Strictly Come Dancing 2014: Week 12 (Semi-final)

After the carnage and outrage that broke out when Pixie & Trent were eliminated last week, I was hoping that this week would be a quieter affair. I think it's a case of being careful what you wish for - I didn't think it would be this dull. That's right: DULL. There were some stand-out dances of course, but also some dahnce disahstahs (apologies to Craig).

In the Style stakes, Tess won Saturday hands down. That's about as much as I can say, as I can't remember what she and Claudia were wearing in the Sunday show, but I do think Claude's Saturday dress did not suit her at all - even Tess couldn't get away with that one. 

This week the celebs did 2 dances for the first time - last week's Fixathon doesn't count in my opinion - and whilst some dazzled, others faded. I will be doing the 2 dances within one critique this time, hopefully making for easier reading - there will also be different colours for each couple, again, hopefully making for easier reading.


JAKE & JANETTE

Cha Cha Cha - "Boogie Shoes"

Jake has always been better at the Latin dances, so there were hopes that this would be another brilliant routine for him. Sadly, Cha Cha Cha outside of weeks 1-4 is a 'dance of death', so it wasn't surprising that it proved so for Jake; Thom, Pixie, and now Jake have all been eliminated on that dance this series. It took about 20 seconds for him to get anywhere near beginning to dance, so that was probably a bad omen. He was out of synch with Janette for a fair amount of the routine, and I did notice the move she took from Aljaz's Cha Cha Cha with Alison from week 1! This was one of her better routines I must admit, very entertaining and resembling a Cha Cha Cha at least. It's very difficult for a bloke to do this dance without looking 'mince-y', for lack of a better term, and Jake did a decent job in that respect - when he had something to do with his arms, he was great, otherwise it did start veering into that territory. I do still think that Janette over-relies on tricks and stuff that she can do, rather than what her celeb can do, but I feel she's done just about enough to earn a recall for next series: probably best not to give her another contender again, but give her a mid-tabler and see what she does with him, someone like Steve maybe. 

Judges' scores: 6, 8, 8, 8 for a total of 30/40
My score: 6


Viennese Waltz - "When a Man Loves a Woman"

*RECYCLED SONG ALERT - Matt & Flavia in series 5*

The Viennese Waltz is a very difficult dance to make look interesting (that last sentence probably doesn't make sense but you know what I mean). A limited range of steps means that apart from the music, most dances look extremely similar. I would have liked to have seen more in traditional hold, and the last 2 sweeps at the end weren't needed, but I actually quite liked this routine - I think this is what they should have done in the dance-off personally, but I can understand why they chose their Cha Cha Cha. 

Judges' scores: 7, 8, 8, 8 for a total of 31/40
My score: 7.25


FRANKIE & KEVIN

Rumba - "Somewhere Only We Know"

I am seriously starting to detest this song, it has been that overplayed. By the way BBC, that was the Lily Allen version, not Keane. I didn't really know what to make of this when I first saw it, and after watching it again, I'm still none the wiser. I did like the whole 'Nutcracker' concept, and Frankie's acting was great, but for me, this was far too 'safe'. A Rumba is meant to be passionate and romantic, and I didn't feel that from this number whatsoever. It started off well enough, but then graduated into a Viennese Waltz, and that floor spin at the end was unnecessary. Kevin usually gets it so right with choreography, but this was a real miss from him (and I'm surprised the judges (Len) didn't pull him up on that, but I'll carry that on in more detail when I get to Mark's Rumba).

Judges' scores: 7, 8, 9, 10 for a total of 34/40
My score: 7.5 (danced well, but not a Rumba for me)


Argentine Tango - "The 5th"

Wow, now this was more like it! I was a bit apprehensive about the song choice, but it really worked for this dance. Ok, this is probably where I'm going to get lynched - I wouldn't have put that dance at a 10. For me, Frankie's leg action needed to be much sharper - it was too placed and deliberate; plus she seemed to go wrong in the middle when she was at the top of the floor, either she missed a step or she stumbled somewhere. I can't say for sure what happened but I know something went wrong there, your eye gets drawn to it. It was a spectacular dance, but I think she's done much better than that previously, and it wasn't perfect for me.

Judges' scores: 9, 9, 10, 10 for a total of 38/40
My score: 9.25



MARK & KAREN

Viennese Waltz - "I Got You Babe"

Well Mattiona's swing got upgraded! I did think this was quite cheesy and boring to watch the first time, but it was much better on second viewing. Yes, it took them ages to start dancing properly (about 30 seconds), but from there, brilliant. I think this was a bit undermarked to be honest, comparatively to Jake's at least. Mark does need to do some more work on his hands, he's got beautiful flow in his arm lines now, but his hands are still very flat, just a touch of polishing to be done there. There was too much rise and fall in this as well, Mark needed to drive into the floor a bit more so that his movements across the floor were smooth and all on one level, rather than bobbing down for when he's about to make a step. On the whole though, a great performance.

Judges' scores: 8, 8, 9, 8 for a total of 33/40
My score: 8.5


Rumba - "Fields of Gold"

*RECYCLED SONG ALERT - Kenny & Ola in series 5*

Oh BBC, this was the Eva Cassidy version, not the Sting one. Anyway, here's where I carry on from what I was saying during Frankie's Rumba: I do think it was unfair of Len to single out Karen, when Kevin was guilty of doing the same thing. At least Karen's actually looked like a Rumba, and you'd know what it was if you saw it without music. Ok, so it was a little repetitive, and you couldn't see much hip action from Mark as he was standing still for some of it, but this dance actually moved me, so in that respect, props to Karen. I felt so sorry for them both afterwards, so I'm glad they got into the final. Again, I think Mark would have been better off doing his Viennese Waltz in the dance-off, but as before, I can understand why they chose to do this dance instead.

Judges' scores: 9, 8, 8, 8 for a total of 33/40
My score: 8


SIMON & KRISTINA

Samba - "I Like to Move it"

I know this song from the film 'Madagascar', so I was intrigued to see what Kristina would do with it. Sadly, Simon made a few noticeable errors - he nearly tripped over after the cartwheel at the beginning, he seemed to forget where he was for a second after the promenade runs, he missed the hand grab after the first series of Samba rolls going into the second, and as Bruno said on ITT, he looked to have forgotten some of the routine and was improvising (just after the Samba rolls, when Kristina is moving around behind him is when I think this was). By the way, is that move where it looks like they're attempting to be elephants whipping their trunks back and forth a traditional Samba step? Only it was there in Jake's Samba, and I think his Cha Cha Cha tonight too. It's a shame Simon made so many mistakes, as it could have been a brilliant routine.

Judges' scores: 6, 9, 8, 7 for a total of 30/40
My score: 7


Foxtrot - "My Guy"

*RECYCLED SONG ALERT - John & Nicole in series 5*

Now this is where Kristina shines as a choreographer: anyone else remember her Jessica Rabbit-style Foxtrot with Jason Donovan in the early weeks of series 9? This was absolutely stunning - traditional, elegant, totally suited to Simon. His technique was fantastic, his performance excellent. I'm close to running out of superlatives to describe this routine but it was just sublime: (somewhat) traditional music with choreography that draws the eye; you know, Foxtrots can be boring to watch but this one kept me glued. I couldn't see any mistakes at all. I'm about to do something that I haven't done for any other dance this series *cue standing ovation from me*. Ok, maybe 2 things......

Judges' scores: 9, 10, 10, 9 for a total of 38/40
My score: I'm with Darcey and Len for once, it's a 10 from me!


CAROLINE & PASHA

Foxtrot - "Diamonds"

Odd choice of song, from the Sony tv advert if I remember rightly. Caroline always seems uncomfortable in Ballroom, and I'm not sure why: is it the hold that she finds tricky? Does the precise footwork prove a problem for her? I don't know, but this dance did not look like a Foxtrot to me, and I think only some of it can be put down to the music - I thought this dance was more like a Waltz in terms of how it looked on screen. Caroline does need to work on her hand positioning, she kept changing it throughout the dance and it seemed she was clinging on to Pasha at times. Also, LIFT at the end - an accidental one, but her foot definitely came off the floor whilst she was doing the spin into the ending position. It's lucky that she's great at the Latin dances, otherwise I think she would have been in trouble.

Judges' scores: 8, 9, 9, 9 for a total of 35/40
My score: 7.5


Salsa - "Maria"

Knockout blow! Seriously, that was hot, hot, hot! (Wait, wrong song, and wrong couple.) This was so fluid and dynamic, Caroline was so much more at ease so she was able to put more into the performance - she was even singing along at some points! Now I know that some people thought that this didn't deserve a 10 as she seemed to get tired by the end, and I was included in that, but having watched it again, Pasha slowed down as well, it wasn't just Caroline. That makes me think it was deliberate so Caroline could relax a little after the scorching start, so I can't really penalise her for that. She was much more comfortable with the lifts this time, the transitions were much better. I absolutely loved this routine.

