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[[Image:Countdown letters game.jpg||thumb|right|Example of a letters game.]]
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[[Image:Ben_Wilson.jpg|right|thumb|frame|'''[[Ben Wilson]]'''.]]
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A '''[[letters game]]''' is one of the 11 rounds during a [[15 round format|15 round game]] in which the contestant chooses 9 letters by selecting either a vowel or a consonant until there is a total of 9 letters. The player in the champions chair chooses 6 letters games and the challenger chooses 5, but gets an extra choice of [[Numbers game|numbers]]. The player can choose the letters in any order, but the selection must include at least 4 consonants and 3 vowels, hence there are only three valid choices in modern Countdown: 3 vowels, 6 consonants; 4 vowels, 5 consonants and 5 vowels, 4 consonants.
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'''Ben Wilson''' (22 March 1983-) first appeared on Countdown in [[Series 46]], his first programme being broadcast on 6 November 2001. He defeated namesake [[Peter Wilson (Series 46)|Peter Wilson]] 101-70 in his first show, before winning 5 more games and becoming one of only five [[Octochamp|viscounts]] in Countdown history.
  
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When the show was first broadcast, and for a number of years, contestants could choose as many vowels and consonants as they liked, which often led to poor selections where only 4's and 5's were available. Since then the rules have been changed. In the original [[9 round format|9-round format]], there were 6 letters games.
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He returned for the series finals as number 1 seed, beating fellow Lincoln resident [[Simon Cartwright]] 83-68 in the quarter-finals, and Scotland's [[Paul Ryan]] 101-80 in the semi-finals after a close and tense game. In the grand final  on Christmas Day against [[Steve Sandalls]], the scores were level until round 9, but Ben built up a lead of 17 points over the next two rounds. A series of poor rounds put Ben 1 point behind going into the conundrum, but, he was able to solve the conundrum in 5 seconds to become champion of the 46th series, and the first champion of the [[15 round format]]. Aged just 18 at the time, Ben also has the distinction of being the first ever series champion of Countdown to have been born after the show's debut on Channel 4.
  
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A player scores points on a letters game by writing down a valid word within the 30 seconds. This word must be in the current New Oxford English Dictionary, but not a proper noun, nor an abbreviation. Players can use each lettter only once, but can use a letter more than once if it appears more than once in the selection. For example from {{word|EEEECDLST}} the player could play {{word|SELECTED}}, which uses three E's, but there are four E's in the selection. Words score 1 point per letter, but 18 points for a nine-letter word.
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Ben was invited back for [[Championship of Champions XI]] in January 2003, where he was paired against Northern Ireland's [[Geraldine Hylands]] in the first round. Ben scraped through, winning [[episode 3394|94-91]], but was ultimately beaten in the quarter-finals of the tournament by [[Tom Hargreaves]], by a score of [[Episode 3400|131-98]]. At the time, this game set the record for highest aggregate score in a 15-round game, and 98 still remains one of the highest losing score of all time.
  
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Unlike the game of [[Scrabble]], [[Countdown]] does not allow all nouns to have a plural form. In particular, a mass noun is a noun that that does not logically have a plural, like {{word|GUNFIRE}} or {{word|HEALTH}} -- in standard English they would rarely be used in the plural. This system has been the cause of some controversy and confusion. Since the start of [[Series 49]], the rules have been refined to allow the plural of some mass nouns; for example, {{word|CONGEES}} was allowed in [[Series 58]] because it was argued that one could ask for "two congees". Again this rule has been enforced with some inconsistency, and words like {{word|OPALINES}} and {{word|CARMINES}} have been allowed on some occasions and not others.
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Wilson is notably the organiser of [[Countdown in Lincoln]] and won the first ever meeting of [[Countdown in Redhill]]. Wilson is also a tournament [[Scrabble]] player and won his first tournament ({{w|Peterborough}}) in 2008.
  
  
 
<noinclude>[[Category:Countdown:Main Page|Featured article]]</noinclude>
 
<noinclude>[[Category:Countdown:Main Page|Featured article]]</noinclude>

Revision as of 08:41, 1 March 2009

Ben Wilson.

Ben Wilson (22 March 1983-) first appeared on Countdown in Series 46, his first programme being broadcast on 6 November 2001. He defeated namesake Peter Wilson 101-70 in his first show, before winning 5 more games and becoming one of only five viscounts in Countdown history.

He returned for the series finals as number 1 seed, beating fellow Lincoln resident Simon Cartwright 83-68 in the quarter-finals, and Scotland's Paul Ryan 101-80 in the semi-finals after a close and tense game. In the grand final on Christmas Day against Steve Sandalls, the scores were level until round 9, but Ben built up a lead of 17 points over the next two rounds. A series of poor rounds put Ben 1 point behind going into the conundrum, but, he was able to solve the conundrum in 5 seconds to become champion of the 46th series, and the first champion of the 15 round format. Aged just 18 at the time, Ben also has the distinction of being the first ever series champion of Countdown to have been born after the show's debut on Channel 4.

Ben was invited back for Championship of Champions XI in January 2003, where he was paired against Northern Ireland's Geraldine Hylands in the first round. Ben scraped through, winning 94-91, but was ultimately beaten in the quarter-finals of the tournament by Tom Hargreaves, by a score of 131-98. At the time, this game set the record for highest aggregate score in a 15-round game, and 98 still remains one of the highest losing score of all time.

Wilson is notably the organiser of Countdown in Lincoln and won the first ever meeting of Countdown in Redhill. Wilson is also a tournament Scrabble player and won his first tournament (Peterborough) in 2008.

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