Strictly Come Dancing, quarter-final: Six talking points, from Les Mis and Mamma Mia to the 'best male rumba ever'
Wow, that was quite the night, with only five points separating the top and bottom of the Strictly leaderboard and just a tiny pair of shorts protecting Bruno’s modesty in the opening number. It still seems a fairly safe bet that Stacey, Ashley, Joe and Faye will make it to the final, but all it will take is a surge of votes or a slip in the dance-off to cause a shock. Here’s what happened:
Mamma Mia, Anton’s playing Pierce Brosnan!
Usually, the pro numbers are masterful, but this was camp as Christmas. I’m not saying that’s a bad thing, but wow – Craig came bouncing on with a sequined backpack, Brrrrruno was gyrating around in shorts, Anton played the Pierce Brosnan role in a weird hat and Dianne looked slightly disturbed when AJ had to kiss her at the end. All good fun though; who doesn’t love ABBA?!
Faye and Giovanni’s ‘quirky’ flawless Charleston
Faye Tozer, who is effervescent with enthusiasm for all things Strictly, seemed oddly reticent about this routine and the best word she could find to describe it was "quirky". But she needn’t have worried. Yes, she and Gio had to dress up as puppets (he was in Lederhosen, a felt hat and a blonde wig – they definitely don’t pay him enough) but the judges were wowed by the performance, set to The Sound of Music’s Lonely Goatherd. It gained them only the second perfect 40 of the series – unlike Paul Hollywood on Bake Off, Craig knows the power of holding back his top scores and making a 40 actually mean something.
Charles delivers the best male rumba ever
He looks likely to face the dance-off tomorrow night, but let it never be forgotten that Charles took one of the most boring dances in the competition (it really is) and turned it into a stunningly emotional killer moment. This was a West Side Story-themed number that even the Queen of the Rumba Shirley Ballas fell over herself to compliment. No mean feat.
Lauren redeems herself with an American Smooth
She may be popular with the public, but Lauren has really struggled to impress the judges for the last couple of weeks. Which makes for a fairly awkward atmosphere when she sails through without even a sniff of dance-off action. Tonight’s American Smooth was beautiful and confident, and while there were errors, it was a real return to form. Lovely to see.
Technicolour dreamcoats and Les Mis rags
Musicals is always a great theme and the production went to town. Joe Sugg was playing a 1970s disco version of Joseph, with a coat of many colours and a lot of eyeshadow (I don’t remember that from the Jason Donovan version of the show...). At the other end of the spectrum, Stacey Dooley took on the tragic Fantine from Les Mis in a black woolen shawl. There were lots of lifts and air grabs, and she got two 10s for her troubles. Let’s just say it was a different take to Anne Hathaway’s Oscar-winning performance.
Follow the action as it happened with what was our live blog below (please allow a moment for it to load):
After last week's Lindyhop-athon shambles, anything could happen tonight. Giovanni could try to yodel. Liza Minnelli could read out the terms and conditions. The judges could under mark Joe and Dianne... actually scrap that last one.
This is your five minute warning! Genuinely excited for some old-school razzle dazzle. Love her or loathe her, Ashley's quickstep to Don't Rain on my Parade promises to be spectacular.
Ooh I forgot about this - the pros are going to show us how it's done with a Mamma Mia-themed routine. You'll just have to imagine the Grecian scenery...
Anton in shorts is something that shouldn't have been authorised. Craig in that sequinned backpack is adorable. You get the feeling Brrrrrrrruno has been campaigning for that moment since series one. Shirley obviously fabulous with her sassy walks across the floor. I'm loving this even though it's secretly a little bit naff.
Hahahahaha, I love the moment where the studio audience pretend to be gutted about the couple that went out last week. They don't care, they just want to see the show they've been waiting hours for. Wow, Faye and Giovanni look ridiculous. In a fantastic way. Stacey is the most glamorous version of Fantine I have ever seen - did she ever see Anne Hathaway in the film?!
First up it’s the people’s champions Lauren and AJ. They might as well throw everything at it tonight – they’re performing for the voting public rather than the judges now. Although the good news is they’re doing an American Smooth, which draws on a lot of Viennese Waltz steps. The VW was high-scoring for Lauren, it really suited her and she prefers ballroom anyway, so this could be a good dance for her too. Plus she loves musicals (although she admits she’s never seen South Pacific, the inspiration for this routine. Oh well.)
WHY does AJ need to meet Lauren's nan?!?!?! Stop this. It's bad enough when Joe does it, although Nana Phyllis is obviously a legend and deserves her own chat show.
Ha! Johannes in a towel for no reason at all, love that. They're bringing back the extra dancers for Musicals Week, which is good news for the weaker dancers - more faffing around to disguise any mistakes. This looks rather lovely and elegant, it's definitely a style that suits Lauren and she's having a much better go at acting the part than we've seen before. It's not the most spectacular of routines for a quarter final, especially considering the potential of an American Smooth, but definitely an improvement.
Shirley says Lauren was absolutely outstanding, this is much better! Brrrrruno (in a FAB-U-LOUS jacket by the way) calls the dance a return to form and welcomes Lauren back to the big league. Craig says it proved ballroom really is Lauren's strength and praises her storytelling. What a relief for her after two tough weeks.
Next up, it’s Faye and Giovanni! They’re performing a Charleston to Lonely Goatherd from The Sound of Music. Not even one of the six best songs in that film, let alone in the definitive musicals songbook. I can offer you no explanation as to why they’re dancing to this, and Faye seems to share my reticence. Speaking on It Takes Two this week, the best she could say about the routine is that it’s ‘quirky’. Oh dear. The two of them are playing puppets by the way, not Maria and Captain Von Trapp. Shame.
A farmer and a yodel teacher?! Again, WHY?! If there are any footwork mistakes Gio should say to the judges, 'Well, if you hadn't dragged us out of rehearsals to visit that farm...'
Wow, it's the dance remix of Lonely Goatherd, even worse than I imagined. This is all very charming and sweet, but you can't help but feel they've been scuppered by this theme. Those lifts looked a big clunky as well. Faye's maintaining great bounce and spring and she's really going for it, but this isn't my favourite of their performances. What a waste of a talented pair.
'The audience is alive with the sound of cheering,' tries Tess. Hmm.
Brrrrruno calls it crowd-pleasing and labels it a theatrical masterpiece. Craig loved the goats. Helpful. Darcey calls it extraordinary, can't argue with that!
Shirley can't string a sentence together, she's so impressed. Oh wow, the close up on Gio's blonde fringe was terrifying. I'm going to hide under my desk for a bit.