Judges' scores: all 10s for a total of 40/40
My score: I'm having to be in agreement here, another 10 from me!


Judges' Leaderboard:
1. Caroline & Pasha - 35 + 40 = 75/80
2. Frankie & Kevin - 34 + 38 = 72/80
3. Simon & Kristina - 30 + 38 = 68/80
4. Mark & Karen - 33 + 33 = 66/80
5. Jake & Janette - 30 + 31 = 61/80

My Leaderboard:
1. Caroline & Pasha - 30 + 40 = 70/80
2. Simon & Kristina - 28 + 40 = 68/80
3. Frankie & Kevin - 30 + 37 = 67/80
4. Mark & Karen - 34 + 32 = 66/80
5. Jake & Janette - 24 + 29 = 53/80


Dance-off: Mark & Karen vs Jake & Janette. I wasn't too surprised at this one - Jake basically had to be top of the vote with Caroline in 4th to avoid the dance-off, and Mark was bound to be here given that Frankie has avoided it thus far and Simon would probably have the bounce vote from being in the bottom 2 the previous week.

Elimination: Jake & Janette. I certainly didn't think it would go to a 2-2 casting vote decision. Jake has had more stand-out dances than Mark, so in that respect you could argue that he should be saved. But on the other hand, I do feel Mark is the better dancer overall, and it's nice for Karen to get to the final, I think she's given him some great routines this year (his Waltz, Jive and Samba spring to mind) so I reckon she deserves it. Plus it's Karen vs Kevin which is... fascinating to say the least. Overall, I'd say the right decision was made.

Recycled song alerts for this series now stands at 37.

So next week it's the final! Each couple will perform the judges' choice and their Showdance, before one couple is eliminated. After that, the remaining 3 couples will perform their favourite dance, before the lines close for the final time and the winner is announced. Personally, I'd like Caroline or Mark to win, but for once, I think all of them are deserving of the title. I'll be putting up my review of the final a little while after the event - in the run up to Christmas, I'll have much more of my time taken up, so I may have to type this out on Word and then just copy it in (whereas I usually do this all in one go, so it can take around 3-4 hours for each post to go up from when I start writing it).


I'm so excited for the final! I have a feeling this might be the best final yet, so until I write next, I'm going to................................


KEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP WATCHING!

Strictly Come Dancing 2014: Week 11 (Quarter-final)

After witnessing 'The Curse of the Backing Dancers, part 2' last week, we're hopefully back to normal now. Sunetra & Brendan failed to romance the judges with their Rumba and were thus eliminated after appearing in the dance-off with Mark & Karen. It's at this stage now where we pretty much know what dances they'll be doing in the semis (indeed everyone's Latin dance is confirmed), so it's interesting to look at what will be skipped.

Style stakes: Claudia just about won Saturday's show (although she needed to pull her dress up a tad), but Tess is the winner of the Sunday show with that stunning black halterneck jumpsuit. Wardrobe did a good job with them both. Loved both Tess and Claude's hairstyles on the Sunday show.


Simon & Kristina - American Smooth - "Heartache Tonight"

Of course Mickey flipping Bubble had to make an appearance, he is the only voice that can be used for this dance *sarcasm*. Seriously producers, find something that isn't by him for once. As for the dance itself, I wasn't completely enamoured with the choreography - the lifts weren't great and I just got reminded of Patrick & Anya's AS with the section on the steps. It was bloody good though, Simon's hold was fantastic and his footwork was excellent. I would have just liked a little less 'American' and a bit more 'Smooth'. That ending lift, we could all see that it had gone wrong, and apparently it was down to Kristina getting her foot caught in her dress; but really, I thought it looked messy anyway and something that the pros on 'Dancing on Ice' would do. With that lift, you have to rely on the female getting her leg into the right place on the male so that she can then push up her other leg to the other side of his arm, thus enabling the lift. It was a bit too risky and although they got it right in the dance-off, I think it would have been better had they gone with a different lift. 

Simon is doing the Foxtrot and Samba next week: his Foxtrot should be good, given that his American Smooth was with a Foxtrot base, I can see him getting 10s for that (probably not a 40 though). As for the Samba, he is best suited to the fast Latin dances, so if he can master the technique (and I reckon he will) he'll be onto a winner - it all depends on the music with the Samba though, you can have great music (see Pixie's) or slightly duffer music (Frankie, Mark), or very duff music (Caroline, Jake). I'm quite confident for him. Should he get through to the final, then as of this week, I'd like him to do either his Waltz or Argentine Tango, and his Jive again.

Judges' scores: 8, 9, 9, 9 for a total of 35/40
My score: 8.5


Caroline & Pasha - Argentine Tango - "La Cumparsita"

Wardrobe have failed Caroline again I see. What was that big, ugly, visible zip doing on that dress? She looked frumpy rather than sexy - the neckline needed to be a bit lower (although I do understand that Caroline was worried about a possible wardrobe malfunction), the hem more flattering (we know she's short, but don't make her look it), and if it had to have a visible zip, then for god sake, make it the same colour as the dress so it's not as distracting. Onto the dance, and I feel I really am missing something. To me, Caroline looked so uncomfortable, and she was apologising to Pasha at the end as if she'd messed something up (although I couldn't see it myself). It got better as the music kicked in, but I found it very boring to watch and I can't tell whether it was good or not, which normally I can with an Argentine Tango. The lifts were awesome, that much I can say. 

Caroline has the Salsa next week, and either the Viennese Waltz or the Foxtrot. I'm guessing it's the Viennese Waltz she has due to Simon doing the Foxtrot. Caroline isn't the best at the slower Ballroom dances, but both of those options are a bit quicker so she should be ok. If anything, it's her Salsa that I worry about - it could either go really well or really badly for her. Fingers crossed. If she got to the final, I'd want her to do her American Smooth and her Charleston again.

Judges' scores: 9, 10, 10, 10 for a total of 39/40
My score: I'm going to give the only score that I think I can give, and therefore go for an 8


Pixie & Trent - Cha Cha Cha - "Love Shack"

*RECYCLED SONG ALERT - Richard & Erin from series 10*

This was a bit odd to watch back again due to the camera work being rubbish. I can see what Len meant about her legs, and I am so glad that he pulled Trent up on the lifts - there's been a few occasions before tonight where it looked as though Pixie did an illegal lift, and it had never been mentioned until now. Surprised Craig still gave 9 despite those lifts, maybe she really is his favourite. Yet again, it felt like 2 dancers who happen to be doing the same dance rather than a partnership, and for all those who say that Kevin does routines that don't play to Frankie's strengths, I personally think the same applies to Trent, with both this and her Charleston. After Trent's comments to Len about how 'rules are meant to be broken', it's pretty much a no-brainer that they went into the dance-off, Brendan can get away with that one but not a newbie pro. Pixie would have done the American Smooth and Salsa in the semis, which means double lifts - could have thrown her a bit.

Judges' scores: 9, 9, 8, 9 for a total of 35/40
My score: 7.5


Mark & Karen - Foxtrot - "L-O-V-E"

*RECYCLED SONG ALERT - Austin & Erin in series 6*

Now I'm no fan of Mark as a personality, but I wouldn't mind him winning the series. Karen has done a fantastic job with him, and this was another great dance, I'd probably say this was his best. He does need to sort out his hands, and he was a little out of time with Karen on occasion; but, his footwork was great, he had lovely musicality, and the dance was fantastic to watch, which I don't often say about Foxtrots. Bravo guys, bravo.

Mark definitely has the Rumba next week, and either the Argentine Tango or the Viennese Waltz. Personally, I would say to do the Argentine Tango - Karen did a superb one with Nicky in series 10 and he wasn't as good a dancer as Mark (I didn't think it was great at the time, but seeing it on the tour at the start of this year changed my mind), so I do think it will suit him. For the Rumba, he just needs to work on his hands and arm lines, get those sorted and he will definitely be in the '30 club' (the magic club for male celebs who score 30 or over for their Rumba. Up to and including Simon in this series, only 12 celebs are in this club, 1 of them being Chris Hollins). Should he get to the final, I want to see his Quickstep and his Samba again.

