So that it’s for Week 2! Thank you for joining in and making a gloomy weekend considerably more sparkly. Please come back next Saturday and we’ll do this all again for MOVIE WEEK. Kick off is at 7.25pm, so I’ll see you then!
Jacqui and Anton take to the floor to ‘Save The Last Dance’ by The Drifters (I think?). They’ve had a great adventure, Anton is now furloughed until Christmas. None of the other dancers can come onto the floor for a final huddle, which is making me a bit sad.
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Judging time! The judges all vote to keep Jamie, which means JACQUI AND ANTON are the first couple to leave this year’s dancefloor. It’s not been a GREAT weekend for politicians. to be fair.
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If anything this is worse than last night. Farewell, Jacqui. We barely knew you.
Time for Jacqui and Anton. This Samba is still making me laugh, but it’s also reminded me how much this tweet made me snort last night.
My bag of Uncle Ben's in the microwave #Strictly pic.twitter.com/dSF7yeI35l
— shane reaction ☘️ (@shane_reaction_) October 31, 2020
Time for the dance off! First up it’s Jamie and Karen doing their not-very American Smooth. Jamie is fine until he goes into hold, at which point you could drive a tractor through that gapping. But I hold firm that he could be one of this year’s biggest improvers if he can hang on for a few weeks.
It’s MOVIE WEEK next week, the first feem week of the season. Fear not, I’ll be putting together an appropriate Bingo.
Killing me softly with another Covid Conga of Fortune.
So who is joining Jamie and Karen in tonight’s dance off? Bill and Oti are safe, along with Maisie and Gorka, Max and Dianne, Clara and Aljaz and Jason and Luba.
Which means JACQUI AND ANTON are in the dance-off. Well, unless Jamie has a disaster that’s very much a foregone conclusion.
I think we can all agree that Bruno contributed precisely nothing to that segment, other than looking like one half of Siegfried & Roy.
Time for the dance debrief, which I historically ignore. Bruno is joining on Skype, he’s forgone the Just For Men in favour of going full silver fox and I love it. SO much better.
Time for a musical interlude, courtesy of pop crooner Sam Smith. Tonight they’re singing their latest single, Diamonds, which is a mid-tempo bop that I rather like. They are dressed as some kind of rodeo skeleton and I love it.
Sam is joined on the dancefloor by Neil and Nancy doing some sexy dancing. Enjoying this more than the creepy opener.
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This is like the most awkward receiving line at a wedding ever.
‘Thank you for coming.’
‘You must be so proud.’
The chat with the saved couples now has to happen one by one to meet social distancing guidelines, which Claudia is calling a ‘caterpillar of dance.’ It’s deeply awkward and uncomfortable.
Feel free to work on a better title in the comment box, I sense we can do better. A conga of remainers?
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So who is the first couple in tonight’s Dance Off? Nicola and Katya are safe, along with HRVY and JNTT, Caroline and Johannes, Ranvir and Giovanni and JJ and Amy.
First couple in the dance off: JAMIE AND KAREN. No great surprise, and I fear that only Jacqui and Anton can save him.
Incidentally I watched Nicola and Katya’s Couple’s Choice again this morning. I love watching these two dance but in my opinion a lot of elements of that dance were contemporary rather than street/commercial, and I’m not sure where giant flag-waving fits in to either.
ALSO I’m annoyed that Strictly has included Couple’s Choice in a year when there are fewer weeks to dance the ballroom and Latin standards. AND historically CC is always overmarked because it’s such a personal piece of storytelling and the judges would look like dicks if they didn’t.
Generally I’m just cross about it. Can you tell?
‘It’s going to be a very difficult elimination’, says Shirley. It’s not though, is it.
Last night on Strictly: sheer joy from start to finish. I don’t know whether we’re all glitter-starved or it’s a particularly good line-up this year, but there were no truly awful dances and even the fair-to-middling ones gave me something to smile about. Highlights: Bill and Oti’s elephant in the room, JJ’s Spanish line, Ranvir’s Quickstep, Clara being Clara. Even Jacqui and Anton’s Samba had a slightly hypnotic exuberance.
TESS AND CLAUDIA DRESS WATCH: Tess in a sparkly mini dress, Claudia in gold slacks. I quite like them both, as it happens.
