Strictly Come Dancing 2017: Week 6 Review

Halloween week, which means frightful costumes, scary hair and terrifying routines – same as any other week then, no?

Pre-show VT: I got Ruth/Debbie/Mollie/Susan/Joe/Aston/Gemma/Alex. Jonnie and Simon were unrecognisable, and who am I missing? Ah Davood. Nothing new there then.

OMG loved that opening routine – did not recognise Kev whatsoever. And who was it on the chandelier?

The Fashion Police Segment:

Tess or Claud?: Claud – Tess needed to get rid of the sleeves

Best Dressed Judge?: Shirl

Best Dressed Couple: Mollie & AJ, honourable mention for Jonnie & Oti

Worst Dressed Couple: I think Aston & Janette or Joe & Katya

Not in the theme: Ruth & Anton

Jonnie & Oti – Cha Cha Cha – “Troublemaker”

1.       Liked Jonnie’s joke about how him being an amputee fits the role of a pirate perfectly, his VT acting is a lot better than Pasha’s.

2.       Aww Jonnie, that beginning mess-up with the prop kind of put you off.

3.       Was that the blade again? Footwork was improving by the end but upper body and lines were as bad as ever.

4.       Nice little con crit from Shirley, love Bruno ‘who needs Jack Sparrow?’, Craig he did have some hip action

5.        Agreed with the score from the judges, think I might be block-voting for him tonight but loved the support from the other guys in the Clauditorium. Haha at Claud bringing in AJ’s mom for the T’s & C’s.

Ruth & Anton – Quickstep – “Bewitched Theme” (RECYCLED SONG ALERT! - Jason & Kristina in series 9)

1.       Aww Anton as a bunny rabbit was funny even though that was not his voice

2.       She seemed to lose timing at the start but she did pull it back (thank you Bruno)

3.       I would disagree with Craig that it didn’t have style, loved Shirley’s little Craig-style interplay with Anton.

4.       I wasn’t as entertained by that as I normally am, think she might be in trouble

5.       Score was about right, think Craig’s 4 was harsh as I thought it was better than Jonnie’s dance.

Simon & Karen – American Smooth – “Delilah”

1.       Karen cannot do a posh English accent to save her life

2.       What is it with Karen and eating? The hair looks good on Simon though

3.       What on earth was that? It was so bad that Karen looked awful technically as well, choreography not up to scratch. Such small steps but Karen was doing those too?

4.       Was it just me or were there no actual lifts? I don’t think there were any in their Charleston either so is Simon not able to do them for whatever reason? I do feel that they’re trying to get us to vote for them though. Actually, just realised that this was originally listed as a Viennese Waltz so why the sudden change?

5.       Overmarked for me, 12 would be my score.

Gemma & Aljaz – Jive – “Ever Fallen in Love”

1.       They should have gone the whole hog and made Aljaz look like either Spike or Angel from Buffy. Oh, apparently they did? Should have gone for Spike.

2.       Quite decent, but I felt that Gemma lacked a bit of energy in the legs (Aljaz overdancing does not help)

3.       She also still seems to have problems with balance where spins are involved, she lets it show on her face where she’s uncomfortable

4.       I don’t think the dress helped her though, the shortness made her legs look a little blocky.

5.       Slightly overmarked for me, think 7 was about the right score so I would have given 28. (I do love this song so wish I could have given more)

Joe & Katya – Foxtrot – “Trouble”

1.       Haha at Joe using Katya’s dog to trick her with (Crumble? What kind of name is that for a pooch?)

2.       Bit too much theming, although at least I now understand why they used this song (there was a line about spiders at the beginning)

3.       Clearly I’m not as enamoured with this as the judges were, I didn’t think the hold looked right (although not sure why), and thought it was a bit too contemporary.

4.       Way overmarked for me, I thought Gemma was a little better so I would give Joe 26

5.       If they put Alexandra at the end again then it will be ridiculous.

Mollie & AJ – Cha Cha Cha – “Better the Devil You Know”

1.       Why did they squeakify AJ’s voice?

2.       Her VT acting is awful

3.       That was actually really fun – agreed with Bruno on the hip action though, but I was fully with Craig (he was really nice about it)

4.       Who would have thought that Shirley would be more harsh than Craig? Surprised she didn’t get booed. By the way, who’s the suit of armour in the Clauditorium?

5.       I thought she was better than Gemma, I would have given 30. Bit odd that Craig was really positive but then gave a 6.

