Countdown

Because Lara's teeth have been bad this week we've been up to watch the early repeat of Countdown (5.30am). It really is a clever programme - but its popularity is all about the rhythm of the format. I don't engage with the word rounds because it makes my head hurt, and I'm trying to get Lara back to sleep so the sound is barely audible. Its like squinting at a picture - you miss the detail - but the rhythm becomes all the more apparent.

All this is a gcse media studies preamble to a great Richard Whiteley link.