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And we’re off! Tonight’s pro dance has some kind of spooky fairground fortune teller theme, despite this weekend absolutely not being a Halloween Special. It’s quite dark and creepy and honestly can we not.
Tonight’s Countryfile Casual Weatherperson is the delightful Alina Jenkins, who is off to a very respectable barn dance later.
Countryfile is a proper tear-jerker this evening. I remember when it some guy elbow-deep in a heifer and some storm-lashed seals.
Very keen on Anita Rani’s IKEA bobble hat.
On Strictly lockdown news, several entirely unqualified people have scoured the small print and confirmed that there’s no reason why Strictly can’t go ahead under their current arrangements. So hopefully it’s all going to fine and weekends are saved. HOORAY.
SUNDAY NIGHT RESULTS SHOW UPDATE!
Evening all, and welcome back to the first Strictly Results Show! I’ve missed our autumn Sunday catch up, it’s good to be back.
Tonight we’ll say goodbye to our first couple from this year’s batch, and I’m fairly certain it’s going to be Jacqui and Anton. It could be Jamie, although that would be a cruel blow after last year’s very early exit. Not sure a shock bottom two is likely this early in proceedings, but in 2020 anything is possible.
Kick off is at 7.15pm; in the meantime take a gentle rural ramble with Countryfile. See you in a bit!
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And that’s it for this week’s dancing! I’m back tomorrow at 7.15pm for the very first results show, when Jacqui and Anton will almost certainly be leaving the dancefloor. But join me anyway - it’s a bit of bonus fun for a Sunday evening, and we can watch the Countryfile Casual Weather together before it starts.
Thank you for joining in and being brilliant in the comment box, feel free to come trick or treating over on Twitter @heidistephens if you want to say hello. Enjoy the rest of your evening, look after yourselves in these tough times and I’ll see you tomorrow!
Some great dances this evening, enjoyed that very much. My votes going to Bill, Ranvir and Clara.
All our couples have danced and nobody wants to be the first to go home (DRINK). Maisie and HRVY at are the top of the leaderboard, and Jamie and Jacqui are at the bottom. The vote is open!
Scores: 6,6,6 - a total of 18 for Jason and Luba.
Craig thought it lacked hip action (DRINK), too much bopping and jumping about although brilliant performance levels. Shirley thought the pot stirrer slipped at the end, and what it lacked in fluidity it made up for in enthusiasm. Motsi thought the transitions were a bit shaky but they maintained the energy to the end.
My EYES! Jason and Luba are bringing ALL the toxic yellow neon, which distracts brilliantly from Jason’s shaky footwork and dubious hip action. That said, he has tons of energy and bounce and this has the kind of party spirit we all need right now. I unashamedly loved that.
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And finally it’s JASON AND LUBA! This week they’re dancing the Salsa to ‘Get Lucky’ by Daft Punk feat. Pharrell Williams and Nile Rodgers. Rachel Riley and Pasha did a godawful Salsa to this back in 2013 and they’ve subsequently had a baby. I’m not saying these two things are related, but Luba might want to keep her distance just to be on the safe side.
Scores: 7,7,7 - a total of 21 for Caroline and Johannes.
Motsi loved how Caroline used her hands, she had class in every movement even though it was a bit careful. Craig though it needed more shape through the body and attack, it was all a bit polite. Shirley loved the expression and shaping, but Caroline needs to come out of her comfort zone and go for it.
Caroline looks INCREDIBLE in that blue dress, but also Johannes is a magnificent matador. Hard to see Caroline’s footwork under all those ruffles, but some nice skirt work and good drive despite her losing her top line on occasion. Fabulous.
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Next up it’s CAROLINE AND JOHANNES! Tonight they’re dancing the Paso Doble to ‘El Gato Montes’ by Ramon Cortez. This is a classic Paso track that’s been used loads of time in Strictly, and I have very high hopes for this performance being the stuff of Paso legend.
Scores: 8,8,8 - a total of 24 for Nicola and Katya.
Shirley loved the choreography and Nicola’s awareness of where Katya was. Motsi though it was sincere but needed to be softer. Craig thought the dance suited Nicola and she had great determination.
OK clearly I need to watch that again.