Judges' scores: 8, 9, 9, 9 for a total of 35/40
My score: 8.25


Jake & Janette - Charleston - "Entry of the Gladiators"

Was it just me, or was Jake's swivel better than Janette's? Either way, this dance should not have had 10s whatsoever, not when there was a blatant mishap with the penultimate lift. Also, didn't this dance have 4 lifts when it should have been 3? I can't fault Jake's performance, and this was probably his best dance technically, but still, not a 10. Loved the choreography with the ball projection though, that was inspired.

Next week Jake has the Cha Cha Cha, and either the Foxtrot or Viennese Waltz. Somehow I can see Janette going for the mean and melancholy Viennese Waltz... sorry, I know I don't have a high opinion of her, but come on, show us something different performance-wise. Cha Cha Cha might be a problem dance for him, calling it now. He needs to pull out something special as at the moment, they'd be very undeserving winners in my eyes. Should he get to the final, I'd like to see a rehashed Argentine Tango, and his Salsa again. 

Judges' scores: 9, 9, 10, 10 for a total of 38/40
My score: 8.25


Frankie & Kevin - Salsa - "Work"

We know Latin isn't Frankie's thing, but again, you could see how uncomfortable she was with this dance. She seemed to forget where she was towards the end, before getting into that last lift. Her free arm placement was a bit dodgy again this week, something that she really needs to think about with her next dances. I'm starting to think that she won't win now and may go to pieces during the final like Chelsee did in her series.

Frankie has the Rumba, and either the American Smooth or Argentine Tango next week. I'd go for American Smooth with her, she can do classy Ballroom and then some - just needs some good lifts in and that would be great for her. Rumba, hmm. Bit of a tricky one that - Caroline's was fantastic and one of the dances of the series for me, whereas I wasn't a fan of Pixie's despite it being an impressive dance for her. We haven't seen a Kevin Rumba yet (it was the dance that he skipped with Susanna), so it would be interesting to see what he comes up with. If she got to the final, I'd like to see her Viennese Waltz and her Paso Doble again.

Judges' scores: 8, 9, 8, 9 for a total of 34/40
My score: 8



Waltzathon: I think anyone could have predicted the rankings before the show even started - I did it, and apart from getting Frankie and Simon the wrong way round, I was spot on. After watching the dance back, I would have had the leaderboard slightly different, with Frankie top, Pixie 2nd, Simon 3rd, Mark 4th, Caroline 5th, and Jake 6th. 


Strictly Leaderboard:

1. Caroline & Pasha - 39 + 3 = 42
2. Pixie & Trent - 35 + 6 = 41
=3. Jake & Janette (38 + 1), Simon & Kristina (35 + 4), Frankie & Kevin (34 + 5) = 39
6. Mark & Karen - 35 + 2 = 37

My Leaderboard:

=1. Simon & Kristina - 34 + 4 = 38, Frankie & Kevin - 32 + 6 = 38
3. Mark & Karen - 33 + 3 = 36
4. Pixie & Trent - 30 + 5 = 35
=5. Caroline & Pasha - 32 + 2 = 34, Jake & Janette - 33 + 1 = 34


Dance-off: Pixie & Trent vs Simon & Kristina. I was a bit surprised that Pixie was here, as I expected Mark to be in the dance-off for sure; but Simon was always going to end up here - Jake and Frankie both have proven fanbases and Caroline was too far ahead to go down in the dance-off. Pixie could only have been 5th in the vote at best, and this was the only week where her vote would have been tested, so it's a bit unlucky that she landed in it on this week.


Elimination: Pixie & Trent. If you think about it - although Pixie and Simon scored the same for their first dance, Simon's included a major mistake in the final lift, so really, Simon's was better. As for the judges: based on scores, Craig and Len had to vote the way that they did, so actually it was down to Darcey and Bruno. Pixie was unlucky that she came up against this dance of Simon's with what was probably her worst dance (excluding her week 1 Jive), almost any other week and she would have sailed through, but on this showing, I do think it was the right decision to eliminate her. It's a bit sad as although I didn't enjoy their partnership, I would have loved to see her Quickstep again, that was her one outstanding dance for me. 

Recycled song choices are now at 34 for the series.


So next week the couples take on 2 dances for the first time. Will they wow us with both of their offerings, or will they crack under the pressure?

Until next time, keep reading and keep watching!

Strictly Come Dancing 2014: Week 10

Hello again everyone! Now this blog is posted a bit later than usual, as it was my older sister's birthday this weekend, so we've been celebrating that. I didn't get to see the show live on Saturday as I was out for a meal with the family, but I've seen the dances twice and watched the Saturday show yesterday. 

Last time, we saw Sunetra & Brendan granted their last request to stay, and that meant Steve & Ola had to go home. Love Ola's new hair colour btw, she suits being a brunette.

In the style stakes, Tess won for Saturday's show, and Claudia for Sunday's, so honours are even. The theme for this week was 'Around the World' - sadly not the ATC, Aqua or Lisa Stansfield songs of the same name, but an excuse for bad song choices, weird outfits, and backing dancers. So basically, Blackpool mark 2.


Pixie & Trent - Viennese Waltz - "Tulips from Amsterdam"

Now this is the kind of song that I could imagine being done at an Andre Rieu concert. I might not like this pairing but I can always appreciate when they have done a good dance. On this occasion, I thought it was good, but not worthy of 10s from the judges. This is probably the first instance where I think Trent might have put too much in to the choreography - lots of faffing abaht, yes, but also lots of times where you could see Pixie trying hard to get into the correct place for the next move. It just about worked, but could have so easily gone wrong. It took them about 30 seconds to get anywhere near each other let alone in hold, and that's a good third of the routine wasted. Trent is a good storyteller, but like Janette, sometimes I think he'd be better off with less story and more content. This might have made things easier on Pixie as he could have had simpler choreography for the rest of the routine. As an aside, what was going on with the backing dancers? Apparently they were doing the 'Single Ladies' dance during the routine? I also felt that Trent and Pixie were apart too much, I would have liked them dancing together more. That being said, Pixie did very well with the content. I was looking out to see if they'd do a fleckel, and I'm not sure that Pixie had the correct footwork for that (you more knowledgeable people out there can tell me that one). As for what she has left, she could go either way, but I get the feeling she'll skip the Argentine Tango, and so be doing a Latin this week.

Judges' scores: 9, 9, 10, 10 for a total of 38/40
My score: 8.5


Mark & Karen - Salsa - "Viva Las Vegas"

Mark had to head back to Tenerife this week so he's not had much time to train, and sadly it showed in this routine. After his impressive Samba a while ago, I had hoped that this would be a good dance for him. Unfortunately that wasn't the case. The lifts and tricks weren't particularly great (aside from the ending press lift which I thought was brilliant), he was out of time with Karen, and he just didn't seem to get into the performance as much as he usually does. I was wondering where the usual armography had gone - there wasn't any (as far as I can remember) in this routine, so maybe Mark couldn't do it for some reason? That or his training time was SO limited (like Sunetra's usually is) that Karen and the choreographers had to give him a relatively simple routine? I'd say probably the latter, as last week's Tango wasn't up to his usual standard either, and he also had limited practice time then. With only one Latin left, Mark has to be doing Ballroom this week - his options are the AT, Foxtrot or Viennese Waltz - with Caroline doing AT and Simon having to do Foxtrot in the semis, I think he'll have the Foxtrot for this week.

Judges' scores: 7, 8, 9, 8 for a total of 32/40
My score: 7


Sunetra & Brendan - Rumba - "Girl from Ipanema"

They should have had Amy from 'The Big Bang Theory' doing this on her harp. Isn't this song normally a Foxtrot? To fit in with the 'theme' I think the producers have just gone for any song that has a place in the title (Simon excepted). It was a bit of a different kind of Rumba, and like our Bruno, I thought the concept was good so props to Brendan for that. However, it was a bit boring to watch if I'm honest and I didn't see much actual Rumba going on between the two of them. Like Pixie's dance, I would have liked to have seen S & B dancing together more, it felt like the Sunetra Show with a cameo from Brendan, which might work for some dances (Showdance for one) but definitely not a Rumba. All arms and nothing else from Sunetra, which she's struggled with for a while. As Marian Keyes put it on ITT tonight, Rumba is 'the dance of death', and so it proved for this pair. Also, LIFT! Probably intentional, but still, points must be deducted for that. There was also an accidental lift when Brendan did the drag, which was corrected when they did it second time round for the dance-off. It's a shame that Sunetra couldn't have gone out on a better dance, but this was the right time for her to go.

