I believe Paul quit but did he not also retired from competitive dancing before he started Strictly? Hanna K started dancing with Victor and quit after the first series.

As for Hayley ~ Its sad (if its true) that she was sacked through a email but maybe that is because that was the only contact they had with her because she's lives so far away; maybe she should have be given a second chance but I never thought she was a great dancer and she didn't get the best out of Mark. Other dancers you I liked more were replaced in other series and didn't get another chance like Andrew and Hanna (prefer both of them to Ola and James)

Also Brian and Kristina have been doing classes and shows in the UK and I haven't heard anything about Hayley since the last series you would think that if she wanted to come back so badly she would try to keep her profile high in the Uk esp after what happened to Nicole?

Yeah, I read this and was surprised by this evaluation. In the beginning the pros may have been seen as staff but I would regard the majority of the dancers as celebs in their own right when their status is measured against some of the so-called celebs that have appeared on SCD.

For me it's not the celebs that draw me to the show but the dancers.

Me too, flutegirl

When Strictly first started, I hadn't really heard of the pro dancers, and watched to see a competition between the "celebs".

But as time has gone on, I find that these days I look forward more to seeing the pros ( and especially the pro routines). Who they are paired with is interesting, but not my main focus.

It think you're technically correct, in that Paul had retired, went into strictly, and then returned to competitive dancing, but that wasn't until a bit later on. So reasons for quitting might have been different.

Agree with your second para though.

I thought you followed what happened in the dancer world from your responses on other threads (I don't)!

I thought Paul K was miffed about not being asked back tbh. As I said earlier John Byrne was the only person I knew actually chose not to take part. It was being discussed on another thread when I mentioned that I wondered if he had regrets given he was involved in the original idea for the show and could never have predicted how successful it would become.


Re watching the show to see the pros -

I would imagine the number of people who solely watch for that reason has increased over the years, but I suspect they are very much in the minority. I'd say that most people was for the 'whole package', with a fair sized element who follow their favourite couples.

Hanna Haarala was a more talented dancer than Hayley and also (sadly) wasn't asked back, despite making much more of an impact.

I agree the BBC should behave better, but having read the interview and quotes from Hayley about her wondering why she wasn't asked back, surely she saw the standard of the other pros and level of their choreography last year and had an inkling? Especially in comparison to the other 2 newcomers.

Shocking way to treat someone. E-mail FGS!

If you think about it from Hayley's point of view she may have been getting good offers of work for the dates when she thought she'd be doing Strictly and refusing them. She was in limbo, out of the loop not knowing WHAT was going on! She wouldn't have been able to commit to anything else in case she got called up. Let's face it - Strictly is fantastic publicity for pro-dancers. It's probably why the BBC thinks they can treat them in this shoddy manner because they know there's many others who will happily take their places. But they should show loyalty to people who are loyal to them and this doesn't always happen (a la Arlene)

I would be VERY annoyed in her shoes and I think that the dancers should know well in advance if they are wanted or not. They do have lives and the BBC has a history of shoddy behaviour towards its staff/stars etc

Posted something when annoyed and now delated.

BTW...haven't we known since Feb that Hayley wasn't coming back? And what is her agent meant to do if it's not field all her correspondance and get paid 10-20% for doing so? Do people not realise what agents do?

And does the Mirror have a work experience boy working this month?

He was still involved in the show up until last year though, because he used to come up to London and go through all the training footage every week and pick out certain bits and write the comments that Craig Revel Horwood then used to present as his own on a Wednesday night! He only stopped doing it last year because (allegedly) the BBC refused to give him a credit or pay him enough to make it worth his while giving up a couple of days worth of lessons!

I do follow dancing and am very serious about my lessons, but I'm afraid I've no inside knowledge even though my teacher is a professional dancer (we've never discussed SCD or any other danceworld gossip I'm afraid) . People who do know more have said on other threads that Paul chose to leave (as did Hazel Newberry), but in any case it's beside the point. I agree with the gist of what you're saying in that it is usual to contact someone through their agent, and that Hayley isn't the first pro not to have been asked back.

And yes, I agree that most people probably watch for the whole package. Generally my favourite couple depends on both the pro and celeb (i.e. I don't support the same pro from year to year).

I thought Paul K quit because he didn't enjoy it as much in his second year as his first. I'm not gutted that Hayley is not coming back but I think the beeb's manner of letting her know this along with Nicole and Arlene is callous and unfair.

That's good to hear, but foolish of the producers to lose him like that.


I'm the same.

Well thank goodness, the knockers can't condemn poor Alesha for this course of action.

Hayley's choreography may have seemed boring to some people, but she had to work with Mark - what else could she do?

Who knows?

That's the point for me really as if she had been more experienced she may have been able to adapt to choreographing for a duffer like Mark. Dancers like Lilia, Karen, Erin and even Ola have done wonders with duffers in the past (Gary Rhodes excepted - but that's a different story). I was no fan of JS but Kristina still got the best out of him.

Even in group pro dances an non-dancer like me could see she wasn't of the same high standard as the others.

I think the main issue is the way it was handled by the Beeb- who did show a lack of courtesy

You can't believe everything you read. Professionals have agents to represent them and find work. Thats their whole purpose. Of course people should be treated fairly. Hayley did not shine in her professional routines and did not dance with as much 'oomph' as Kristina. She was brought in to spice things up but it just never happened for her. I'm sure she is a lovely girl but it just never worked out.

The year before Nicole was told "no job" around the end of April, having been informally told previously there would be a job.

It was not until the first week of August that Hayley let out that her agent had to pursue BBC for an answer, getting an email dismissal in August(?) --> no job in September. Only Hayley can confirm the dates.

If true this late offhand treatment is unnecessarily hurtful, not to mention costly and disruptive to a girl who in NZ has a superstar career. Hayley came from the antipodes to Strictly in good faith, and like everyone else deserves fairness and courtesy.

Love and all best wishes to Hayley.