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The Countdown Links Page
This page "does exactly what it says on the tin"- links to some of the greatest Countdown sites out there (excluding this one, of course), plus my little review of them (complete with marks out of ten). Note- if you run a Countdown site and want it listed and rated here, then by all means, e-mail me at hulla.mahulla@btopenworld.com with your URL and I'll stick it on here as fast as I possibly can. You don't even have to link me back, although it would be nice if you did!
Actually bothering to put a link on this page is kind of redundant, as there are links on several other pages too- this page, run by series 48 quarter-finalist Mike Brown, is absolutely jam-packed full of information about the show, details of the final scores of (almost) every one of the 3500 games, lists of celebrity guests, round by round details of all but one of the finals, an in-depth weekly review of all the shows that week, and much, much more. If you ever need Countdown information, then honestly, this is the first place you should be looking.
Score- 10/10 (as 11/10 is technically impossible)
A great, albeit relatively new site run by Martin Gardner, who has yet to make his debut on the show but may very well do soon. This site fills a gap neither this site nor the one detailed above could fill- that of daily updates. That's right, full details of the day's game are posted on this site every evening, so if you missed the game, here is where you want to go for information. It also has other great features such as a fact file and a "test yourself" section, and it is sure to gain many more extra features as it grows.
Score- 8.5/10
Just a little page dedicated to one of the all-time most popular subjects for those letters that Richard reads out at the start (and one that was running while this particular webmaster was playing his heat games), JORCT has several witticisms that will have you either slapping your knee in laughter, or shaking your head in disbelief, or (most likely) both. This good site also includes the "leotard watch", keeping an eye out for Countdown's seemingly most popular word. This is the site that was mentioned by Richard on the show recently, and has sparked a revival of the "Jokes only Richard can tell" segment, so for that alone, its rating increases. :)
Score- 7.5/10
ZEF'S DAILY COUNTDOWN SUMMARIES
This site fulfills much the same role as Martin Gardner's "Countdown Update UK" site (detailed above), except it has an archive of full details of almost every game from series 45 (July-September 2001). Since then, it has seemingly been abandoned, not being updated at all, which is a shame, as it's well designed and maintained, and goes into A LOT of detail about every game. Hopefully it will be revived soon.
Score- 7/10
This new site, created by Tom Hargreaves, series 47 runner-up, is small at the moment, but looks set to grow, with features such as statistical analyses of individual players' performances, a breakdown of all the top countdowners from the past seven years, and a unique monthly challenge which will have you scratching your head! All in all, this site is definitely worth visiting, and it's only just started!
Score- 8/10
Another new site, this is managed by series 47 champion and champion of champions XI runner-up Chris Wills, and takes a far more light-hearted look at the world of Countdown (amongst several things), including such features as 'Stilgoe Watch' and 'Countdown and Other Animals'. Chris is a genuinely witty guy, so you can be guaranteed a laugh or two if you visit that site. Like Tom's, it's small, but growing.
Score- 8/10
One of the older sites on display here, series 41 semi-finalist Gary Woodward's site covers Weakest Link, Fifteen-to-One and Number 1 as well as Countdown, and did at one point feature a monthly competition. However, in spite of a new look, the site has not been updated in quite some time (not since June 2002 in fact) but it is still a good source of information, even if parts are a little unfinished.
Score- 8/10
While it doesn't contain as much information as, say, any of the other sites listed here, it is still nonetheless the official page, and contains a couple of interesting tidbits about the show.
Score- 6/10
Future contestant (although probably not by the time you read this! ;) Jerry Humphreys's site about the show, and why picking four large numbers can be good for you (if not Carol). Small, but growing.
Score- 6.5/10
A new site by the series 49 contestant (and star of one of the archive's games), this features just a couple of photos (one of them being probably the most under-populated countdown photo of all time) and a few lines of text, but it's still worth a click nonetheless.
Score- 6/10
Individual Player Articles
This part of the links page contains simple, online articles written about individual players, typically published after they have been on the show. Due to the nature of these articles, they may not be up forever, so if you find a broken link among these, don't hesitate to e-mail me and let me know. To view the pages in question, click on the "Link 1" etc. links, as the ones in the text lead to the homepages of the sites which published the article/newletter.
GRAHAM NASH
Link 1, a Nottingham University newsletter detailing the eventual triple crown winner's initial triumph in the final rounds of series 43 in December 2000. Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader.
BRIAN CAPPER
Link 1, a Frodsham Post newsletter, published in December 2001, detailing Brian's march to the semi-finals of series 46, where he was eventually beaten by Steve Sandalls.
TOM HARGREAVES
Link 1, a London Colleges article about Tom's appearance in the series 47 final rounds, originally published in July 2002.
AMEY DESHPANDE
Link 1, a shropshirestar.com article about Amey's appearance in the junior masters championship, which was held when the show had to temporarily revert back to the 30-minute format in series 47 to accommodate horse-racing.
JULIAN FELL
Link 1, a thisisyork.co.uk article about the series 48 Grand final, which also featured Grace Page, another York resident.
Articles About the Show in General
These are just web articles which have been written about the show in general, usually to celebrate certain anniversaries the show has passed (like, for example, the 18th brithday or the 3000th show)
3000th EPISODE
Link 1, a library.digiguide.com article about the show's anniversary.
GENERAL COUNTDOWN
Link 1, Countdown's entry in wikipedia.org. Also features links to other sites (none which aren't already on here, though).
If you know of any sites or pages written about Countdown, or even an article about one of it's contestants, then drop me a line at the e-mail address above and I'll see what I can do.
Neb 2003