Judges' scores: 5, 7, 8, 7 for a total of 27/40
My score: 5 (would have been 6 if not for the lifts)


Caroline & Pasha - Charleston - "Istanbul"

I already knew this song from a Strictly game, so I knew it would work for a Charleston. I wasn't sure how Caroline would cope with this dance - not so much the technical and fast-paced side of it, as we saw from her Jive that she has no problem in that respect; but the performance side. She pulled off everything with aplomb! Some of the lifts were a bit clunky (she seems to struggle with the transitions of getting into them) so I can't give her a 10, but other than that it was FAB-U-LOUS! Caroline's got the Argentine Tango this week, and I reckon this will be a cracking dance for her. It will definitely challenge her - with the lifts, and maintaining the performance throughout, but that's a good thing I think. I'm not really a fan of Pasha, but I would be happy for him to lift the glitterball with Caroline.

Judges' scores: 9, 10, 10, 10 for a total of 39/40
My score: 9.5


Simon & Kristina - Waltz - "Edelweiss"

Simon's back in the game with this dance! It was beautiful, moving, and although he didn't have enough swing and sway, it was magical. Credit to Kristina, the choreography was sublime, and that's how you tell a story whilst still having tons of content (take note Trent). Simon's been confirmed to have the American Smooth this week, so we already know that he would dance the Foxtrot and Samba in the semi-final (he did the Cha Cha Cha in the Christmas special so he'll skip that). I think AS will be a good dance for him, the interesting thing will be what dance style he does for it - will he go traditional Foxtrot which would help him for next week? Or go for something different which we know he can already do? Whatever it is, I'm sure Kristina will do a great job with it.

Judges' scores: 9, 10, 10, 9 for a total of 38/40
My score: 9


Frankie & Kevin - Jive - "Surfin' USA"

I've been waiting for Frankie to do a Jive for ages, and after this one, I'm not really sure what to make of it. For some reason, Frankie seems to struggle in the fast Latin dances, and I'm starting to think that it's the performance that lets her down. She has a smile on granted, but sometimes you need to do more. Take Simon's week 1 Jive - you could tell that he was enjoying it and that enhanced his performance. That might be where Frankie has a problem - she needs to import not more energy, but more enthusiasm (that might not be the right word, but it's the best I've got). Perhaps take a small leaf from Kevin's book - he might overdo it sometimes, but he does have that enthusiasm that Frankie lacks. Aside from this, she did pretty well, just going out of time with Kevin on occasion. They have the Salsa this week: I'm not sure what to expect really, it could go either way. 

Judges' scores: all 9s for a total of 36/40
My score: 8


Jake & Janette - Argentine Tango - "Zorba the Greek"

Oh, good lord. This was just awful, and I can't even blame Janette this time. What did Jake actually do other than shout 'Opa!', swing his leg a few times, and basically stand and get Janette to do her tricks? Even the outrage over the backing dancer bumping into him (sorry Craig but you were wrong) couldn't change the fact that this was just weird. Not an Argentine Tango whatsoever and I feel sorry for Jake getting the novelty songs and comedy dances at this stage of the competition. I can't even give a real critique as I really don't know what I can say about this dance. He could go either way in his dance choices for this week, but I'd guess he's doing a Latin - which means either Cha Cha Cha or Charleston. He'd be better off with Charleston I'd say.

Judges' scores: 5, 8, 8, 8 for a total of 29/40
My score: 4


Strictly Leaderboard:
1. Caroline & Pasha - 39
=2. Pixie & Trent, Simon & Kristina - 38
4. Frankie & Kevin - 36
5. Mark & Karen - 32
6. Jake & Janette - 29
7. Sunetra & Brendan - 27

My Leaderboard:
1. Caroline & Pasha - 38
2. Simon & Kristina - 36
3. Pixie & Trent - 34
4. Frankie & Kevin - 32
5. Mark & Karen - 28
6. Sunetra & Brendan - 20
7. Jake & Janette - 16


Dance-off: Mark & Karen vs Sunetra & Brendan. Not that much of a surprise, as we know that Jake and Frankie have support from previous weeks.

Elimination: Sunetra & Brendan. Like the last few weeks, this could have gone either way. On the dance-off alone, I would have saved Sunetra, but if you're looking at overall, then Mark had to go through to next week.

Strictly Come Dancing 2014: Week 9

So it's the week after Blackpool, and good news - Claudia's back! I thought the applause for her at the beginning of the show, and Kristina's welcome back for her were really nice touches. Also, applause to Zoe for doing such a great job standing in for the last 3 weeks. Loved Claudia's sparkly jumpsuit too, she won in the style stakes for me (although my dad reckoned both her and Tess were in need of some fake tan).

Onto the main show - we saw 10s galore, Craig's 4, and oh Jake's Samba I did adore! If only for the music if nothing else. *sings and dances along*


Steve & Ola - Jive - "Little Bitty Pretty One"

Most people will know this as the music from Matilda where she uses her magic around her room. I'm still a bit 'huh?' in regards to the relevance of the American football theme - if the song was 'Broken Heels' by Alexandra Burke then I might understand it as it was the theme of the video, but as it's this one, I don't get it. Answers on a postcard please! Ola's cheerleading outfit was awful by the way, I used to be a cheerleader myself in a former life and the outfits were much better than that (normally it's either bright and vivid, or dark colours, and the top - for me anyway - was like a jersey or vest in a v-neck style, with no belly on show), well, more flattering at least. Onto the dance itself, and c'mon guys, let's go through the patented Latin Ola-ography steps present in this dance: pivots? CHECK. Knee slide? CHECK. The only thing missing was the Starfish (it's alright though, as Jake had that one later on). Steve has a fused ankle which meant that this particular dance was always going to be difficult for him, and sadly it showed. His kicks and flicks weren't great (needed more energy and his foot should have been pointed more), and he seemed to forget the beginning of the routine - after the knee slide when he started dancing with Ola. Apart from the jump into the ending position, there were about 3 or 4 illegal lifts in this routine - funny how the judges never mentioned anything about them. If Steve gets to next week, which is doubtful on this showing, get him back to slow Ballroom, and NO LIFTS. 

Judges' scores: 4, 7, 6, 6 for a total of 23/40
My score: 5


Caroline & Pasha - American Smooth - "Mack the Knife"

Lovely dress for Caroline for once, so I should have known that something would go wrong. She tripped over it at the very beginning of the routine, and my mom commented that she looked to have had a 'Chelsee Healey' wardrobe malfunction near the end. Seriously, if these so called 'professionals' can't design dresses that are of the right length for the celebrity and won't cause malfunctions in the chest area then they should be sacked. We hardly ever got these in the earlier series, yet last year we seemed to have one a week and there's been a few during this series as well. It is ridiculous and it is spoiling dances for the celebrities - Caroline was upset at the end of this routine and I don't blame her. As for the dance, I'm astonished that Len can remark on the lack of 'in hold' content in this routine when Jake's last week had hardly any Foxtrot in it either. This style of routine for an American Smooth is what I like, with the jazz elements and the old Hollywood glamour. Credit to Pasha as I loved the choreography and the way that they got into the last lift was really clever. I'm not sure what happened with the floor spin - did Caroline not initially get the right grip or did Pasha miss going for the grab? Part of the problem that Caroline has is that she shows on her face when either something goes wrong or she's uncomfortable with the routine, which means that we all notice it too, so she just needs to 'save face' in future if it happens. Another Ballroom for her next week I would think, Argentine Tango please?

Judges' scores: 7, 8, 9, 9 making a total of 33/40
My score: 8.5


Pixie & Trent - Charleston - "Sparkling Diamonds"

Probably the first duff song choice that Pixie has had this series. It was way too quick for a Charleston and although she and Trent did well with it, it wasn't worth a 10. I think the routine hindered her rather than helped her - there was a lot of 'side by side' or shadow sequences, and she lost sync with Trent a fair few times. They didn't seem to be a partnership in this dance, more 2 people who happen to be doing the same routine. A lot of people also noticed that her legs were oddly bent throughout the dance which made her look ungainly on occasion. This was more of a Showdance than a Charleston, so let's just hope that this is Pixie's bad dance and she can get back on track next week. Cha Cha Cha anyone?

Judges' scores: 9, 9, 9, 10 for a total of 37/40
My score: 8.25


Mark & Karen - Tango - "Love Runs Out"

I had hoped that this would be the dance for Mark but sadly it wasn't to be. I wasn't a fan of Karen's choreography, it almost seemed too slow for the music at times - Mark was lacking in staccato and his footwork looked messy at some points. Was the music too slow for the dance? Maybe. If you compare this to Jake's week 1 Tango, Jake actually looked better, and it may have been down to the slightly faster music that he had. Mark might be back in the bottom 2 with this one I fear. Should he survive, hmmm, I don't think he's done the Viennese Waltz yet so that might be one for him. 