Alexandra & Gorka – Tango – “Maneater” (RECYCLED SONG ALERT! - Emma & Darren in series 4)

1.       Yeah, not a fan of this one guys, sorry.

2.       I was looking for more sharpness, yes she puts attack in but the frame seemed wobbly in places and her footwork looked a little off?

3.       I really did not like that choreography, and I agree with what Bruno said on the punctuation of her movements

4.       Funny how they love her attack and how she goes for it fearlessly but they thought Joe was too aggressive in his……..

5.       Spent a lot of time with them before the scores? Very much overmarked for me, would have gone for 28 with Gemma.

Davood & Nadiya – Rumba – “Wicked Game” (RECYCLED SONG ALERT! - Michelle & Brendan in series 8)

1.       Was that Alton Towers?

2.       Loved the graphics at the back, but how did Nadiya get down to Davood in time?

3.       His arm lines were much better, fully agreed with Darcey both on that and the lack of content.

4.       I’m with Shirley, it was a bit odd to watch. Also, too much mouth open again, and that was a lift at the end as Nadiya’s feet weren’t on the floor? Peculiar how they’re criticising the content but saying that they loved it – it kind of feels like they’re not really telling off the pro for that.

5.       Slightly overmarked, I would have gone with a 23.

Susan & Kevin – Foxtrot – “Killer Queen”

1.       They needed to give Kevin a better beard

2.       Normally I find the Foxtrot a bit boring to watch but that was so entertaining

3.       How can it be elegant with that song Shirley? Loved Kevin’s retort back.

4.       I thought Susan’s footwork was much better, I’m seriously starting to wonder whether she’s doing too well in the votes. Thank you Darcey for some positive comments, think Susan just needs to get a little more shaping in her arm and hand lines because she is starting to sort the feet out.

5.       Adored that group hug, really underscored for me, that was much improved on her Cha Cha Cha last week; I would have given about 24 I think.

Debbie & Giovanni – Charleston – “Frankie”

1.       Giovanni saying ‘Debbeh’ will never fail to amuse me

2.       Wow, I think Gio’s reaction at the end said everything

3.       The lifts did go wrong but she got the swivel, she got the character; nice little costume change. Feet were fabulous

4.       Haha Gio going into the ‘we are not worthy’, Shirley giving Debbie her ‘Queen of Latin’ crown; loved that whole dance. Best of the night so far by miles. Davood’s face when Debbie pretended to faint was a picture (ie if looks could kill…..).

5.       Joint highest score of the series, fully deserved. I would have given 36 for the lifts going wrong but considering Alex’s Jive got 10s and that had issues, I won’t begrudge this one.

Aston & Janette – Paso Doble – “Smells Like Teen Spirit”

1.       Nice singing there from Jamie

2.       I was looking for some nice Spanish hands from Aston and I’m agreed with Craig on it having too much street but then he ruined it by saying that he loves it. The pelvis curve was good, agreed with Darcey there.

3.       Not as masterful as I would have liked either. He danced it well but it wasn’t really a Paso Doble for me.

4.       Judges will score this well though, as they always do with Aston

5.       Why the need to reward lack of dancing the correct dance? Aston must be struggling with the votes, but glad that Debbie is still top. Nadiya very awkward dancing at the end. I would have gone 32 I think.

My Leaderboard for the week:

1. Debbie & Giovanni - 36

2. Aston & Janette - 32

3. Mollie & AJ - 30

=4. Gemma & Aljaz, Alexandra & Gorka - 28

6. Joe & Katya - 26

7. Susan & Kevin - 24

8. Davood & Nadiya - 23

9. Ruth & Anton - 22

10. Jonnie & Oti - 20

11. Simon & Karen - 12

RECYCLED SONG ALERTS - this week: 3 (the Pixies weren't going lazy, I like)
RECYCLED SONG ALERTS - overall: 24 

The Apprentice 2017: Week 4 - "Stadium Sales"

As always, members of Graphene and Vitality will be highlighted in their respective colours, as will Karren/Claude and LAS. Points for each section will be listed, as well as an overall tally at the end with the roll call.

The Rude Awakening & The Briefing:

·         5.20am and a shirtless Harrison answers the phone this time (50 points to him)

·         Lots of shirtless guys actually, and nice singing voice Harrison! (he gets an extra 10 points and some good foreshadowing for this ep)

·         Oh Liz, you and your smutty comments never cease to amuse me. 

