Episode Cats164

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Episode Cats164, billed as 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown Series 27, Episode 2 in the UK and Series 16, Episode 4 in international markets, was a special episode broadcast on 10 January 2025, as part of 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown Series 27.

The team captains were Joe Wilkinson and Jon Richardson, their teammates were Phil Wang and Rosie Jones respectively, while Jimmy Carr reprised his role as the presenter.

The match saw Joe Wilkinson, with the assistance of Phil Wang, winning by 48 – 47 in a 7-rounder and they won a Countdown dog training kit which consisted of obstacles such as poles and a sensory tunnel. Fabio, the show's permanent male model demonstrated as the "dog", possibly in a reference to the previous episode where he acted as one.

Rachel Riley was, as ever, the arithmetician. The Dictionary Corner guest was Dr John Cooper Clarke, and the lexicographer was Susie Dent.

Just before Round 5, all players had to compose a poem for Dr John Cooper Clarke to hear and he would choose who had the best one. He felt that Joe's poem was the best, thus five points were awarded to his team.

Interesting and notable moments from the episode are listed below:

1) During the Introduction, as part of Jon's "official birthday" where he pretended to be a King, the celebrities played a game of "Pass the Parcel" with a parcel containing a crown being passed around the studio. Later on, Susie was explaining the origin of "Come Bin Day". However, the pronunciation meant that a sexual innuendo was made in the form of "Cum Bin Day" which caused everyone to laugh uncontrollably at the jokes surrounding it, with her remarking the jokes were up there with the infamous "glory holes" incident.

2) During the 30 seconds in Round 1, Jimmy "knitted" a model of himself and subsequently, presented each of the players with their own knitted models, with Joe's having pants which could be pulled down and Jon's significantly smaller than the others.

3) In Rounds 2 and 4, Phil did not show to Jon's team and Jon did not show to Phil respectively that they had the same solution. Similarly, Jon did not show to Joe he had the same word as his in Round 6.

4) During the 30 seconds in Round 3, an uncredited female hair removal specialist performed waxing on Jimmy's buttocks after he proceeded to strip and remove his pants. Subsequently, after the round was over, he invited Joe and Jon to try the treatment which resulted in hair being removed from their leg and back respectively. Jon also took Joe's hair and pasted it on his head in a cheeky reference to his baldness.

5) In Round 6, the clock music failed to play after Jimmy pressed the button to start the clock. As a backup measure, Fabio provided him with drum sticks and a set of items for him to tap on (a pair of glass cups, a toaster, a lamp and replicas of the OED, Countdown mug and teapot) for 30 seconds. It eventually ended with Fabio breaking a wine bottle he was carrying, with Jimmy throwing the drum sticks behind him shortly after.

NOTE 1: In this version, both players' declarations were allowed, although points were only awarded for the best answer.

NOTE 2: During the conundrum, Joe blanked out as his team had already won and wanted to buzz in for fun. However, Jon immediately buzzed in before the clock restarted and gave the correct answer. Thus, both team's timings are reflected to be identical.

Rounds

Rnd	Selection	Phil & Joe	Score	Jon & Rosie	Others	Max.
1	RVOISNUBS	ROBINS SNUBS	6 – 0	BURNS BURNS	SUBORNS	7
2	75 3 3 4 4 6 → 153	153 154 (6 − 4) × 75 + 3	16 – 10	153 153 (6 − 4) × 75 + 3* (6 − 4) × 75 + 3		17
TTT	PENISGEL	Lie back and close your eyes.			SLEEPING
Rnd	Selection	Joe Wilkinson	Score	Rosie Jones	Others	Max.
3	MFKAETGUT	GATE	20 – 14	MATE	MUTATE	23
Rnd	Selection	Phil Wang	Score	Jon Richardson	Others	Max.
4	100 75 25 4 10 8 → 809	809 8 × 100 + 10 − (4 − 75 ÷ 25)	30 – 24	809 8 × 100 + 10 − (4 − 75 ÷ 25)		33
TTT	SOURBUTT	That was strong.			OUTBURST
Rnd	Selection	Phil & Joe	Score	Jon & Rosie	Others	Max.
5	JAFGEDRUA	GRADE RAGED	40 – 29	fudger ☓ FRAUD	FAUJDAR*	45
TTT	SODOIRUB	Keep it in the bedroom.			BOUDOIRS
6	SEINLPUDR	RIPENS PLUNDERS	48 – 37	PLUNDERS SPIED	UNDERLIPS	63
7	RINSEWANG	☓ (0.25 seconds)	48 – 47	ANSWERING (0.25 seconds)		73