Judges' scores: all 8s for a total of 32/40
My score: 7


Frankie & Kevin - Viennese Waltz - "What's New Pussycat?"

If you want to know how to make a Viennese Waltz interesting, watch this dance. Kevin has done it again in terms of choreography, working with the song to create a dance that is full of musicality. The only faults I noticed from Frankie were that she had to quickly correct her hand position and shaping on Kevin's shoulder when they first got into hold, and was that an accidental lift I saw? It looked as though Frankie's foot came slightly off the floor. Apart from that though, it was wonderful. I believe Frankie has more Latin dances left, so a nice little Jive next week would be a good option.

Judges' scores: 9, 9, 10, 10 for a total of 38/40
My score: 9.25


Jake & Janette - Samba - "Macarena"

Ok, hands up if you were doing the dance whilst watching this? Well I would have been, but my dog hates anyone dancing and would have barked his head off, so my inner Macarena queen had to stay quiet. About the dance itself........ *giggles uncontrollably* I think I'm as bad as Darcey was. It wasn't all there in terms of technique, but like his Salsa, he just gave it the kitchen sink and then some. The performance was bloody brilliant. His faces alone made the performance. On the results show it was confirmed that Jake is doing an Argentine Tango to 'Zorba the Greek', well this should be interesting to watch *goes to listen to 'Zorba the Greek'*.

Judges' scores: 9, 10, 10, 9 for a total of 38/40
My score: I'm gonna have to give 2 scores here - 7.5 for technique and 10 for performance, which averages out to 8.5, but it wasn't as good as Pixie's so an 8 it is.


Sunetra & Brendan - Waltz - "Last Request"

After being in the dance-off last week, I was so hoping that Sunetra, being back in her favoured Ballroom, would make a comeback. I don't know what happened but she didn't look comfortable in this. Her hold seemed a little off too, she had some stumbles, and the height difference looked very noticeable here - was she wearing lower heels perhaps? Also, not liking the arrangement of the song - why not use songs that are already in 3/4 time rather than taking 4/4 time songs and having to transpose them into 3/4 time? With her position on the leaderboard, she might end up in the dance-off again, and I'm not sure that she could escape it for a second time. If Sunetra makes next week, she has more Latin dances available to her, so my choice for her would be the Paso Doble.

Judges' scores: 7, 7, 8, 8 for a total of 30/40
My score: 7


Simon & Kristina - Salsa - "Let's Hear it for the Boy"

*RECYCLED SONG CHOICE - Scott & Natalie in series 8*

Say what you like about Kristina (and I know I do), but boy can she help put together a good Salsa. This is the only dance of Simon's in recent times (apart from his week 1 Jive and his Charleston) that I've loved. I was actually surprised to see that this didn't get any 10s - if they can give them to Jake then Simon can have at least 1, right? Yes his steps were too big but he handled the lifts with aplomb, and that armography section was fantastic. If he's in the bottom 2 tonight then there's something wrong. Simon has to do a Ballroom next week as he only has 1 Latin left (he'll have to skip the Cha Cha Cha as he did it in the Christmas special that he did with Katya a few years ago). His options are the American Smooth, the Foxtrot and the Waltz. It looks as though he might be doing the Waltz, as he's going to Austria for his 'Around the World' dance.

Judges' scores: all 9s for a total of 36/40
My score: 9


Strictly Leaderboard:
=1. Frankie & Kevin, Jake & Janette - 38
3. Pixie & Trent - 37
4. Simon & Kristina - 36
5. Caroline & Pasha - 33
6. Mark & Karen - 32
7. Sunetra & Brendan - 30
8. Steve & Ola - 23

My Leaderboard (marks multiplied by 4):
1. Frankie & Kevin - 37
2. Simon & Kristina - 36
3. Caroline & Pasha - 34
4. Pixie & Trent - 33
5. Jake & Janette - 32
=6. Mark & Karen, Sunetra & Brendan - 28
7. Steve & Ola - 20



Dance-off: Steve & Ola vs Sunetra & Brendan. Not that surprising really, they were the bottom 2 on the leaderboard so fair enough. I felt sorry for Steve though that he had to go into the dance-off on his worst dance (this was his worst scoring one I think).

Elimination: Steve & Ola. Could have gone either way with this one. Sunetra has done the better dances overall, but she also made more mistakes (to my eye at least) in the dance-off. I probably would have saved Steve - Sunetra was in the bottom 2 last week so it's likely she would be there again next week, and also because this dance was never going to go well for Steve with his injury and I think he has more potential overall: Sunetra struggles with the Latin, whereas apart from this one, Steve usually does quite well and he was improving in the Ballroom side. It was probably a close call for the judges.

Just the one recycled song choice this week, taking the total up to 32 for the series.

Hmm, I wonder if that little VT before the dance-off gave away the countries/dances. Pixie had a Spanish book, and indicated a Cha Cha Cha, Caroline had Turkish (not sure on that), Sunetra had Portuguese and mentioned a Rumba, Simon had German and mentioned 'the hills are alive' (that might be what they're dancing to), Frankie had American (could be anything, but maybe a Jive), Mark might be staying in England if his phrase book was anything to go by. I doubt it's as clear cut as that, but Jake's and Simon's were both correct with what had already been confirmed. 

Next week: will the 'Around the World' theme trip up the celebs even more? Somehow I think the costumes will be .....erm, ....... interesting to say the least. 

Strictly Come Dancing 2014: Week 8

BLACKPOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL!

Sorry, was pretending to be Tess then. Ladies and gents, welcome to the Blackpool episode of Strictly. For once, it's not all about Grimsby. This week we had better song choices (but most of them recycled, more on that in a mo), but odd themes, odd costumes and the dreaded return of the - unwanted and unloved - backing dancers.

Now last time, we saw Alison & Aljaz exit the competition as it turned out that we didn't want friends like them (see what I did there?) and they lost out to Caroline & Pasha in a shock bottom 2. Will Craig be proven right that Blackpool would be Judy's swansong? Or will we have outrage a la the Simon and Thom dance-off? (I vote for outrage).

In the battle of the Style Stakes, once again Zoe comes out on top (and it's the same in the results show too). It does look odd with her and Tess though, what with Zoe almost dwarfing Tess. Onto the main show, and we start with a pro dance. Not as good as last year's for me, everything seemed, well, 'cluttered'. In our house, we thought the young female singer was awful ('a song to sink' we thought we heard), and the dance that followed wasn't much better - some of the pros lifted Janette high into the air at one point, but it was a 'blink and you'll miss it' moment as it was towards the back of the floor and off to the side (to the right of where the staircase was). As for the results show pro/celeb dance, loved it! 

Same as last week, I'll be covering all of the dances, the dance-off and the elimination. Suffice to say, I wasn't really impressed by anyone this week, and I wouldn't have said that anyone deserved a 10 (some of them didn't deserve 9s either, but that's another point) - none of them matched up to Susanna & Kevin's Paso last year, and that was probably the only dance this time last year that I thought deserved a 10.


Frankie & Kevin - Quickstep - "A Town Called Malice"

*RECYCLED SONG ALERT - Tom & Camilla in series 6*

Apart from his Showdance, this is the one dance and song that people remember Tom Chambers for, so I was interested to see how Frankie & Kevin could do in comparison. I don't think people will remember this one sadly. They would have probably been better off just doing a straight Quickstep, no breaking hold to do some non-Quicksteppy moves. If they had done it just once, to start/end the routine, then fair enough, but not going into hold, then breaking, then back in, then breaking again. It made the dance feel a bit disjointed if I'm honest. The only times when they seemed to go quickly was when they were running back to the mic stand to break out of hold. I agree with some who say that after last week, Kevin probably simplified things a lot for Frankie, maybe too much. If you compare this to the Quickstep he did with Susanna last year, the routine he devised for Susanna was much more difficult. You could argue that Frankie and Susanna were about equal on that particular dance - Susanna's was more complicated but Frankie performed hers better. Anyway, yes, the 10 was a bit too high but she did pretty well with this. As for next week, she could be doing either dance style. If it's Latin then I hope it's the Jive for her, if it's Ballroom, then I'd like her to be the next to do the Argentine Tango.