This feels more contempo-waft rather than street/commercial, but apparently that genre is a broad church. Love the energy of this, but didn’t like the flags and Nicola doesn’t really have the precision for a routine that needs to be this tight. I love this couple with all my heart, but didn’t love that, sorry.
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Only three couples to go! Next up it’s NICOLA AND KATYA! They’re dancing their Couple’s Choice routine tonight, which was a feature I hoped they might bin off along with Bruno, discordant audience clapping and Tess stroking the contestants like she’s Ernst Blofeld.
They’re doing a Street/Commercial routine to ‘Shine’ by Years and Years, which I’m sure will be brilliant, but I’m still can’t be arsed with Couple’s Choice as a concept, especially this early in the competition. Burn it.
Scores: 6,7,8 - a total of 21 for Ranvir and Giovanni.
Craig had issues with footwork and some of Ranvir’s timing was out, but he loves the partnership and adored the storytelling. Shirley loved Ranvir’s frame but it needed ‘absorption into the ankles.’ Motsi loved how Ranvir is opening up like a butterfly, she just needs to work on her stamina.
Oh they’ve done a swing version, and this is entirely adorable. A few little footwork issues, but Ranvir looks entirely comfortable on that dancefloor and is bringing bags of personality and character to this dance. Enjoyed that very much.
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Who’s next? It’s RANVIR AND GIOVANNI! Tonight they’re dancing the Quickstep to ‘You Are The Sunshine Of My Life’ by Stevie Wonder. Oddly nobody has ever danced to this amazing song in Strictly history, and I’m kind of intrigued to see how Gio has made it work as a Quickstep, it has more of a Foxtrot/American Smooth feel to me. Maybe Dave Arch has given it a Skippy Remix?
Scores: 7,8,9 - a total of 24 for HRVY and JNTT. Oh come on.
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So many Zoom friends and relatives this week. Feel free to drink if you’re doing the cumulative bingo.
Motsi though HRVY brought great energy and he was a diamond in the sky. Craig though it was a bit erratic in places and it had too much rise and fall, but great spotting in his standing spin. Shirley agrees with Craig, just needs a bit more focus on the details.
Once you get past HRVY looking like Ralph the Nazi youth from The Sound Of Music in that suit, this is a nice Viennese with decent arms and posture. He doesn’t look as comfortable as last week, but he’s clearly one to watch in this competition.
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Next up it’s HRVY and JNTT! This week they’re dancing the Viennese Waltz to lockdown anthem ‘Stuck With U’ by Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber. I’m old enough to remember the Huey Lewis & The News song of the same name and be sad that we got this one instead.
Ed Balls is live on Skype to say how brilliant that was. Presumably they recorded that earlier.
Scores: 2,5,5 - a total of 12 for Jacqui and Anton.
Can I just say that Jacqui’s frilly snakeskin outfit is rather fabulous and I love it.
Shirley was impressed with Jacquie’s timing and Anton was adorable. Motsi thought it had it all* and Jacqui is clearly having fun. Craig though Jacqui was limping about like she was drunk and lost at a party, but it was a good idea to get Jacqui on the swing.
*apart from any Samba
Christ alive, they have giant feathers. Jacqui is wafting them to distract from her footwork, and also Anton. She’s actually got some quite decent bounce once this gets going, it just looks like her legs have been put on backwards.
The final 30 seconds is just Jacqui on a swing not dancing the Samba, and I think we should all be grateful for this.
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Next up it’s JACQUI AND ANTON! This week they’re dancing a Samba to ‘Help Yourself’ by Tom Jones. The words ‘Samba’ and ‘Anton’ are enough to strike fear into the gladdest of hearts, so brace yourselves. Jodie Kidd and and Ian Waite did a Samba to this in 2008; I found it on YouTube yesterday and it wasn’t very good, don’t bother.
In training – a socially-distance Ed Balls!
Scores: 8,9,8 - a total of 25 for Maisie and Gorka.
NO to phone hands. We stopped that three years ago.
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Craig had issues with Maisie’s pivots and her balance at the end, but she is an exceptional dancer. Shirley thought it was sharp and poised with some beautiful footwork. Motsi loved the difficulty of the choreography and how Maisie managed to stay in hold for the whole dance.