·         Joanna still cannot wear a coat properly, and she’s got Bushra in on it this week! (Joanna loses 45 points for it being 3 weeks in a row, and Bushra losing 15 for a 1st offence)

·         Ross and Anisa lose out on Scarf Wars (Anisa will lose 30 points (3rd time) whilst Ross loses 10 for a 1st offence)

·         Teams must provide a corporate hospitality box and a matchday stall

·         The boys pick Sarah to move over to their team (Sarah gets 20 points for being liked enough)

·         +60 Harrison, +20 Sarah, -10 Ross, -15 Bushra, -30 Anisa, -45 Joanna

Initial Planning:

·         Siobhan gets railroaded a little into being PM, decides to go for a singer (asks the other girls for their opinion but gets told ‘it’s your decision’ by Anisa and Jade) (Siobhan will lose 20 points for not being able to stand her ground)

·         Andrew gets elected PM for Vitality, initially wants to go for a magician but Sarah suggests saving money by using Harrison as a singer (Andrew gains 40 points for being elected PM after volunteering, Sarah gains 25 points for a good suggestion that they'll end up using)

·         Andrew annoys Michaela by intimating that there’s more money in men’s football than women’s (he is kind of right though)

·         Andrew/James/Charles/Harrison stay for food tasting: canapés for £9, food for £36; James asks if prices are negotiable, told no and that would need order by end of the day (he did ask a good question so James will get 15 points)

·         Siobhan/Bushra/Jade/Anisa go for food/drink. Siobhan appoints Bushra to do the numbers on the alcohol (when she doesn't drink? Siobhan will lose 50 points for that decision)

·         Liz appointed STL; wants other members to ask questions and she’ll cover costs. £180pp for main course and canapés, Liz wants it to be clear-cut on costs but other sub-team say they cannot keep the clients waiting and end the call, Bushra reckons costs are in safe hands with Liz (Liz gains 15 points for being made STL, and another 10 for Bushra's praise; Siobhan's sub-team will lose 95 points each for a phone cut-off)

·         Sajan appointed STL, heads up pitch for box (Andrew doesn’t want to go under £325pp) – they don’t want entertainment to be awkward, Ross comes up with a cost for £6100 and then moves to £4800 which is still ‘outlandish’ and told that £150pp is what would be expected. Sub team surprised that main team cannot go any lower on alcohol (Sajan gets 15 points for being made STL, Ross won't lose any points with the costings as he was going by what Andrew had told him)

·         Liz box pitch: they reject singer, want drinks included in price per head; Liz says £350 per head, she gets told budget of £2k-2.5k, Liz says looking at cold buffet and told wouldn’t take the box, she then agrees on £2.5k budget. (The other girls don't really do anything, and Liz won't lose points as she did get the client's maximum budget)

·         Andrew main sub-team go to see a magician, told 30 min slot would be £750; boys say that’s too high so they draft in Harrison to sing.

·         Siobhan’s team look to place order – Siobhan wants some input from the others as she’s the one talking but is told ‘you’re our PM’; Bushra reckons bought too much wine, but says ‘the people who drink will know’ (the rest of Siobhan's sub-team will lose 30 points each for trying to force Siobhan to make all of the decisions - they reckon the boardroom is coming?, nice foreshadowing on the wine though)

·         Andrew’s team place order

·         +40 Andrew, +25 Sarah/Liz, +15 Sajan/James, -125 Bushra/Jade/Anisa,-165 Siobhan

Next Day:

·         £1326.60 is current spend for Vitality, Michaela has some misgivings on using Harrison for entertainment

·         Anisa wants to go high prices on stall, Jade wants to move over to ST

·         Andrew wants to swap Sarah and Charles (Sarah for the box as she is more corporate); Michaela decides to get offended ‘but he is just a boy, so….’ (and that's not a possible sexist comment right there? Michaela loses 30 points for her hypocrisy)

·         Joanna criticises Liz for stating she’s happy Jade’s moved over as she’s top at sales as Joanna hasn’t shown what she can do, Liz replies ‘if you’re insecure on anything’ and Joanna gets offended, Liz then says it was the wrong choice of word (what is it with these women getting so easily offended? Liz won't lose points as she did admit it was the wrong choice of word)

·         Karren reckons the team (Vitality) have spent too little, Harrison seen practicing his singing. Sajan prices popcorn at £4, he wants Michaela to turn to sales but she doesn’t trust Charles to cook the popcorn (Charles loses 15 points for not being trusted with cooking, Andrew/Charles/James/Harrison will lose 50 points for Karren's criticism as they were the ones who placed the order)