Judges' scores: 8, 9, 10, 10 for a total of 37/40
My score: 8


Jake & Janette - American Smooth - "Feeling Good"

Damn, I was hoping for the Muse version, but they had to make it Mickey flipping Bubble. This dance basically showcases why I can't stand the backing dancers - too much of 'Janette and the Dreaded Backing Dancers' and not enough Jake. She needs to sort his posture out, he's always either too hunched or too upright. I was really looking forward to Jake being on this year, but he's with the wrong pro. This series should be proof to the producers to not give Janette contenders ever again, as she just isn't up to it. The fact that it took 30 seconds (about a third of the way through the dance) to even get into hold should tell you a lot about this routine. Without calculating it exactly, probably only about 35-40 seconds of that dance was actual American Smooth. I've said it once and I'll say it again, I'm starting to think that Mark will get to the final over Jake (and if Jake, or rather Janette, can't buck his ideas up and quick, then I'd say Mark deserves it). Jake has Samba this week, I'm hoping for good things but it depends on Janette's choreography, so it's safe to say that my expectations aren't that high. 

Judges' scores: all 9s for a total of 36/40
My score: 6.5


Sunetra & Brendan - Samba - "I Don't Feel Like Dancin'"

*RECYCLED SONG ALERT - Ray & Camilla in series 4*

Hen party themed Samba? Sounds like the song should have been 'Spice Up Your Life'. Sunetra has always struggled with the Latin dances, and sadly this was more of the same. I don't know whether her problem is with the faster rhythm, or if it's a case of changing rhythms that she has a hard time with. Either way, Latin is not for her. Again, it took around 25-30 seconds for the dance to properly start. Seriously, why all this faffing around? It might tell a story but really, you should be able to tell it without all that. For an actress, Sunetra doesn't seem to get into the performance much in the Latin, and you could tell when she went wrong in this dance, her face always showed it. She didn't show as much precision in her arm placement as she usually does in the Ballroom, and she doesn't seem able to really give it some welly, as Len would say; in the Latin you need to be able to give a good performance, and Sunetra hasn't really been able to do it so far. She seems to need dances where there's a character involved (like the Paso and the Rumba on the Latin side, and the Tango, American Smooth etc on the Ballroom side) - compare that to Jake, who's able to give a performance no matter what the dance. For next week, she's apparently doing a Waltz, which should be great for her; gives her more confidence as she can do the elegant and ethereal, and so she should be right back up there.

Judges' scores: 6, 8, 8, 8 for a total of 30/40
My score: 6


Simon & Kristina - Argentine Tango - "El Tango de Roxanne"

I love this song, shame that the singer ruined Ewan McGregor's part then. Onto the dance itself. I've criticised Simon before for being too fluid when he's meant to be masculine and staccato. There was lots of authentic Argentine Tango content in this routine, and I thought he executed it well (albeit there wasn't much for him to do really). Where he fails for me is the performance - the man in this dance is meant to lead, and look masculine; but it looked as though Kristina was leading and Simon is still too fluid for the performance to look genuine. As I've said in a previous blog, with the Tango/Paso Doble/Argentine Tango, the male celebs should really look at previous dances to see how they should act the performance. I've used him as an example before, but look at Mark Ramprakash's Argentine Tango - he just oozed masculinity and got it spot on as well as the technique. The 10s were for Kristina and Kristina alone (and that was the case with her AT with Jason Donovan too), and they were too high. Next week, Simon needs to have a fast dance where he can combine technique with performance. So a Salsa for him please.

Judges' scores: 8, 10, 10, 10 for a total of 38/40
My score: 7.5


Judy & Anton - Viennese Waltz - "Let's Go Fly a Kite"

Her best dance! I'm so glad that Judy can go out on a high, I'dve been gutted for her if she had to leave on last week's Paso Doble. I was quite critical of Anton last week, but he got it bang on with this Viennese Waltz, perfect mix of storytelling and routine. Judy was so much better, especially in hold. Her posture was much better, her footwork was much better, her arms were much better. And the ending was brilliant. She had a few stumbles, particularly when she first got into hold with Anton, but this was such an improvement. Judy's performance in the dance-off was definitely the best that she's done this series. She's the kind of person that you want on the show - like Alison, she knows she's not the best dancer, but she'll give you 100% each and every time. I'm going to miss her for sure.

Judges' scores: 4, 6, 7, 7 for a total of 24/40
My score: 6


Mark & Karen - Charleston - "We No Speak Americano"

*RECYCLED SONG ALERT - Holly & Artem in series 9*

I thought with the success of Mark's Quickstep and Jive, that this would be the perfect dance for him. Unfortunately, it wasn't. He started off well, but seemed to lose energy quite quickly and he was very slow towards the end. However, I do think that it wasn't a dynamic routine, and the music was at fault for that. The tricks were good, and the technique was too (great swivel from him at the beginning), but it was the performance that was lacking for me. It wasn't as if Karen was overdancing it, the music was just a bit slow for a Charleston and so you kind of have to tone it all down a bit. With better music he could have gone for it a lot more, and I think he could have got to top of the leaderboard in that scenario. Mark has Tango next week - I've been wanting him to do this dance for a while, as I think this could be the one that tests him; he hasn't had to properly do a serious dance yet (Superman Paso doesn't count) and it's a different test in terms of technique. This could be the 'make or break' dance for him, but I sincerely reckon he'll do well with it.

Judges' scores: all 9s for a total of 36/40
My score: 7.75


Pixie & Trent - Paso Doble - "The Eve of War"

Gladiator themed Paso? Hmm. I did like the music for this one, very dramatic. The backing dancers did get in the way a bit though, you struggled to focus on Pixie & Trent at times. I thought the choreography was hit and miss, but hit more often. Like with a lot of the others tonight, Pixie was lacking in the performance, she was meant to be serious yet you could see her smiling on occasion. She was also lacking a little in technique, not enough shaping for me. Even the skirt-swishing wasn't as good as Frankie's, and you guys know I hate skirt-swishing. I didn't find the routine dramatic enough, it didn't feel to me like a Paso Doble. 10s were unwarranted I thought. Pixie is one who hasn't done a dance with lifts yet, so I want her to be challenged next week with either an American Smooth or a Charleston.

Judges' scores: 9, 9, 10, 10 for a total of 38/40
My score: 7.5


Steve & Ola - American Smooth - "Rolling in the Deep"

Odd song choice for an American Smooth. The first half of the dance was just weird, you couldn't see either of them properly due to that wafting blue cloth. I don't know what Ola was thinking with the choreography, not much of it was Foxtrot (if that was their base, I couldn't really tell); most of it was just spinning and pivots. The lifts were great, all credit to them for that, but there was just something missing for me - like Jake's, it wasn't what I would call an American Smooth. For next week, I'd like him to go back to a fast dance, so I would choose the Jive for him.

Judges' scores: 7, 8, 8, 8 for a total of 31/40
My score: 6.75


Caroline & Pasha - Jive - "Crocodile Rock"

*RECYCLED SONG ALERT - Lisa & Brendan in series 6*

For me, this was my dance of the night. Pasha gave Caroline a difficult routine, and she performed it with aplomb! Just the one real error from her - she missed a small part of the side-by-side kicks and flicks section. Apart from that though, absolutely brilliant. One thing though: did she have smaller heels on than usual? It looked like that, at times she seemed incredibly tiny. I know she's only 5ft 4 or something like that, but she looked really short. Caroline has been confirmed as doing the American Smooth - this will be her first dance with lifts, so I'm expecting the transitions to maybe be a bit sticky. Like Mark, this is probably Caroline's 'make or break' dance - her last (and only) slow Ballroom brought her to the bottom 2, so she needs to really make this one count. If she can't, then I think her chances of winning are gone as apart from the AT, she only has slow Ballrooms left. 

Judges' scores: 9, 9, 9, 10 for a total of 37/40
My score: 9


Strictly Leaderboard:
=1. Simon & Kristina, Pixie & Trent - 38
=3. Frankie & Kevin, Caroline & Pasha - 37
=5. Jake & Janette, Mark & Karen - 36
7. Steve & Ola - 31
8. Sunetra & Brendan - 30
9. Judy & Anton - 24

My Leaderboard (marks multiplied by 4)
1. Caroline & Pasha - 36
2. Frankie & Kevin - 32
3. Mark & Karen - 31
=4. Simon & Kristina, Pixie & Trent - 30
6. Steve & Ola - 27
7. Jake & Janette - 26
=8. Sunetra & Brendan, Judy & Anton - 24

Dance-off: Sunetra & Brendan vs Judy & Anton. About time. All of the ties on the leaderboard were the problem - when you have 2 couples tied on a score above you, it's more difficult to save yourself as you now have to definitively beat 2 people on the public vote, rather than just 1. With how the leaderboard was, Steve had to have had more votes than Sunetra (otherwise he would have been in the DO instead); Judy could have beaten Steve by 1 voting position and still been in the DO. It's the right bottom 2, and hopefully this gave Sunetra the kick she needs. 