Shame we can’t see Maisie’s feet through all the fog, but some nice precision and timing in Maisie’s Tango. She’s GLUED to Gorka, as we all would be in her situation. Great work and incredibly compelling to watch, even though she’s a colossal ringer.
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Halloween mention! DRINK! Maisie doesn’t want to go home! DRINK!
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Next up it’s MAISIE AND GORKA! This week they’re dancing the Tango to ‘Midnight Sky’ by Miley Cyrus, which is a Very Current Song that I absolutely love.
After last week’s Samba Maisie looks likely to be this year’s ‘brilliant every week’ contestant, which is a bonus for the audience but pretty much guarantees she’ll make the final but won’t win. Maisie will be in illustrious company, however – Danny Mac, Frankie Bridge, Karim Zeroual, Ashley Roberts, Alexandra Burke, Kimberley Walsh…it’s a very long list.
Jamie’s mum and dog on Zoom gets a bonus DRINK.
Scores: 5,6,6 - a total of 17 for Jamie and Karen.
Motsi knew this week would be better, because last week was a panic attack. She loved the line but the ballroom hold had issues. Craig thought the ballroom section was poor, he was tiptoeing around like The Grinch, but the bits out of hold were much better. Shirley reminds us all that Jamie has zero dance experience, but there was a lot of gapping and footwork issues.
I love the old-school Hollywood glamour of this , although I can’t work out if Jamie has no neck or it’s just that shirt and tie combo. Either way it looks a bit hunched and constipated and lacks the required swing and sway. Anyone else getting Judge Rinder vibes?
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It’s time for JAMIE AND KAREN! This week they’re dancing the American Smooth to ‘Night and Day’ by Frank Sinatra. Love a bit of Frank, hopefully Jamie’s trousers will be a little roomier this week so the poor chap can give us all a swing and sway without risking future branches of his illustrious family tree.
Scores: 5,6,6 - a total of 17 for JJ and Amy.
Shirley loved JJ’s arms and how he used his breathing, but he needs to work on his power. Motsi loved how JJ understood the character and he had great intention and character. But he needed to keep it and not let it go. Craig wanted to see a more confident lead, JJ only showed half of what he was capable of but had a great Spanish line.
Some nice shaping and caping from JJ but his timing is off at the start, sadly. A good attempt at Spanish line, but the whole thing lacks drive and power. I do love this couple however, looking forward to seeing JJ’s journey over the coming weeks.
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Next up it’s JJ and AMY! Tonight they’re dancing the Paso Doble to ‘Believer’ by Imagine Dragons. It’s a brilliant song for a Paso, but inherently quite stompy. No stomping, JJ. We all started drinking about 4pm.
Scores: 8,8,8 - a total of 24 for Bill and Oti.
Craig wasn’t keen on the hand shaping but otherwise thought it was absolutely fantastic. Shirley thought Bill’s posture was so much better than last week, and wants to hug and kiss him. Motsi was super-surprised by Bill’s performance, he had great stamina and energy and she enjoyed every second of that. ME TOO.
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This is a lovely Quickstep and I find this pairing incredibly watchable. Bill isn’t the best dancer in the competition but he has bags of charm and style and incredible musicality. LOVED that.
Bonus points for the CGI animals. (I’m kidding, please stop the CGI).
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It’s time for BILL AND OTI. This week they’re dancing the Quickstep to ‘Talk To The Animals’ by Bobby Darin. Bill would make an incredible Doctor Doolittle and I’m already heavily invested in this movie remake.
In training, they’re being watched by some unimpressed birds.
Very much enjoying Shirley’s cleavage-tastic red dress, by the way. She looks fabulous.
Scores: 5,6,6 - a total of 17 for Clara and Aljaz.
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Motsi loved the Halloween mood, and she loved Clara’s energy although she struggled a bit with the posture. Craig thought Clara’s frame was very loose but he loved the choreography and drama. Shirley thought it had nice footwork but Clara’s shoulders needed to stay down.
Clara looks entirely fierce in that getup, and this whole angry Halloween Viennese is very much up my street. The dance lacks a bit flow and Clara got her skirt caught up in her heel at one point, but I’m very here for the mood.
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Next up it’s CLARA AND ALJAZ! This week they’re dancing the Viennese Waltz to ‘You Don’t Own Me’ by SAYGRACE. Greg Rutherford and Natalie Lowe danced a Viennese to the original Lesley Gore version of this song back in 2016, from my brief research can report the SAYGRACE version is the same but with rapping interludes that absolutely nobody asked for.