·         Liz goes £4 for cotton candy and 2 for £7, Sarah Jayne keeps eating the product and mimics Liz telling her off. Liz goes out on sales and Sarah Jayne and Joanna shade her behind her back. (and these are meant to be mature businesswomen? Karren would go spare if she saw this. Sarah Jayne loses 15 points for the initial mimicking, another 15 for eating the product, and she and Joanna will both lose 30 points as they did this in full view of the general public)

·         Graphene start off with canapés very quickly, whilst Vitality ‘should be embarrassed’ according to Karren for offering the pregnant guest tap water. (Andrew/Charles/James/Harrison all lose 50 points)

·         Sajan’s sub-team struggle to sell at their agreed pricing, and all start selling at different prices. Michaela ‘these boys just don’t know what they’re doing’ about Charles burning the popcorn (another possible sexist comment from Michaela means she loses another 30 points for her hypocrisy, Charles loses 15 for burning the popcorn)

·         Claude calls Jade a ‘sales machine’ but Sarah Jayne and Joanna want to sell too, Jade asks Liz what she wants her to do and Liz tells her to stay out there selling. (50 points won for Jade after Claude's praise)

·         Andrew’s ST get some more booze, whilst on Siobhan’s ST, Bushra has a very faltering ‘football facts’ speech that she reads mostly off of a script. Siobhan found them interesting but doesn’t think anyone was listening. Andrew’s ST make another trip to the bar for stock. (Bushra loses 20 points for reading off of a script and another 15 for Siobhan's comment about the clients not listening)

·         Harrison’s big moment: Karren cracks a smile, whilst Andrew dances along in the background and performs the ‘we are not worthy’ move. Everyone smiles and claps at the end. (100 points to Harrison - 50 for Karren cracking a smile, and 50 for Andrew's and the customers' reactions)

·         STs do their last bit of selling, Liz asks Joanna and Sarah Jayne to come out to sell and Jade thanks them for keeping the production going.

·         Andrew thanks his team for their hard work.

·         +50 Jade, -30 Joanna, -35 Bushra, -60 Michaela/Sarah Jayne, -100 Andrew/James, -130 Charles

Initial Boardroom:

·         Graphene: LAS agrees Siobhan’s day job is same kind of thing as this task. Claude has told LAS that ST led by Liz struggled as didn’t get clear costings. Liz reckons other members were being ‘yes men’ to whatever the client wanted. Sarah Jayne states that Liz is lying about her and Joanna claiming that they couldn’t sell the product at the price stated, but Jade backs Liz. Joanna has a go at Liz but gets asked by LAS if she’s finished. Siobhan good PM. (Liz doesn't lose any points for Sarah Jayne's criticism due to Jade's backing, Joanna loses 30 points for being asked by LAS if she's finished speaking, Siobhan gains 40 points for the team saying she was a good PM)

·         Vitality: Karren jokes about Andrew not liking women’s football and eating all the food. Ross gets criticised for reducing the price so quickly for the box. Good joke from LAS about Harrison singing it ‘his way’ – Karren needs to stop interrupting them all the time. Team all agreed that Andrew was good PM (Ross loses 30 points and Andrew gains 40 for his team saying he was a good PM)

·         Stall: £352.80 (Graphene), £222.50 (Vitality)

·         Box: £993.20, no refund = £1215.70 total profit (Vitality), £631.56, no refunds = £984.36 total profit (Graphene)

·         Bit of a premature celebration but they get to go to The Oval and bat with Kevin Pieterson

·         Treat: Harrison doesn’t get the rules of cricket and Andrew loses his glasses. Sajan reckons Sarah had the magic touch (Sarah gains 15 points)

·         Losers’ Café: Liz has a ‘thrown under the bus’ analogy and criticises Sarah Jayne for not letting her finish and rolling her eyes when she’s speaking. Bushra criticises Liz and Anisa criticises Siobhan’s decision-making. (Liz loses 50 points for the use of 'thrown under the bus' and a further 15 for Bushra's criticism, Sarah Jayne and Siobhan lose 15 points)

·         +40 Andrew, +25 Siobhan, +15 Sarah, -15 Sarah Jayne, -30 Joanna/Ross, -65 Liz

Losing Team Boardroom:

·         LAS blames the phone call for being a fatal flaw, Sarah Jayne backs Liz on the call. She also agrees that Liz told them to ask questions of the client. Siobhan says it’s more about making the client happy, LAS said it’s about making him happy. Claude reckons Siobhan doesn’t know where she is half the time. LAS says good call for Jade to be selling. Siobhan brings back Liz and Joanna (from what Liz said). LAS doesn’t understand why rest of them are still arguing. (50 points lost for Siobhan from Claude's criticism, Liz gains 80 points - 30 for being backed up on the phone call by Sarah Jayne (as 2 occasions = 2 x 15) and 50 for LAS agreeing that it was the right decision for Jade to be selling, Liz and Joanna lose 60 points for being brought back, rest of the team lose 30 points for LAS' comment at the end)