Elimination: Judy & Anton. Based purely on the DO (which is what this bit is supposedly for but we all know different), I actually would have saved Judy - she danced her Viennese Waltz a lot better the second time around, whereas Sunetra seemed to make more mistakes. But as we all know the judges can use whatever criteria they like, it's right that Sunetra was saved, as we know that in Ballroom at least, she has the potential to give us a 'WOW' dance, which can't be said about Judy. I'm actually looking forward to Judy & Anton's exit interview on ITT, and I didn't think I'd be saying that.

Recycled song count now stands at 31.

Well that's another week over and done with. To be honest, I'm starting to get a bit disillusioned with the show this year - I don't really have a favourite to back, just partnerships where I'm struggling to like either the celeb (Pixie, Frankie, Mark and Sunetra to different extents), the pro (Janette/Ola/Pasha) or both (Simon & Kristina). There's too much producer influence now, when they actually sit in on training sessions so that the choreography might be changed, then something is definitely wrong. If you can't trust the pros to do anything, then what's the point of having them 'teaching' their celeb? The producers decide the music, the themes, the costumes, the choreography (occasionally) - it's getting like X Factor now and I'm seriously hoping it picks up soon. I'm still a fan of the show, but it does get annoying when at least once a week you think the following: 'what are the judges smoking?' 'are the music-pickers deaf? 'the singers/costumes are awful' etc etc. The show needs to be stripped back a bit - allow the pros to pick the music, let the couples have more of a say in their costumes/theme; still have a choreography team on hand, but reduce their influence, I could go on. 

Reality TV nowadays is getting more scripted and manipulated than ever. Strictly, X Factor, The Apprentice, Big Brother, even I'm A Celeb has its moments. But here's the thing - people are now starting to wise up, yet they still watch these things each year. With X Factor, it's probably the case that you watch it hoping that it wouldn't be as manipulated as it was before, only to find that it's even worse. I'm starting to see Strictly in the same way. TV shows that involve voting - we should be able to vote for who we want, for whatever reason we want; not who the producers want us to vote for. We've survived this long, we're clearly not stupid. Yet people get put into boxes and are edited to fit those boxes - surely we should be able to judge for ourselves? 

I endeth this little rant and this blog post with the following: we all have brains. We just need to be trusted to use them.

Strictly Come Dancing 2014: Week 7

Let's see how long it takes me to review 10 dances, plus the dance-off and elimination, all in one sitting! (starting at 7.40pm, so by the time I've finished writing this the results show will have gone off - I do already know the result though).

Last time, we saw Scott & Joanne click their fingers and wave goodbye after they lost out in the dance-off to Alison & Aljaz. Can Alison get a bounce (ooher) this week and avoid the bottom 2? Let's find out!

Tess and Zoe looked great again, I probably preferred Zoe's dress overall though. I saw one forumite wonder why there were loads of plasters stuck to Tess' dress! I can sort of see what they mean....... (btw, loved both of their dresses on the results show too, but again, think Zoe's just had the edge)


Simon & Kristina - Quickstep - "I Got Rhythm"

*RECYCLED SONG ALERT - Emma & Darren in series 4*

I so called it on his dance! Kristina is pretty good at choreographing a Quickstep, so I was intrigued to see how Simon would do with this one. First thing: bravo Kristina! Apart from the beginning, I thoroughly loved that routine. I can see what she was trying to do, but that sort of thing worked better with Jason Donovan. Simon had a pretty good handle on it overall, but there were a fair few errors: there was quite a bit of gapping between him and Kristina, his right arm was loose and could probably have done with being straighter to help his hold, he went out of time with Kristina in the side-by-side section and he also seemed to miss a hand grab just after that (although they both covered it up well). I wouldn't say this was as good as his Charleston, so I do feel the judges overmarked him slightly - 30-31 was what I reckoned. Simon's been confirmed as doing the first Argentine Tango of the series next week, cue more gusset-flashing from Kristina most likely.

Judges' scores: 7, 9, 9, 8 for a total of 33/40
My score: 7.5


Caroline & Pasha - Waltz - "Three Times a Lady"

*RECYCLED SONG ALERT - Jason & Kylie in series 1, Anita & Robin in series 9*

On ITT on Friday, Eamonn Holmes thought this was an unlucky song for Caroline, he called it an 'exit song' in fact. Turns out he was sort of right, but let's head back to Ms Flack. Awful dress again, the waistline made her look a lot bigger than she is. Caroline was worried about the Waltz as elegance doesn't come naturally to her (although I thought her Rumba was brilliant), so this would be an interesting week for her. I wasn't a fan of the start, bit more Contemporary than Ballroom, but it was much better once she got into hold. Keeping the judges' comments about Caroline's footwork in mind, I did look out for her feet, and I couldn't see any heel leads so I agreed with them there. I also noticed that Caroline had to correct her hand positioning on a few occasions - you could see her left hand moving towards being flat on Pasha's back. She did stumble at the end, but I think it was a case of 'heel caught in dress'. She's been confirmed to be doing the Jive, so avoids the dances with lifts yet again! That being said, it should be a good dance for her as she's suited to the faster dances more. Pasha can choreograph a good Jive, as we saw with Chelsee and Kimberley, so this dance should be one to watch.

Judges' scores: 7, 8, 8, 8 for a total of 31/40
My score: 7.25


Jake & Janette - Rumba - "Strangers in the Night"

After his 'disappointing' Paso Doble last week, Jake needed a good dance tonight to get his confidence back up. And yet, he ends up joint 8th with Alison, only being above Judy. It's difficult to say why he's doing so badly in comparison with the other early frontrunners - did he peak with his Salsa? Is Janette's choreography hindering him? Is there something going on behind the scenes that we don't know about? All I know is, he needs a stand-out dance soon, otherwise there's a real possibility that he won't be in the final (I can see Mark getting there over him now). Onto the dance itself - he did have some hip action at the beginning, but there wasn't enough of it and I do feel the choreography was a little to blame here. Jake was mostly just standing still, or moving in the same spot, or walking - it was all about Janette, and whilst the Rumba is a dance where the lady does more and the man presents, she could have given him a LOT more to do. Compare this with Simon's - now whilst Simon's wasn't great, he did have a fair amount of movement, and this was what was lacking with Jake. 

There's been some debate about whether Janette is doing the right thing, teaching Jake the steps first and then technique later; I'm a bit on the fence with that one if I'm honest. If Jake was more of an Alison or a Scott, someone who can do the steps but not necessarily the technique, then I would agree with Janette's approach. But, as Jake is a better dancer than that, and he's expressed concerns over the technique before (with Janette replying 'Steps first') it might do Janette good to try it the other way next week and see if he's better for it. Now that Aljaz has gone, I hope Janette asks him for help, whether that's with choreography or to help Jake see what he needs to do and how to do it. He should be back to Ballroom this week, and I feel the Viennese Waltz would be a good fit for him considering the steps vs technique question - not much variety in terms of steps, which means that he can concentrate on the technique.

Judges' scores: 6, 7, 7, 7 for a total of 27/40
My score: 5.75


Judy & Anton - Paso Doble - "I Fought the Law"

Firstly, I LOVED Judge Judy at the start, she has just the right voice for that role. Sadly, it all went downhill from there. No real attempt at teaching Judy any technique from Anton, just lots of walking, and moving her about, and getting her off of the floor when possible. I know Judy isn't the best dancer (she was certainly the worst after Scott left), but Anton could have done so much more with her. If all else fails, go for the performance! Judy can do the performance but there wasn't anything within the routine to give her that. Sorry Anton, but I'm going to toss you into the Enigma Strictly Jail for crimes against choreography (as much as I occasionally dislike Janette's and Kristina's choreography, nothing they've produced has ever been as bad as this). She should have a Latin next week, and for my sake, please let it be the Salsa.

Judges' scores: 3, 5, 5, 5 for a total of 18/40
My score: 2.5


Sunetra & Brendan - Foxtrot - "All of Me"

I am sick of hearing this song (it's nice but so overplayed now), but Tommy did a fantastic job with the vocal, props to him (although was it just me, or did he sing 'curves' a bit weirdly in the chorus? It sounded like 'kierves' to me). Brendan is an exceptional Ballroom choreographer, and he nailed it again here. Apart from that end position which was a little weird. Back to Sunetra, she was doing such a good job - lovely hand position, good footwork and posture, but then she went on the wrong foot which meant she went wrong for a while afterwards. Watching it back, you can see where this happens - she goes wrong at the start of the second part of the chorus, but manages to get back on the right track at the end of that chorus. It's a shame as she could have got 9s easily if it wasn't for that. She should be on Latin next week, and she struggles with fast dances so I'd like to see her do the Paso Doble; she has good arms, she can pull off the performance, and I feel she can get the shaping.