Halloween mention! DRINK!
Gordon Ramsey is reading the Terms and Conditions, apparently from some kind of construction site.
Scores: 6,7,7 - a total of 20 for Max and Dianne.
Shirley thought Max has approved, the Jive was tight and precise but he needs to work on his coordination. Motsi thought Max jumped out of his shell, he had great energy and he could be dangerous in this competition. Craig thought it was a bit too into the ground and there was no retraction, but he loved the energy and timing.
Max starts out with some pretty decent kicks and flicks, but he doesn’t have Jay’s precision or flair and it’s all a bit flat-footed and pigeon-toed. But a fun dance nonetheless.
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Last week’s scores are being added to this week’s scores, so currently Jamie and Jacquie are in trouble.
First up tonight it’s MAX AND DIANNE! This week they’re dancing the Jive to ‘I’m A Believer’ by The Monkees. Chelsee and Pasha did a Jive to this is in 2011, which we all remember because Pasha was channelling his inner Shrek. I’m not sure how I feel about Max NOT having a bright green face and horns for ears, to be honest.
Jay McGuinness is on Zoom!
Out come the judges! Motsi has swapped last week’s full body plastercast for a purple Christmas bauble.
Out come the stars! More excellent outfits, although Jason and Luba in neon yellow is giving me 80s flashbacks.
TESS AND CLAUDIA DRESS WATCH: Tess in a black pantsuit, Claudia in a sparkly shower curtain. In the immortal words of Bruce Forsyth (RIP): that’s SO much better than last week.
And we’re off! Last week our 12 couples dazzled on the dancefloor. Bruno wasn’t there, but he was watching. This week the pressure is on because one couple is going home (DRINK). Who will climb to the top of the leader board, and who will linger in the danger zone?
I’m not drunk btw, I’m just quoting Bruno.
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The PM’s press conference has moved to the BBC News Channel, so we’re all systems go for Strictly.
My reliable source about Strictly starting at 7.10pm may not have been terribly reliable.
I’m adding ‘next slide please’ into the bingo. If I were Claudia I’d slip it in somewhere.
I will not be including ‘humble in the face of nature’, which I think was a hit in the 80s for Alison Moyet.
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The lack of Powerpoint skills in our Government is very distressing for someone like me who Powerpoints for a living. No animations, no transitions, very poor use of SmartArt, crappy aspect ratio.
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This week’s Strictly Come Bingo: a swig of something foul and evil for any occurrence of the following:
- Random mentions of Halloween, despite it not being a Halloween Special
- The word ‘stompy’
- Crying
- Hip action
- Definitely not wanting to the be the first to go home
I’m reliably informed that Strictly will go ahead at 7.10, and Mr Johnson will be bumped to the BBC News Channel if he hasn’t started/finished his briefing.
I think it’s reasonable to assume that somebody has decided that the government is is enough trouble without delaying Strictly and has taken a decision.
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Evening glitter pumpkins, and welcome to this week’s Strictly Come Dancing liveblog! It’s been QUITE the day in England, we have no idea what time Strictly is starting, and we’re yet to hear what (if any) impact the new national lockdown will have on the Strictly bubble. Hopefully everything will continue as usual, because I think we can all agree that the likes of Oti and Aljaz should be considered legitimate key workers in these challenging times. Obviously what’s most important is the safety and wellbeing of everyone involved in the show, but let’s keep our fingers crossed that we can have our weekly dose of Strictly glitter during what is lining up to be another challenging month for a lot of people.
In the meantime, we’re back for Week 2! It’s the first time since 2015 that this Strictly Saturday has actually fallen on Halloween, and yet the Spooktactular has been cancelled due to it being too early in the season for such a big and complex theme week. Truly 2020 is the most cursed of years.
Tonight is the first week our couples are dancing to avoid the bottom two and the seasonally-appropriate mortification of being the First Couple To Go Home, which absolutely nobody wants. This will be mentioned many times this evening, so obviously I’ll be including it in the bingo.
Kick off is at 7.10pm (allegedly), so grab a bucket of sugary snacks and I’ll see you then!
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