColm
65 Co:Huddersfield 2016 Jack Worsley Stephen Read
66 Co:Glasgow 2016 Innis Carson James Robinson
67 Co:GlasgowOnThen James Robinson Zarte Siempre
68 2016 FOCAL finals Jack Worsley Giles Hutchings
Birmingham Open 2016 Stephen Read Tom Cappleman
Tournaments in 2017
69 COLIN XIII Dylan Taylor Conor Travers
70 COLIN XIII: The Hangover Edward Byrne James Robinson
71 Co:Bristol 2017 Zarte Siempre Tom Cappleman
72 Co:Manchester 2017 Stephen Read Rob Foster
73 Co:Leeds 2017 Dylan Taylor Jack Worsley
74 Co:Reading 2017 Rob Foster Graeme Cole
75 Co:London 2017 Oliver Garner Rob Foster
76 CO:KL 2017 Rob Foster Stephen Read
77 Co:Waterford 2017 Thomas Carey Hazel Drury
78 Co:Bournemouth 2017 Rob Foster Zarte Siempre
79 Co:MK 2017 Rob Foster Tim Down
80 Co:Huddersfield 2017 Jack Worsley Stephen Read
81 Co:Dublin 2017 Ed McCullagh Hazel Drury
82 2017 FOCAL finals Rob Foster Jen Steadman
Birmingham Open 2017 Jack Worsley Callum Todd
Tournaments in 2018
83 COLIN XIV Jack Worsley Callum Todd
84 COLIN XIV: The Hangover Jack Worsley Zarte Siempre
85 Co:Bristol 2018 Dylan Taylor Graeme Cole
86 Co:Newcastle 2018 Ed McCullagh Zubair Patel
87 Co:Reading 2018 Graeme Cole Thomas Cappleman
88 Co:Leeds 2018 Dan McColm Zarte Siempre
89 Co:London 2018 Oliver Garner Mark Murray
90 Co:Waterford 2018 Hazel Drury Mark Murray
91 Co:Cambridge 2018 Callum Todd James Robinson
92 Co:MK 2018 Callum Todd Tim Down
93 Co:Bournemouth 2018 Tom Chafer-Cook Tim Down
94 Co:Huddersfield 2018 Dylan Taylor Thomas Carey
95 Co:Dublin 2018 Ed McCullagh Mark Murray
96 Co:Blackpool 2018 Jack Worsley Bradley Horrocks
97 2018 FOCAL finals Jonathan Wynn Thomas Cappleman
Birmingham Open 2018 Rob Foster Jen Steadman
Tournaments in 2019
98 COLIN XV Jack Worsley Bradley Horrocks
99 COLIN XV: The Hangover Dylan Taylor Jen Steadman
100 Co:Edinburgh 2019 James Robinson Callum Todd
101 Co:Newcastle 2019 James Haughton Luke Johnson-Davies
102 Co:York 2019 Callum Todd Edward Byrne
103 Co:Reading 2019 Rob Foster Thomas Cappleman
104 Co:London 2019 Conor Travers Graeme Cole
105 Co:Cambridge 2019 Rob Foster Bradley Horrocks
106 Co:WY 2019 Jack Worsley Tim Down
107 Co:Waterford 2019 Edward Byrne Hazel Drury
108 Co:MK 2019 Rob Foster Tom Chafer-Cook
109 Co:Dublin 2019 Conor Travers Callum Todd
110 Co:Liverpool 2019 Callum Todd James Robinson
111 Co:Blackpool 2019 Callum Todd Tom Chafer-Cook
112 Co:Braintree 2019 Rob Foster Callum Todd
113 2019 FOCAL finals Callum Todd Bradley Horrocks
Wolverhampton Open 2019 Jen Steadman Rob Foster
Tournaments in 2020
114 COLIN XVI Jonathan Wynn Jack Worsley
115 COLIN XVI: The Hangover Jack Worsley James Haughton
116 Co:Manchester 2020 Tom Carey Jack Worsley
Co:Newcastle 2020
Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Co:York 2020
Co:London 2020
Co:Pet 2020
Co:Edinburgh 2020
117 Co:Waterford 2020 Eddy Byrne Brendan Duke
Co:WY 2020
Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Co:Blackpool 2020
Goat:Leeds 2020
2020 FOCAL finals
Tournaments in 2021
Co:Pet 2021
Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
118 Co:Waterford 2021 Edward Byrne Brendan Duke
119 Co:Blackpool 2021 Bradley Horrocks James Haughton
120 Co:Braintree 2021 Rob Foster Edward Byrne
2021 FOCAL finals
Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Tournaments in 2022
121 COLIN XVII Conor Travers Bradley Horrocks
122 COLIN XVII: The Hangover Conor Travers Bradley Horrocks
123 Co:Manchester 2022 Jack Worsley Jack Hurst
124 Co:London 2022 Rob Foster Conor Travers
125 Co:Newcastle 2022 Callum Todd Bradley Horrocks
126 Co:Galway James Robinson Callum Todd
127 Co:Waterford 2022 Hazel Drury Gerry Tynan
128 Co:Brighton 2022 Jack Hurst Jonathan De Souza
129 Co:Brum 2022 Bradley Horrocks Andy Platt
130 Co:Blackpool 2022 Tom Carey Callum Todd
131 Co:Edinburgh 2022 Conor Travers Alan Young
132 Co:Braintree 2022 Rob Foster James Robinson
133 2020–22 FOCAL finals Jack Hurst Thomas Cappleman
Milton Keynes Open 2022 Rob Foster Graeme Cole
Tournaments in 2023
134 COLIN XVIII Conor Travers Callum Todd
135 COLIN XVIII: The Hangover Tim Down Jack Hurst
136 Co:Manchester 2023 Jack Worsley Jack Hurst
137 Co:Rugby Rob Foster Jack Hurst
138 Goat:Leeds Rob Foster Callum Todd
139 Co:Mon 2023 Hazel Drury Alan O'Sullivan
140 Co:Brighton 2023 Ahmed Mohamed Jack Hurst
141 Co:Dublin 2023 Tom Carey Dan Byrom
142 Co:Waterford 2023 Hazel Drury Brendan Duke
143 Co:Newcastle 2023 Tom Carey Dan Byrom
144 Goat:Brum 2023 Zohaib Rehan Tim Hebbes
145 Co:Brum 2023 Jack Hurst Tom Carey
146 Co:London 2023 Ahmed Mohamed Ronan Higginson
147 Co:Blackpool 2023 Callum Todd Jack Worsley
148 Co:Edinburgh 2023 Ed McCullagh Stu Harkness
149 Co:Braintree 2023 Jack Hurst James Robinson
150 2023 FOCAL finals Jack Hurst George Armstrong
Milton Keynes Open 2023 Ahmed Mohamed Ronan Higginson
Tournaments in 2024
151 COLIN XIX Jack Hurst Callum Todd
152 COLIN XIX: The Hangover Rob Foster Adam Latchford
153 Co:Liverpool 2024 Jack Hurst Tom Stevenson
154 Goat:Rugby 2024 TBC TBC
155 Co:Rugby 2024 TBC TBC
156 Co:Mon 2024 TBC TBC
157 Co:Reading 2024 TBC TBC
158 Co:Sheffield 2024 TBC TBC
159 Co:Oxford 2024 TBC TBC
160 Co:Durham 2024 TBC TBC
161 Co:Blackpool 2024 TBC TBC