Judges' scores: 7, 8, 8, 8 for a total of 31/40
My score: 7.75


Alison & Aljaz - Charleston - "Friend Like Me"

Oh I do love these two and I was sorry to see them go; these guys have such a lovely partnership, and judging by the 'Goodbye Alison' video, she's going to be really missed by everyone else. At least she went out on one of her better dances (and having got a kiss off of Aljaz at the end of the routine, twice). Onto the dance itself, and it made me smile. The choreography was pretty suited to her, apart from the 'running man' bit at the end where you could see her running with turned-out feet. She gave a good performance as always but I would have liked to see a little more from her in that respect, the Charleston is known for being a bit of a 'goofy' kind of dance and I think she could have given it more welly, as our Len would say. Still, nice to see her go for the swivel at the beginning, she kind of got it. And that lift, I was just laughing! I hope she keeps dancing after this, she loved the whole series and she was great to watch. 

Judges' scores: 6, 7, 7, 7 for a total of 27/40
My score: 5.5


Mark & Karen - Waltz - "Weekend in New England"

*RECYCLED SONG ALERT - Jill & Darren in series 2, Jade & Ian in series 7, Rory & Erin in series 9*

It's been a while since his last slow Ballroom (week 2 to be precise), so I was intrigued to watch this and see how much Mark had improved. In all honesty, I think the judges undermarked this. Or at least, he should have been scored higher than Caroline. He had the heel leads, his footwork was good, just some polishing needed really. All he needs to do now is straighten up a little as he looks slightly hunched sometimes, and to lower that holding arm a tad. That will make his topline look better and he can start getting the higher marks in Ballroom that he's been getting in his Latin for the last couple of weeks. Lovely choreography from Karen I must say, very moving and beautiful; although the head on chest moment was a bit odd! As for Blackpool, I'd like to see him stay in Ballroom and do a Tango, otherwise if it's a Latin, then maybe a Rumba. Either way, he is improving and he needs to be tested on that improvement. 

Judges' scores: 7, 8, 8, 8 for a total of 31/40
My score: 7.5


Frankie & Kevin - Samba - "La Bamba"

*RECYCLED SONG ALERT - Dennis & Izabella in series 3 (possibly Louis & Flavia in series 10 too)*

Frankie's been worried about this dance all week - she's had limited rehearsal time due to having to be in Spain with The Saturdays (despite Kevin meeting her there to rehearse), and the party Latin seems to be a weakness of hers. She got a bit upset afterwards, and I felt for her because in a way, Craig was right that it was her worst dance. You could see her messing up on a few occasions (so sorry Len but 9 was too high) and although she recovered well, in a fast dance like this it can sometimes be more noticeable when something goes wrong and that was the case here. It was her worst dance in terms of mistakes, but it was still a good dance. Frankie looked more comfortable here than in her Cha Cha Cha, and she probably wished that she could have done it a little better. She seemed to mess up at the very beginning, not sure what went on there; but something wasn't right about the Samba rolls and then she missed a hand grab shortly after which put her off the next section. The end was quite messy as well, but it was good choreography from Kevin apart from that. There's some who reckon he put too much in, and I say that might be fair, but given how quick that music was (quicker than the other Sambas we've seen so far for definite) he kind of had to do that otherwise the routine would have looked too slow. For next week, get Frankie back to the Ballroom, and I'd suggest a Quickstep for her - it would give her a challenge and use a lot of the floor at Blackpool. 

Judges' scores: 7, 8, 9, 8 for a total of 32
My score: 7.5


Pixie & Trent - Foxtrot - "When I'm Sixty Four"

Bit of an odd song choice I thought, but strangely it worked. Trent I think missed it a tad choreographically this week. I wasn't a fan of his routine for the Tango last week, but at least it made sense within the confines of the dance style. This time, I felt the comedic elements were unnecessary. Set up the story at the beginning and end certainly, but the part towards the end just jarred with the rest of the routine; which, aside from the arabesque kick at the beginning which looked slightly messy, was great. Smooth, elegant, Pixie performed this brilliantly and I couldn't spot any technical errors on her part. There was only one small section when Trent was moving backwards towards the top-right corner of the floor near the start where it seemed that something might have gone wrong, but if it did then I couldn't tell what it was. She certainly deserved to be top of the leaderboard, but I wouldn't say that Foxtrot was worth a 10, Darcey. Next week, I want to see her really challenged, and I think the dance to do that is the Charleston. Pixie, like Caroline, hasn't done a dance with lifts yet, and I think this is the perfect time to do one. 

Judges' scores: 9, 10, 8, 9 for a total of 36/40
My score: 9


Steve & Ola - Paso Doble - "Use Somebody"

Is someone at the BBC trying to nobble this couple? First the story in the papers about Ola 'bullying' Steve, and now using a song which doesn't sound like a Paso at all, for a Paso Doble. Sack the music pickers and let us guys choose as we could do a LOT better. For a dance like the Paso Doble, everyone should get either traditional music, or modern music that has traditional stylings (so things like 'Paint it Black' by The Rolling Stones, or 'Conquest' by The White Stripes) *rant over* I must admit, I went a bit 'fangirl' when I saw that Steve was showing his chest, and I hardly ever do that (seriously, he's put a spell on me or something. I normally go for the 'attractive but in a non-conventional way' kinda guy like Andrea off of X Factor). Focus, Ames! *slaps herself* 

Aaaah, back to the actual dance that I'm meant to be critiquing. I was a bit disappointed, I thought Steve would really put the attack into it, like he did with his Tango back in week 1. His performance in that respect was pretty much his face and nothing else. A few iffy moments of choreography from Ola. Firstly, KNEESLIDES! Check. PIVOTS! Check. These moves are from Ola's Trademark Latin Choreography, which I would say you can buy on DVD, but let's face it, just watch any Latin routine of hers from recent series and you'll see all you need to there. Strange pauses towards the end - Steve had spun Ola with 2 arms, but then they both stood still before they did a small jump and carried on. Was something meant to happen there? This was a touch overmarked for me: not much shaping, little more attack needed from Steve. 7s at the most. For Blackpool, I'd like Steve to do another slow Ballroom - his Waltz in week 5 was his 'breakthrough' dance and he needs another opportunity there. Something along the lines of a Foxtrot, or an American Smooth would be good for him. 

Judges' scores: 6, 8, 7, 7 for a total of 28/40
My score: 6.25


Strictly Leaderboard:
1. Pixie & Trent - 36
2. Simon & Kristina - 33
3. Frankie & Kevin - 32
=4. Caroline & Pasha, Sunetra & Brendan, Mark & Karen - 31
7. Steve & Ola - 28
=8. Jake & Janette, Alison & Aljaz - 27
10. Judy & Anton - 18

My Leaderboard:
1. Pixie & Trent - 36
2. Suntra & Brendan - 31
=3. Simon & Kristina, Mark & Karen, Frankie & Kevin - 30
6. Caroline & Pasha - 29
7. Steve & Ola - 25
8. Jake & Janette - 23
9. Alison & Aljaz - 22
10. Judy & Anton - 10


Dance-off: Caroline & Pasha vs Alison & Aljaz. Not such a surprise to see Alison here again, but Caroline was a shocker. Having worked out the numbers, she could only have been 7th at best in the public vote (only Pixie, Simon and Alison could have been lower: everyone else had to poll at least 1 place higher, or 3 higher in Judy's case). Was it the 'middle of the leaderboard' syndrome? Was it the 'death slot' curse? Who knows, but this might be the wake-up call that all of the frontrunners need to raise their game next week at Blackpool.

Elimination: Alison & Aljaz. I didn't see the actual dance-off (we switched to watch the X Factor results. Would have done a +1 on those to watch Strictly but I wanted to see the Formula 1 highlights), but it's the right decision as Caroline has much more potential than Alison and this was just an off-week I guess. I might have to watch this on iPlayer to see Team Ali's last dance, but if anyone could tell me what song it was then please do :) 

Recycled song count now stands at 27.

Next time, we venture to the Tower Ballroom at Blackpool. We usually see some fantastic dances there, Susanna & Kevin's Paso Doble from last series being a brilliant example. Can Jake get back to his best? Will Frankie and Caroline bounce back? And will Judy actually end up in the dance-off? 

Until then,

* dances along to the Strictly theme tune and invites you to join her*