·         +20 Liz, -30 Anisa/Bushra/Jade/Sarah Jayne, -50 Siobhan, -60 Joanna

Final 3 Boardroom:

·         Liz: likes Liz, what you see is what you get (Karren), does everything (Claude)

·         Joanna: given chance will come out of her shell (Claude)

·         Siobhan: client satisfaction and clients were happy (Claude)

·         LAS says Siobhan should have known how to do this, would have walked it. Joanna says clear what roles were and what was she meant to do, Liz says that her sub-team let client lead them and put her into a corner. Siobhan and Joanna both criticise Liz, LAS calls a halt (Liz loses 30 points for the criticism). Siobhan – fundamental errors made, Liz – cannot believe that she didn’t call them back for costs, Joanna – argumentative saying everyone’s wrong. LAS feels failure of task was down to promises made to clients, Liz has made life difficult. Not having a strategy when should be Siobhan’s area of expertise and with regret she is fired. Does LAS need this aggravation? No. Makes Joanna PM of next task whether she likes it or not (and Joanna will gain no points next ep as LAS appointed her PM rather than her volunteering, but Siobhan will gain 50 points back for a 'with regret' firing)

·         Liz and Siobhan cannot decide whether to go for a handshake or a hug but they settle for a short hug. Siobhan reckons other 2 girls did better.

·         Bushra says Liz lied in the boardroom, Andrew wants them to keep this going as the more they fight, the more his team will win. (Liz won't lose any points as she was believed by the people who needed to believe her).

·         +50 Siobhan, -30 Liz

My Thoughts on Strategy and the Boardroom:

·         Seeing as neither team had any refunds, I’m guessing Graphene ordered too much for the box? When it’s pure profit, it’s better to go under-stocked rather than over, as excess stock will hurt the initial spend which could be the difference between 2 teams with similar sales (and so this proved to be the case); Andrew had the right idea on that from a business point of view although I do agree with Siobhan’s ethos on client satisfaction. Perhaps she was just unlucky that the other team had no-one ask for refunds?

·         Liz might not be a great seller, but she made the right call in having Jade be front and centre selling. (Siobhan actually said on YF that having watched the ep, Liz probably didn’t deserve to be brought back but did call her and Joanna ‘narcissists who like talking about how good they are’, though she says that she loves them both) Perhaps Liz could have swapped selling with one of Sarah Jayne and Joanna, but the other one would still have moaned I guess. I do feel that Liz is being unfairly scapegoated on that team – she might not always express herself in the best way but she does make good points. (Siobhan says would never have brought Bushra in out of loyalty and that might have been her downfall but that she did make a mistake putting her on numbers, the expert reckoned Liz saved the day in the box pitch)

·         Once again, STL ends up in the boardroom, and once again I don’t think they should have been – Bushra should have gone in there instead of Liz but I still feel LAS would have fired Siobhan whoever she brought in. Personally, I would have fired Joanna, because, well, what has she done really? Besides from argue with people (she had a bit of a thing with Jade previously and I felt she was in the right then).

Roll Call and Points Tallies:

Ebeneezer Scrooge – Andrew (-20)

Erm, does she exist? - Anisa (-185)

Hungover on the numbers: Bushra (-205)

Burning the Popcorn Oil - Charles (-130)

Less Frank Sinatra and more Frank Lampard (credit to LAS) – Harrison (+60)

Top (Selling) Cat – Jade (-105)

Look at my hair go all bouncy as I blowdry it - James (-85)

Liar liar, pants on fire – Joanna (-165)

Everybody Hates Liz: Liz (-50)

I am Woman, hear me roar! – Michaela (-60)

Outlandish, I say! – Ross (-40)

The Leader of the (Sub Team) Pack - Sajan (+15)

The Magic Touch: Sarah (+60)

Eating into the profits: Sarah Jayne (-105)

She loves weddings, drinks all around! - Siobhan (-140)

So here's how the candidates fared this episode:

=1. Sarah and Harrison: +60

3. Sajan: +15

4. Andrew: -20

5. Ross: -40

6. Liz: -50

7. Michaela: -60

8. James: -85

=9. Jade and Sarah Jayne: -105

11. Charles: -130

12. Siobhan: -140

13. Anisa: -185

14. Bushra: -205